This is fantastic news! Great Job Mike and all those involved :clapper
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This is fantastic news! Great Job Mike and all those involved :clapper
Thanks MichaelAngelo! Way to go. From a suggestion to merely wiping across the letters to professional restoration - totally amazing! Of course you have now created the protocols, have the tools and experience....how about a writeup for UWS?
-skip
Thank you, Michael! Your efforts are beyond praise!!!
Thanks to all involved! I love diving in Cow and was really sick about the damage done.
I think it's great that MA and the others thought this plan through so well and executed it beautifully!
Todd
Great report - hope to see pictures. I second the idea of a writeup in UWS.
It's amazing the amount of work that goes into repairing damage that took some idiot only a few seconds to cause.
Thanks to everyone involved!
Mike
COW SPRINGS RESTORATION PROJECT DAY 3
***RESTORATION COMPLETE AND SUCCESSFUL***
The dive team consisted of Michael Angelo Gagliardi, Wayne Kinard, and Gene Page. Bill Bowden stayed an extra day to once again act as surface support. After meeting at Dive Outpost where we went over the day's plan we left for Cow Springs. Both Wayne and Gene back mounted while I side mounted. Gene had an extra 80 already in the cave as safety bottle. I carried an 80 which I used as travel gas. We wanted to do one long dive in which we would finish the restoration and clear all the tools, workstation and rigging rope. I was planning on a 2 - 21/2 hour dive.
Once at the site, I clipped the stage bottle to the line, went to work moving the tools from the line to the work bench. Wayne checked the rigging then began assisting me in the repair. The DIC was still visible. I took a clay modeling tool (a rubber scraper shaped like a French curve). With this tool I began working the clay from the center of the letters to over the letters itself. This buried the filler clay with the clay from the bank itself. This blended the clay making the letters disappear. Next I went to the darker sienna colored streaks and began dragging the streaks across the place where the letters were connecting it to the streaks on the other side. This began restoring the multi colored streaking. This done I used two soft haired brushes to smooth and blend the restoration further. This was a slow and meticulous process taking about 60 minutes. The rigging line was invaluable in holding me in place for this amount of time. It allowed me to focus on the work. When I finished this stage I got an ok from Wayne (who proved His telepathy again today. I just had to think which tool I wanted, put my hand back and the tool was put in it. Once all three agreed that this stage was done, I began handing Wayne all the tools and tubes. He bagged them and clipped them off to the permanent line. I made myself buoyant and pulled the table. This was harder then I thought due to the weights we attached. I got and moved it to the permanent line where I folded it and clipped it off. This left 4 small holes in the floor. I used the clay in the legs to fill these holes. Wayne then placed darker material on top making them disappear.
Next using the rigging line and the larger brush I slowly moved along the wall creating what we are calling controlled silt out. Using the brush to fan where the wall meets the floor. This took the loose clay droppings from the vandalism and the repair and kicked it into the flow where it was taken away and/or immediately disincarnated. I started working on the upstream end of the wall and working slowly a foot at a time began cleaning the debris away. It was fan it away, which took Vis to 0" wait for it to clear fan again wait, when an area was clean move a foot or two repeat the process. I am guessing it took 30 minutes.
Yesterday during my exit, I collected sand and dark gravel in a bag. Now taking this particulate I slowly released it into the water just upstream of the repair. This was the final blending. The lighted particulate landed on the clay wall the heaver to the floor. If you never dove this system before you would now not be able to find the vandalism or the repair. I am hoping it even fools some that know the system well.
Lastly we began gathering stage bottles, table, and bags of tools. Taking on last look at our work we shook hands and exited.
The flow helped moved the gear out. We each would go 1/2 thru the restriction turn and wait for the man behind you, helping him if needed.
At deco Wayne had a reg malfunction which he repaired in water. With deco finished I went back and pulled the reel. On the surface we gathered everything with Bill and got it up the hill. There were a few YAHOOs as well as back slapping.
Today's dive was 138 minutes. All in cave work times given were estimates. We all three had just under 1/3 gas left. All told this week counting Forrest setup dive and Bill's Sherpaing we had over 30 man hours in this project. This is not counting off site activities like getting fills. Nor does it count all my research time, shop time, or Gene’s post dive photo shop time. Dive Outpost and Amigos donated the gas for this project.
Gene shot over 100 pics and will post before and after photos ASAP.
Since the table and other tubes were built specifically for this project, I would like to donate them to the CAVE DIVING MUSEAM.
After the dive the team in keeping with cave diving tradition had a victory dinner at Sonny’s where we proved that when it comes to cave divers, gluttony is not a sin but an expectation. Oh Kelly I got a Sonny’s receipt for ya.
pictures?
Gene is processing His shots. He shot over 400 during the three day project
Once again, a sincere Thank You to all involved in this project. Great job!:clapper
Cool, those and a few pictures will make a great display for an ecology section.Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelAngelo
You guys are the best. Thank you for being such good cave docs. I'm sure the cave is saying "Thanks, all better now!" I hope we can keep it that way. Cindy :)