General Meeting Minutes from Sept. 26, 2023

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Introductions

The 20 people in attendance:
Ken, Max, Nick, Maria, Emily, Mike B., Lisa, Zeke, Sam, Bodoni, Melanie, Alex H., Alex M., Kyle, Eli, Ben Taylor T., Piotr, Mark, Michael N.

Business

  • Pay grotto dues. TriTrog membership is only $15 a year for individuals, $22 for families. Right now, for the low, low price of half off, you can be a member for the rest of 2023!
  • Many thanks to everyone who volunteered at BugFest this year.
  • If anyone is interested in being the youth group contact for the grotto, please let the officers know.
  • Who wants to host our Halloween or Winter Holiday potluck party? The host gets to pick the date and time!
  • Please offer any suggestions for year-end donations that the grotto should make.

Trip Reports

  • Culverson Creek Cave – Grotto Trip Day 1
    • Maria noticed a large, chunky salamander, very deep mud, and lots of crayfish. She really enjoyed the mesmerizing reflections off the water onto the cave walls. When Melanie’s students saw a photo of the culvert, they thought she got to slide down it. Taylor posted some nice photos on Discord.
    • Zeke wasn’t mentally prepared for the climb down after the culvert entrance. This was Bodoni’s first wild cave, and maybe Sam’s if we don’t count lava tubes. Bodoni enchanted the Northern Spring Salamander. Emily poked it to see if it was dead. Nope. There was also something about Gordon throwing a couple packs off of a high ledge to see if they could fly. Nope.
  • Piercy’s Mill Cave – Grotto Trip Day 2
    • Piotr would like to see the giant rimstone dams when the water level is higher, but maybe not as high as when Taylor was there last. There were some really pretty formations and some fish. Everyone appreciated being able to wash gear off in the stream.
  • Perkins Cave – ACC Open House
    • Melanie thought the 30-foot belly crawl presented a nice challenge. She saw an impressive variation of formations on a trip to the Forest Room. A second excursion that day took her to the historic section.

Upcoming Events/Trips

  • Sept. 30 – Rehoboth Church Cave photo trip
  • Oct. 5-8 – TAG Fall Cave-In (Menlo, GA)
  • Oct. 14/15 – Vertical Practice
  • Oct. 20-22 – Last Chance VAR (Antietam, MD)
  • Oct. 27-29 – Orientation to Cave Rescue (Morgantown, WV)
  • Nov. 11 – Hancock Cave and trail maintenance (Smyth Co, VA)
  • Spring 2024 – VAR Conservation Trip Sinkhole Cleanup

Program

Cave Packs – Taylor led a presentation and discussion about cave pack options (shape, capacity, durability, etc)