March 2008 Cave Trips

Tumbling Creek Cave March 3rd	Charity Hertzler	Immediately after a major precipitation event, Charity Hertzler did some photography in Tumbling Creek Cave (Taney Co) to record impressive waterfalls and high stream levels.
Breakdown Cave March 8th	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Zach Copeland, Roy Gold, Charity and Eric Hertzler, Charley Young and grandaughter Sarah	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Zach Copeland, Roy Gold, Charity and Eric Hertzler, Charley Young and granddaughter Sarah let a multi-functional trip to Breakdown Cave (Christian Co). Roy used a chainsaw to cut a path through fallen timber (due to ice storms) to reach the cave. Some led a Topeka, KS scout troop and volunteers from JPMorgan Chase on a guided educational trip through the Main Room, North Loop and Formation Loop of the cave while others photo documented normally dry Rimstone pools, biota, etc. Still others looked for biota, noting one grotto salamander and four young salamander larvae. Pickerel frogs were seen as well as pipistrelles, springtails, cave spiders, a pseudoscorpion and an adult cave salamander. Before leaving the cave, flowstone cleaning was demonstrated and the scouts helped begin a restoration project of the entrance passage.
Devils Slide Cave March 9th	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Jason Hardinger, Kasi Johnson, Tom Morton, Gabe Rodgers and Bob Taylor	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Jason Hardinger, Kasi Johnson, Tom Morton, Gabe Rodgers and Bob Taylor conducted mapping, restoration, and bio-inventory in Devils Slide Cave (Greene Co). As Bob sketched, Evan counted four big brown bats and more than a dozen pipistrelles, while others brushed and sprayed the walls to remove graffiti from several areas including recent spray paint and collect a minor amount of old trash. The cave is about 600 feet long and well decorated despite the vandalism.
Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave March 12th	Eric Hertzler	Eric Hertzler visited Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave (Greene Co). The natural bridge is about 10 feet high, 10 feet wide and 40 feet in length. The spring was issuing large volumes of water from what is reported to be a 200-foot cave containing Ozark cavefish and bristly cave crayfish.
Devil’s Well, Bootleggers Cave March 13th	Roy Gold and Charley Young	Roy Gold and Charley Young traveled to Devil’s Well (Shannon Co) for some signpost measurements for future sign making. Afterwards, they photographed Bootleggers Cave (Shannon Co) and Bear Cave (Texas Co).
Coffin Cave, Devils Slide Cave, Stalactite Cave March 15th	Jon Beard, Roy Gold, Kevin Goldwell, Kasi Johnson, Lloyd Morrison, Gabe Rodgers and Bob Taylor	Jon Beard, Roy Gold, Kevin Goldwell, Kasi Johnson, Lloyd Morrison, Gabe Rodgers and Bob Taylor of SPG and four guests had a photo, cleanup and survey trip to the Fullbright Springs area of Greene County. The group first visited Coffin Cave where several took photos. While Bob and Roy did some survey and sketch work in Devils Slide Cave, the guests looked around. Meanwhile, Jon, Kevin, Kasi, Lloyd and Gave hiked to Stalactite Cave. After the pit was rigged and dropped, they assessed the restoration to be done in the 110-foot cave. A future visit will be arranged for graffiti removal, stalactite reattachments and flowstone cleaning. Photos were taken, and then the group rejoined the others at Devils Slide where additional photography was done.
Predator Cave March 16th	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Kevin Goldwell, Jason Hardinger, Ron Kittle and Lloyd Morrison	Jon Beard, Evan Christiansen, Kevin Goldwell, Jason Hardinger, Ron Kittle and Lloyd Morrison assisted landowner Mary Turton in the continuing cleanup of a sinkhole within the recharge of Predator Cave (a.k.a. Billies Creek Cave) in Lawrence County. The cave is a known habitat for the endangered Ozark cavefish and bristly cave crayfish, a species of concern. The group amassed forty-one 40-gallon trash bags plus appliances and miscellaneous metal parts from the sink before running out of trash bags. The sink was trashed by a previous landowner.
Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave March 16th	Charity and Eric Hertzler	Charity and Eric Hertzler revisited Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave (Greene Co).
Breakdown Cave, Fitzpatrick Cave, Armpit Cave March 19th	Jon Beard, Charity and Eric Hertzler and Jack Rosenkoetter	Jon Beard, Charity and Eric Hertzler and Jack Rosenkoetter checked on the condition of the Breakdown Cave system (Christian Co) after massive flooding of the James River. Two of the three entrances to Fitzpatrick Cave were accepting the flow of the river and feeding it to Breakdown Cave through a humanly impassible flowstone constriction. The water in Breakdown was then draining out of a normally dry Armpit Cave. Photos were taken of the ponded Breakdown Cave Main Room, the only accessible part of the 6,300-foot cave.
Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave March 26th	Bob Taylor, Gabe Rodgers, Zach Copeland, Jerry Vineyard and Eric Hertzler	Bob Taylor, Gabe Rodgers, Zach Copeland, Jerry Vineyard and Eric Hertzler met at McDonalds at Hwy 65 and Battlefield and drove a short distance to Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave. After showing the others around Eric started the survey of the natural bridge, while Zach and Bob assisted with compass readings. Jerry assisted with tape and several height and width measurements. Gabe soon left the group promising to return at a later date with Kasi Johnson to conduct a water quality study. Bob, having to pick up his son from school, left about noon. Zach and Eric continued the survey of the bridge while Jerry, who will be doing a geologic description of the site, explored the many features of the bridge and spring taking photos and notes. With the plan view of the bridge finished, Eric and Zach said their goodbyes to Jerry and decided to explore the spring cave. The entrance is roughly eight feet wide, with two feet of air over two feet of fast flowing water. Once inside Zach spotted a bristly cave crayfish. Two more would be seen on their trip. The cave continues as a low and narrow joint determined passage two to three feet wide with two or more feet of fast flowing water under one to two and a half feet of air. The passage at one point makes a nearly 90-degree turn and then later nearly doubles back on itself. Zach had on a wetsuit and was able to explore roughly 120 feet from the entrance where he encountered an ear dunk. No further penetration was attempted.
Breakdown Cave March 27th	Jon Beard	Jon Beard checked the condition of Breakdown Cave (Christian Co) in preparation of the next day’s planned visit to the cave. In just eight days, the water flooding the cave had returned to the James River, leaving a thin veneer of silt and a few puddles.
Breakdown Cave March 28th	Jon Beard	Jon Beard led two groups of Nixa High School science students through a much drier Main Room and North Loop of Breakdown Cave (Christian Co). Both educational field trips dealt with the cave’s speleology, ecosystems and the proper etiquette of caving.
Fitton Cave March 28th	Jack Rosenkoetter	Jack Rosenkoetter guided a group of Colorado Grotto cavers through some of the main passages and rooms of Fitton Cave (Arkansas) as part of the 13th annual hosting of this group in the Ozarks. This is a tradition begun by Leo Thompson in 1995 for caving friends met in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Onondaga Cave, Little Scott Cave March 29th	Jon Beard, Roy Gold, Jack Rosenkoetter, Leo Thompson, Charley and Sarah Young	Jon Beard, Roy Gold, Jack Rosenkoetter, Leo Thompson, Charley and Sarah Young hosted the Colorado Grotto cavers in eastern Missouri. First, they were guided through Onondaga Cave (Crawford Co) by Ben Miller, then the SPG/CG group climbed and crawled through Little Scott Cave (Washington Co).
Carroll Cave March 29th	Eric Hertzler, Ashley Smith and Max White	Eric Hertzler, Ashley Smith and Max White of SPG joined Justace Clutter, Jim Cooley, Bill Gee and Andy Isabell of KCAG and PEG to do some bio inventory in Carroll Cave (Camden Co). They counted southern cavefish up to the Round Room in upstream Carroll River, then went into UL-2 past Convention Hall, finding larval grotto salamanders, isopods, cavefish and snails.
Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave March 29th	Gabe Rodgers and Kasi Johnson	Gabe Rodgers and Kasi Johnson visited Crighton Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Spring Cave to do some water testing.
Sequiota Cave March 29th		Some seven Springfield – Greene County Park Board Outdoor Initiatives staff entered Sequiota Cave for training under a permit from Missouri Department of Conservation. They found gray bats in the chimney just inside the cave entrance, with no additional sightings to the waterfall area. Water depth varied from three to four inches to over five feet deep; with heavy red silt still up to three feet deep still present.