"Special Permission" Cave

We got the call Saturday from Tom. He was working with another professor (Ingrid) and a journalism student to produce an article about karst and was doing something at the Camuy Caverns with Carlos Morales. We don't know any details really. I had a terrible backache from the day's dive, a headache and sour stomach but thought I might be ok the next day. We committed to going. When we got the call on Sunday I still was feeling like crap but this cave we were to visit required special permission to enter and was a short walk from the road. I didn't like the thought of the 100 foot rappel (lower back problems) but figured I could whine at home and miss it or just give it a whirl. We arrived before Tom and Diana and Ingrid finished up so we sat around outside. I had to go to the bathroom and discovered that the Camuy Caverns, one of Puerto Rico's largest tourist attractions, didn't have water that day and the bathrooms weren't working. Of course the sign was in Spanish. The bathrooms were also open so people just pretended they were working and kept piling it on - GROSS. I refused (I'll  pee in the woods thank you). They finished up and now needed lunch so we met them at Panaderia Lourdis. There there were functioning toilets, soap and paper towels but no running water in the sink. I did what I could and then we waited a while longer since only one of the three people needing lunch actually had it yet. After everyone had eaten we met Carlos Morales and Johnsey at the cave and with everyone we headed down the very steep embankment. We arrived at one entrance, the rappel, and were told there was a walk in entrance. The journalism student didn't want to do any more of the slope walking and left with Ingrid to do a car tour of karst areas. Johnsey found the hand line entrance, dropped the hole and found the walk in one. We all went to the walk in entrance and were quite surprised at how HUGE the cave was! Looking in people at the bottom looked truly miniaturized. We made our way down and were just in awe over the size of it. You could see through to the surface in two "eye" like holes and then there was a crest and skylight (rappel hole) then another large area. In this first "room" Tom discovered an area high up that had an odd blue surface - some kind of mineral maybe? We went over the crest to the other "room" and down that slope. There was an area of muddy and a little water and low formations. Johnsey said it didn't go anywhere but I didn't believe him and no one else wanted to get muddy. Good thing I was there - I went through and it opened into the best part...a decorated and huge room with a couple little pits in it! I got everyone else to come in. I went down into a pit that had a squeeze that doubled back and made a room under the room. None of the pits continued on but this area was impressive with sorbetos and an almost furry looking ceiling - very covered. A lot of ceiling pieces were broken off and regrowing. Lots of cracks maybe from long-time-ago earthquakes. Very nice! We examined everything in a couple hours before heading out. Tom worked up a thirst and went to a stalagmite watering hole (see him bending over?). You could see the water line on the wall. This was a nice cave which far met any expectations we had. I still felt like crap but at least I didn't miss it and it wasn't so taxing that I threw up or anything. The crawling may actually have popped something back into place and helped my back and nausea! One of our shorter days but with a big payoff for a small amount of effort! Thanks to Tom for all the arranging - the most difficult part of the trip!

 



Look at how miniaturized Johnsey looks! See the mud line where Diana is emerging! On the other side is the awesome room.



Tom's watering hole is below on top of the stalagmite - a fountain I guess - slurp! On the way out I just HAD to go up the handling. Tom followed and then we all headed back up the steep slope. I am still trying to visualize all this from the surface. We could see sky. We know we were basically under the road and that this should connect to the chicken-carcass-candle- cave. We didn't see where but no one wants to go down the stinky carcass pit. Hmmmm. Needs to be mapped (NO I didn't just say that!) Hopefully Tom will find a map of it.





5 Caves Near the Tanama River

Tom called and invited us caving. The trouble with this time of year is rain. Rain means a lot of the great wet caves are too dangerous to go into. This year has been strangely wet later than last year and there are not many dry caves we know about. Tom, however knows a lot of caves and suggested doing a cluster of caves close to one another near the Tanama River. We had seen one of them from the river level when we hiked the Tanama on a ten hour journey a few years ago but it was way up the cliff. Today we were going to get to see it. We also were not going to have a 10 hour day!  I don't know if I am out of shape (yes) or was just tired starting out (maybe) but boy was it hot. The kind of hot that makes you fatigue quickly and sends you into heat exhaustion. We walked a half hour maybe and got to the first cave. It was very nice with bright white rock and formations. It wasn't a large cave but nice none-the-less. Then we did some more walking and went into another cave. Then we went to what was basically what looked like an animal hole and it was a surprising and interesting cave. This was my favorite cave of the day because I liked the little hole we went into to get into it. Tom went feet first on his back and all of us had to do a little wiggling to get into this one! Inside had some neat rock layers and I think this was the one a crocodile fossil was found in (no crocodiles were never on the island so it had to have been brought here long ago enough to fossilize). There were a lot of coral fossils also. The cave had a little ledge that required a hand line and some balancing. (DON'T JUMP Diana - WE LOVE YOU)

Then it was off to a pass through kind of slot like cavern/cave you could see through. This one reminded me a lot of the caves on Mona Island (not formed the same way ). At this point we were hot and it was pretty buggy with mosquitoes everywhere so we went into ANOTHER cave just for lunch before heading back. The lunch spot had a terrific view of the jungle and magotes. On an island full of so many people it is amazing to me that we can go not-too-far off a road and be pretty much alone with spectacular views and adventure. This area was particularly clean without garbage or skeleton animals so indeed it was a good day! A big thanks to Tom and Diana AGAIN.

Cueva Barbudos y Monte Encantada

Looking out of cave entrances has go to be one of life's finest joys. Scuba diving used to be our favorite thing to do until we discovered caving. There is something just inherently wrong about going into dark holes...and something amazingly wrong that more people haven't and will never do this! Caves are truly one of the only things left to explore. These two caves are not big, but their entrances are still impressive and the best part is that they are exactly 10 minutes from our house. Yes we have been in them a couple times before, but hey - if we don't have anything else planned it is kind of like walking around your neighborhood. It is still nice. On Sunday we joined Tom and some of his students on a trip here. It is always best to have a couple people who know the way through the cave and jungle in case there is a problem. These caves are a short 10 minute walk off the road. Incredible, huh? So here you can see the little cluster of people on the right. Below that is a photo of beams of light as seen from inside the cave (Monte Encantada) at the bottom of the slope.

I like to imagine these as tractor beams like the ones in Star Trek - if I stand in them I will teletransport to somewhere else. My little camera has a panoramic feature I has just started to try to use. It gives you an idea of the formations. Monte Encantada has a lot of bats in it and guano. The bats huddle together when they aren't flying around disturbed.

We spent an hour or so at Monte Encantada. After that we hiked 8 minutes back toward the road to Barbudos. This is the cave entrance and Jeff on the trail. Once you hike down into the mouth you encounter a stream and this little tube-like entrance. When we were here on Thanksgiving this was completely full of water and we could not get in. This time the way in was open!

Jeff bent over and went through the little hole. The ceiling then becomes lower and lower and the water higher and higher until there is very little clearance.

Most of us took our helmets off so we could do the head tilt to keep our noses out of the water. It then opens up a little more (to maybe head high) and the two water pipes can be seen. This class was a hydrology class and the point was to show them the water pipes. You can feel the vibrations which is kind of creepy. This probably is the water supply for our house. Looking to the back of the photo is looking out of the cave. I didn't continue on (since I'd done it before and a number of students needed to see it) but the cave stays low, constricts some more, opens into a little room, goes up and down on sharp rock and ends at a sump which we have heard is diveable. Here's Jeff swimming out the entrance and climbing back up toward the light. I wouldn't say these are super duper caves, but they are close to home...easy to walk to...and who can beat the way the light was coming through that cave entrance?