Introductions

In attendance: Zeke, Emily, Stephan, Peter, Ken, Lisa, Mike, Mark, Alex, Maria

Business

  • Dues are now half-price! $7.50 for individuals, something else for families.
  • The annual grotto trip will be the weekend of August 13 at RASS Field Station. The sign-up sheet will be e-mailed this week.

Trip Reports

Peter and Stephan went to try to unclog the Spencer entrance to Buckeye Creek Cave. The effort was unsuccessful, but they made a trip into the other entrance which was nice if you’re willing to get your reproductive organs wet. From there they went to the dry end of the cave and saw some incredible formations of hexagonal shapes. They also went to the Norman side of Bone-Norman Cave where they also got to walk in a stream passage.

Upcoming Things

  • July 30 – Horizontal sport trip to Breathing Cave
  • Aug 13 – Annual Grotto Trip
  • Aug 20 – ACC short tours at Perkins Cave
  • Sept 1-5 – CaveFest (Tenn)

Program

Gear Swamp! Swap!

Introductions

In attendance: Zeke, Emily, Stephan, Peter, Ken, Lisa, Alex, Diana, Louis, Carlin, Mike, Taylor O., and Ann

Business

  • Yearly dues go to half-price at the beginning of July: $7.50 for an individual or $11 for a family.
  • The grotto officers will have a meeting primarily to discuss the annual grotto trip scheduled for the weekend of August 13.

Trip Reports

Peter, Ken, and Stephan went on a sport to Hancock Cave. Stephan found it easier getting in than coming out. It probably didn’t help that he had formed himself into a spineless corkscrew at some point in between. They went to the top of Witch Glob Pit to see if anything had opened up near the surface; nothing had.

Mike and Lisa went to Gneiss Cave at Chimney Rock State Park. They appreciated the shade.

Mike and Lisa explored Blue Grotto, a sea cave in Italy. They had to lie down in a rowboat to get inside. The guides sang.

Upcoming Things

  • July 30 – Horizontal sport trip (see Ken)
  • Aug 13-14 – Annual Grotto Trip
  • Aug 20 – short tours of Perkins Cave (offered by ACC)

Program

Louis conducted a casual interview with 2nd and 3rd generation cavers Taylor Orr, Carlin Kartchner, and Emily Graham.

Introductions

Triangle Troglodytes in attendance: Zeke, Emily, Peter, Ken, Stephan, Mark, Taylor O., and Howard

Business

  • As always, a dues reminder. Pay your annual TriTrogs dues now or wait until July and pay half-price! Here is our PayPal stuff.
  • NSS dues range from $20 to $140, depending on how nice you are. Find details at this link. (NSS = National Speleological Society)
  • Annual Grotto Trip! Those in attendance agreed on the weekend of August 13. The location remains up in the air.
  • Louis asked for suggestions for future meeting programs. Stephan may be willing to present some of his cave diving photos, and Mark suggested a rundown of caving-related feature films (think The Descent, Sanctum, The Cave, etc).
  • Free loot! Howard gave away two gently used wetsuits and two tins of carbide.

Trip Reports (VAR Edition)

We went in. We came out. We had fun.

Stephan F.
  • Return to Endless Caverns: Stephan and Peter went on a tour of the wild section of Endless Caverns. They encountered small holes, crawling sections, pits to avoid, pits to descend, and even some water.
  • Ken worked on a project to rebuild the trail to Madison Saltpeter to make it less noticeable from below. In addition to the trail project, the Cave Conservancy of the Virginias hopes to reclaim the Cave Hill Natural Area Preserve from the invasive species.
  • Taylor O. visited small, well-decorated Massanutten Cave, which operated as a commercial caverns once upon a time. They were warned that the lower, wild level sometimes floods, and it had, so it was a short, wet trip.
  • Ken attended the Sunday VAR meeting. Among other topics discussed, Southeastern Cave Conservancy (SCCi) has acquired Salamander Cave, a vertical maze cave over 2 miles long in Giles County, Virginia. Also, there is again and always some discussion about gating New River Cave.
  • On the way home, Ken, Stephan, Peter, and Taylor walked through Crozet Tunnel (aka Blue Ridge Tunnel). They refrained from scraping the lampenflora off the walls and enjoyed the respite from the heat.

Upcoming Things

  • June 11 – sport trip to Hancock Cave
  • June 13-17 – NSS Convention in Rapid City, SD
  • July 8-10 – Karst-O-Rama in Mt. Vernon, KY
  • July 15-23 – NCRC Cave Rescue Seminar and Training in Covington, VA
  • July 24-31 – International Congress of Speleologie in France
  • Aug 13 – Annual Grotto Trip
  • Aug 20 – Led trips at Perkins Cave in Washington Co., VA

Program

We watched a video about an electrical resistivity project in Bracken Cave, roosting site for millions of Mexican free-tailed bats. The project is billed by the National Cave & Karst Research Institute as the world’s first geophysical survey of bat guano. The purpose is to find the perfect location from which to take a core sample of guano, for analysis of the bats’ diets throughout the ages.

Introductions

In attendance: Zeke, Peter, Ann, Ken, Mark, Stephan, Emily

With so few attendees, we delved into our deep, dark subconsciouses in a brief discussion of our cave-related anxiety dreams.

Business

  • Pay your dues online via PayPal. $15 for the year for individuals; $22 per family.
  • Annual grotto trip? Zeke says yes, we plan to have one. When? Late August? The officers will begin to discuss details at an officers meeting tbd.
  • Emily inquired about Wilderness First Responder (5+ days) and Wilderness First Aid (2-day) courses. Those present who had been WFR or WFA certified said it was worthwhile. [More information here.]

Trip Report

Stephan described the marauding, algae-killing mob of about 25 cavers that descended into Endless Caverns last weekend to slay the lampenflora. Armed with bottles of hydrogen peroxide and buckets of brushes, our heroes fought back the green stuff. Stephan likened the sizzle of dying mosses to the sound of a juicy steak on the grill. He recommends these conservation opportunities to anyone who has to fight a strong urge to step off the trail. See Ken’s trip report here.

Program

We watched a short video about the properties of silks used by glowworms and spiders.

Upcoming Things

  • May 20-22 – Spring MAR/VAR at Grand Caverns in Grottoes, VA (Pre-registration ends May 4!)
  • June 3-5 – Orientation to Cave Rescue in Upper Tract, WV
  • June 13-17 – NSS Convention in South Dakota
  • July 8-10 – Karst-O-Rama in Kentucky
  • July 15-23 – Cave Rescue Operations and Management Seminar in Covington, VA
  • July 24-31 – International Congress of Speleology in France

Introductions

In attendance: Zeke, Mike, Emily, Lisa, Erin, Elise, Lee, Ryan, Stephan, Katie, Andre, Louis, Diana, Peter, Ken, Martin, Ann

Our break-the-ice question: If you realized after exiting that you’d left something in the cave, what would you go back for?

Business

  • Pay your grotto dues! Only $15 for the year. Membership Info
  • Mike will catalog the recent gear acquisition and post photos of the available used cave suits.
  • Louis received an award for adopting a bat at Frick’s Cave. Carlin was not present to receive his award.

Trip Reports

  • Katie and Andre visited Lost Cave in Greenbrier Co., WV. They saw signatures dated 1890 and a lot of much newer graffiti. Other features included a busy waterfall and some brief crawls and breakdown passages.

Upcoming Things

  • Apr 23 Spring Restoration at Endless Caverns in Virginia
  • Apr 21-24 SERA Cave Carnival in Georgia
  • May 20-22 Spring MAR/VAR at Grand Caverns in Virginia
  • Jun 13-17 NSS Convention in South Dakota
  • Jul 8-10 Karst-O-Rama in Kentucky
  • Jul 15-23 NCRC Nat’l Seminar in Covington, Virginia
  • Jul 24-31 Int’l Congress of Speleology in France

Program

A video about The Formation of the Appalachians https://youtu.be/WROQIdM8YW4

Introductions

In attendance (via Zoom): Zeke, Robert, Peter, Stephan, Taylor O., Louis, Jack, Mike B., Emily, April, Jeramie, Skylar, Diana, Lisa, Michael E., Alec, Ken, Chris, John, and Hanna

Our break-the-ice question: While underground, what do you carry on your person (rather than in your pack)? A second light and food were the top responses. Pro tip: For a warm mid-trip meal, stow your sandwich in your suspension helmet.

Business

  • Pay your grotto dues! Only $15 for the year! https://www.tritrogs.org/meeting-information/membership-info/
  • A former TriTrog has donated a whole bunch of old gear to the grotto. Mike will be cataloging it with an eye towards what might be useful for loaner gear. In addition to the lights and helmets, there are some cave suits that the former member is asking $100 for.
  • Our Spring Restoration project will be held in April at a commercial caverns that is probably closer than the one we’ve been going to. More details to come. [Ed., may be farther away. TBA]

Program

Peter Hertl’s presentation “Vertical Caving in Mexico” covered his trip from December to Sotano de las Golondrinas, Hoya de las Huahuas, Cascada de Tamul, and Sotano de El Cepillo.

Upcoming Trips and Events

  • April ? Spring Restoration at ?
  • May 20-22 Spring MAR/VAR at Grand Caverns in Grottoes, VA
  • June 13-17 NSS Convention in Rapid City, SD
  • July 8-10 Karst-O-Rama in Mt. Vernon, KY
  • July 15-23 NCRC National Seminar in Covington, VA
  • July 24-31 International Congress of Speleology in France

Grotto elections are held yearly at our January grotto meetings. Officers serve from January to January.

This year each office had exactly one nominee, so we voted to accept the slate as a whole. Our 2022 officers are:

Chair:“Zeke” Van Fossen
Vice-Chair:Louis Le
Secretary:Emily Graham
Treasurer:Mike Broome
Webmaster:Taylor Tibbs

Introductions

In attendance (via Zoom): Andre, Bram, Carlin, Elise, Emily, Janell, Joanna, Kelly, Ken, Lee, Lisa, Martin, Mike B., Peter, Taylor, Zeke

There was a lot of discussion here, but I didn’t take notes. As I recall, it ranged from Lisa’s bad knitting to Andre’s illicit climbing locations to Zeke’s unusual headwear (ran out of tinfoil).

Business

Our treasurer, Mike, reported on our finances. We collected dues for 23 members last year. We already have 21 paid members for 2021. To pay your dues, visit https://www.tritrogs.org/membership-info/ or contact Mike at treasurer@tritrogs.org.

Elections

Each office had exactly one nominee, so we voted to accept the slate as a whole. Our 2021 officers are:

  • Chair: “Zeke” Van Fossen
  • Vice-Chair: Taylor Tibbs
  • Secretary: Ken Walsh
  • Treasurer: Mike Broome
  • Webmaster: Elise Sanderson

Trip Report

Bram spent a week in TAG doing lots of rappelling. He shared some really nice photos.

Introductions

In attendance: Mike B., Taylor, Ken, Zane, Lisa, Ann, Diana, Peter, Skylar, Emily, Lee

Business

We will send out a Doodle poll before the November meeting to try to nail down a day for the December holiday Zoom party/meeting.

Pay your dues so that Mike B. can afford to send our grotto donations.

Some of the NSS websites will be changing as they switch over to … yeah, I dunno, something. Just be patient if you encounter broken links and what not.

Program

Skylar presented Survival of the Fattest, a program about the science of White Nose Syndrome. Don’t disturb hibernating bats; she mentioned that bats wake up slowly, so just because you don’t see them stirring doesn’t mean they won’t as soon as you walk away. Also, maybe don’t eat the cave-aged cheese.

Knot of the Month: Prusik

Carabiner of the Month: Bent Gate Carabiner

Trip Reports

Michael, Elise, Michelle, and Elena picked up trash outside the entrance of Hancock Cave. Using river rocks, Ken and Emily built a couple dozen steps leading up the hillside along the new trail to the entrance.

Skylar went to New River Cave. There were cave goats!

Introductions

In attendance and fun hats: Michael M., Emily, Ken, Mark, Mike B., Bram, Skylar, Elise, Taylor, Diana, Janell

Business

  • Nikki Fox was looking for nice photos of Hancock Cave for the WVCC website (wvcc.net).
  • Feel free to pay your dues via the PayPal link on our website. Mark Little’s name shows up on the receipt, but the funds really go to the TriTrogs.
  • According to Michael M., Dec. 12 is an NSS HQ work day. If you’re interested in heading down to cave country (in Alabama) and doing some hard labor, he might be going.
  • Got any ideas for a TriTrogs holiday pandemic party?

Program

Mike Broome presented Vertical Techniques, a Brief Overview of Vertical Caving and SRT. For related information, check out the tome On Rope: North American Vertical Rope Techniques and the NSS Vertical Section website.

Carabiner of the Month: Modified D Carabiner