Are there still Epic holes out there to be found?
An interesting new 'cave' discovered.
http://www.livescience.com/animalwor...host_cave.html
Are there still large, unexplored systems out there within reach of our current scuba technology? Any in the States? Or do you think they are just about all played out?
A buddy of mine asked why I was interested in cave diving. He said there were no going lines that would impress anyone and that the best you could hope for was to be a tourist. He is a climber, and spends alot of time in Canada looking for 'first' routes.
Personally, I think there are probably lots of pushes going on; in fact TDS had a recent article on one in Mexico, just that there is little information out there about them.
Dave
Re: Are there still Epic holes out there to be found?
Quote:
Originally Posted by dshuman
Are there still large, unexplored systems out there within reach of our current scuba technology? Any in the States? Or do you think they are just about all played out?
There are unexplored caves/springs everywhere. They may be in sparsely populated countries, or have local political issues.
I noticed several 1st magnitude springs on a list in Saudi Arabia. With all that sand, they may well be clear like Devil's Eye.
There are several in and around Missouri that have been closed by the state. They probably only have 30-50' vis however.
If you don't mind walking through "dry" cave to get to the water, the number goes way up :-)
Then there is always the possibility that there are systems with no obvious vents. Like Cindy said, they may come up in a river, or offshore.
"take only pictures & leave only bubbles"-!
At one particular CDS workshop in Branford, awhile ago, I remember a couple of guys by the names of Skiles & Exley ranting on & on about some of their finds below the good earth. They were having fun with the audience, sharing their spirits of some of the caves they were exploring. Poking fun at each other as well, it enlighened us to catch their enthusiam for exploration. Not much has changed in the spirit of things for cave exploration, other than how we do it & some of the new gear that we are using. To this day, nothing excites me more than to find a new Karst window, that no one has been thru, or layed line in. These are the spots that will kick you in the heart & want to share with everyone, but perhaps they are better explored quietly with a couple of close dive buddys who will keep your secrets-! So, if I or any of the other explorer types invite any of you along on a sojourn into a 'new' world, my suggestion to you is to jump at the oppurtunity to go caving-! There is no finer endeavor-!
Dive safe, have fun & if you find something cool, save it to share with your favorite dive buddys. {Cindy/Lee/FW/Ary/TJ/Chip/Ghost/Sludge/Jammer/John/Curtis/BillOg/Scott/...etc-:)
JE
Re: Are there still Epic holes out there to be found?
Quote:
Originally Posted by dshuman
An interesting new 'cave' discovered.
http://www.livescience.com/animalwor...host_cave.html
Are there still large, unexplored systems out there within reach of our current scuba technology? Any in the States? Or do you think they are just about all played out?
A buddy of mine asked why I was interested in cave diving. He said there were no going lines that would impress anyone and that the best you could hope for was to be a tourist. He is a climber, and spends alot of time in Canada looking for 'first' routes.
Personally, I think there are probably lots of pushes going on; in fact TDS had a recent article on one in Mexico, just that there is little information out there about them.
Dave
Hey Cindy,
Well, I was reading the above post and it was clear that there are a lot of cave divers that lose interest if they think there isn't any line left to lay. I just wanted to point out that there is a lot more to cave exploration than that. I'm not irritated or anything, but I just don't like to see people develope the mindset that there isn't anything they can contribute unless they are the ones laying all the line. I didn't mean to come accross as anything other than offering an alternative way of looking at things. If I did, I'm very sorry. :oops: -Alan
Re: Are there still Epic holes out there to be found?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan Garrett
Quote:
Originally Posted by dshuman
An interesting new 'cave' discovered.
http://www.livescience.com/animalwor...host_cave.html
Are there still large, unexplored systems out there within reach of our current scuba technology? Any in the States? Or do you think they are just about all played out?
A buddy of mine asked why I was interested in cave diving. He said there were no going lines that would impress anyone and that the best you could hope for was to be a tourist. He is a climber, and spends alot of time in Canada looking for 'first' routes.
Personally, I think there are probably lots of pushes going on; in fact TDS had a recent article on one in Mexico, just that there is little information out there about them.
Dave
Hey Cindy,
Well, I was reading the above post and it was clear that there are a lot of cave divers that lose interest if they think there isn't any line left to lay. I just wanted to point out that there is a lot more to cave exploration than that. I'm not irritated or anything, but I just don't like to see people develope the mindset that there isn't anything they can contribute unless they are the ones laying all the line. I didn't mean to come accross as anything other than offering an alternative way of looking at things. If I did, I'm very sorry. :oops: -Alan
I took your message for what it was Alan and I feel much the same way. Just because there is line in a passage does not change it from being new to me the first time I venture through it. You never know what you may find if you take the time to look around instead of focusing on the eol. Last summer we wnet to a cave up in TAG that I honestly thought was virgin as I encountered no line. Our second trip we found line just beyond where I had stopped the first time. Knowing that I was not the first divier to swim that tunnel did not diminish how I felt my first time in one iota. I was still excited to be a part of it, diving a cave out of the way and experiencing what sheck and the others must have felt the first time they dove places such as Peacock. Exploration is what you make of it.
Re: Are there still Epic holes out there to be found?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan Garrett
I'm not irritated or anything, but I just don't like to see people develope the mindset that there isn't anything they can contribute unless they are the ones laying all the line.
Yikes. I hope I have not given the impression that if it ain't virgin it ain't for me. I still get excited every time I pull a breath through a reg at depth.
I think many divers, especially recently, are drawn into this world by different means than those who came before. Like most things where there is a profit margin; marketing and hype are often the first ways that many of us even learn that something exists.
Unfortunately, that marketing and hype can ring hollow. Not so in cave diving. Once you peel back the candy coating of the longest, deepest, and shiniest there are individuals, many on this board, who are quietly expanding the world unseen.
Dave
