General Meeting Minutes: August 27th 2019

—–Introductions (and favorite Lies given about caving)

Mike Broome – “Not much crawling”

Lisa Lorinzen – “This is the trip where we’ll extend the cave”

Ken Walsh – “I’ll be right back”

Michael McBride – “It’ll be fun”

Kim Parks – “The entrance is right over there”

Diane – “This is my first cave”

Elise

Rachel Saker – “You won’t get wet”

Vardel  “We’ll be out my midnight”

Carlin –

Zeke –

Mark Dewitt – “Cave Flooding in Worleys”

Julie Fairbank – “Beginner Cave”

Janelle Lovelace – “Family Lost in Caves (Trout Cave)”

Mike Vlah – “There will be cave salamanders”

Zorah

Emily Graham – “There are cave slugs”

Mark

Updates/Business

   — Conservation trip suggestions – taking suggestion, poss. Hancock cave restoration of trail,

  — Carlin updated website – NCRC link

    — Membership dues

   — Bugfest –

    — Darwin Day – theme: Botany (Nov 9th)

   — North Raleigh Scout Trip  (Oct 21st or 28th)

  — Out Chair is stepping down. We’ll not have another election, but do request help.

Trip Reports

  — Grotto Trip  — Carlin with his kids (Boxwer Crystal, Dead Air), Small kids, didn’t like small spaces, but encouraged to go in. Cried the entire time. Smaller group, less light may have effected kids.

                          — Mike B. – Took Carlin’s kid (4 year old) down to the bottom/big room, liked
                               big room/breakdown

                           — Mark (w/lee olson and Peter and Axle). Boxwork Crystla, Dead Air, Duttons

                           — Diane impressed with large room in Dead Air

  Sunday of grotto trip – 5 members including Mike B went to Big Sink (lots of Scat), lots of wild flowers and Butterflies on approach. Surveyed with Ken, Lisa, Emily and Diane.Crash course in sketching. Canyon passages, running water. 4 hours of surveying; much left to survey.

  Emily – survey other spots near smelly area. Small passage/crawl surveys…bad for Ken.

Mike V – 7 people to New River Cave – Winterforest room with Flowstone . Other groups from VT.  Muddy hallways. Calcite layers showing water levels. Breakdown room, Planetarium, saw 3 Bats (Tricolor).

Perkins – Rachel and Carlin – Survey: Camp trip, small comfortable site near flowing water. 48 hours underground. 1500 ft added. Mice noted. Blowing, lots of subsurface formations.

Presentation – Mike and Lisa “Fantastic leads”

— Inspired by Ken! Mike and Lisa started in Grand Caverns. Resurvey to a small hole off tourist trail. Not much digging at that time. By pushing that specific lead – ¾ miles known cave to 3 miles since 2006.

— The Dream. Small hole exploration leads to large areas of Cave.

— Reality: Lots of digging, little new cave.

— Observation: Searching for new area : Sinks. Removing debris: trolleys, bucket slides.

— Faith: excavation due to geologic hypethosizing (Blowing air, geological evidence,

— Speleo-Engeneering: Moving mud/rock.