Doggy Cave Trip

Just a little photo to play catch up with some of my photos. This is from the beginning of the this summer in May when i got to take my 11-year old pup on her very first caving trip!

On the Rail

Been wanting to shoot this for a long time and was always reminded of it on the way out. Finally got it a few days ago at the tail end of a Legacy Class that I got to help with. We had an awesome group of teachers - got to visit three caves - and some great speakers - Vicky from A-Z Animals and Jim Lacefield, author of Lost Worlds in Alabama Rocks.

Keith Cave

Got to help with a small group of photographers from North Alabama Photographers Guild this past Saturday. Had a great time with everyone. Its fun to help folks who want to dabble in cave photography... they get to experience the underground - and then try and take photos there... which is where Nathan's lighting arsenal came into play. On Saturday we were using flash bulbs, a Compact Fluorescent, a Lumedyne, and an LED Scout. Dennis and his buddy Nathan also did a bit of light painting and gel/flash work too.

Left to right: Nathan, Dennis, Ben, Cecil and Nathan.

Here are a couple of the shots that they took away from the trip:

the decent
Originally uploaded by EchoBoomer

Brina Bat
Originally uploaded by Dennis Calvert

Keith Cave multiple exposure
Originally uploaded by Ben_D

Outdoor Alabama

So this is pretty cool - Jeff Rease, a friend and amazing photographer who's a fellow member of the NAPG (North Alabama Photographers Guild), entered a photo taken at Stephen's Gap on an NAPG cave photo trip that I got to help with last year. The photo won first place in Outdoor Alabama's "Nature-based Recreation" category and is now on the cover of this months magazine. I'm the silhouette at the top of the pit. Nathan Williams is the second silhouette with the pack dangling below him. Big congrats to Jeff on winning!!

Cave Archeaology

Where I'm gonna be for part of this summer.....and where I was for 3 weeks last summer.

Phillips Academy - PA Archaeologist Awarded National Geographic Society Grant

Tree Rise

Tree Rise
Originally uploaded by Brina Bat (Sabrina Simon)

So I've recently been going to Yoga classes. And out of all the various poses I'm adjusting to I think the tree pose is one of the most graceful especially when you're really in tune with the balance aspect of it. The other evening I took a trip to Tumbling Rock to take some photos and cave a bit. The night before I thought it'd be cool to try a yoga pose. So Danielle humored me with practicing her yoga tree pose while Nathan humored me with a couple strobes so I could take some shots. Am happy with the results - Danielle's silhouette in her tree pose is very graceful and calm. I like how the lights and darks play between the smooth shape of Danielle and the rough formations to the smooth - almost concrete-like ceiling and packed mud floor.

The Soft Glow of the Past

The Soft Glow of the Past
Originally uploaded by Realms(Nathan Williams)

Through rain and storms and tornadoes we came.... hauling tons of gear and ropes and bulbs and lights and dresses and rigged and checked and double checked and sorted and set up and tested.....and then all was dark and still. A countdown began, and at the last word - the light came on from above and the soft glow of some forgotten dreamed of past was captured - ever so beautifully.

The Stephens Gap Experience

A short preview of something I got to be a part of a few months ago.
I can't wait to help again!!




The Stephens Gap Experience
Originally uploaded by Realms(Nathan Williams)

Busy Busy Busy!

Too many things to get done and not enough time to post. So I'm off on another adventure this Thursday. I've so neglected my poor blog!! Sorry everyone. Will post photos from my Yucatan Trip and photos that I take from somewhere under the New Mexican desert! Wish me luck - I'm gonna need it!!

Going to leave you with two photos I took last weekend and the weekend before that - both in Tumbling Rock Cave - the ElephantS Feet and the Great Hall of Mysteries.

I'm Back!

Here's my first round of photos from my trip to Central Yucatan: Black and White, Fisheye & Infrared...mmmm...mmmm...mmmm...enjoy! There's lots more where that came from. Will post more soon!

Off the Map

I'm an absolute mix and muddle of nerves and excitement right now. I'm wondering what it'll be like, and if I'll do ok and what the caves will be like, and how much I'll miss home and family and friends. Saturday will be the beginning of my first cave trip outside the US and its going to be quite an adventure!! For the next three weeks I will be calling a hammock strung up somewhere in a little house in the village of Yaxuna my home. Yaxuna sits smack dab in the middle of the Yucatan, just down from Chichen Itza.


I'm off to go pull out the last of my gear for the trip...expect a full report when I come home!

I have 3 Scars

I've had this post in my saved box for probably a year now to work on - adjust and modify - and I thought perhaps I should finally post it...

I have 3 scars.

The first of which right in the middle of my forehead; A good testament to the solidity of bookshelves and the slipperiness of Golden Books from my childhood. 11 stitches later, it is one of my earliest memories. My Dad taking corners in the Mustang like mad and my Mom holding a towel to my forehead as something warm and coppery smelling dripped down into my eyes - obscuring the ominous hospital ahead.

The second is on the inside of my right heal. Small and perfectly round - a memory of my first attempt at surfing. Either rock or surfboard fin or some flotsam of the sea dealt it as I was shoved onto land in the froth and tumble of the waves. More of an aggravation than any pain, I couldn't get it to stop bleeding. I decided not to attract more sharks than I already had. Rejected by the sea for moment, I sat on my surfboard as the amber sunset arrived and watched the others for a while, bleeding into the sand.

My third scar is from two years ago and sits just above and off to the right of the knee on my right leg. You can still see the scratches on the surface but I can feel the scar beneath - a large divot with a lump of scar tissue in the muscle where a rock -and the Morgue of Fern Cave decided to make a permanent impression on me. I'd just squatted down to step off of it when the decided to tumble down. Next thing I knew there was a rock in my lap and I couldn't push it off. Jimmy had to roll the rock off me. The smell of broken limestone still makes me cringe a bit. I was super lucky not to have broken anything and you really kinda have to wonder how long that rock was perched there for me to come find it? I had a great hobble and some spectacular colors (check out the pic below) going on for about a month - but the thought of stopping caving never crossed my mind for a second.

A Caving We Will Go!

So I think I just set my personal record for caving in a one month time span - measured from grotto meeting to grotto meeting. Been so busy printing and caving haven't had time to tell you all about it until now. So when the question is asked tomorrow night at out grotto meeting - "Who's been caving?" I'm going to have to bust out a flippin list to remember all of them!!

1. Crossings with Stephanie and Nathan on 4.2.09

photo by Nathan Williams

We went during a serious storm - while we were there - water stared pouring from all sorts of wild places... this shot is cool because you can see all the little water streams...CF-SIT.

photo by Nathan Williams

Another great shot by Nathan - Steph and the haystack were lie with 3 firings of a Lumedyne strobe as an in-camera mutli-exposure

2. Buggy Top with the Huntsville grotto on 4.4.09 (first time trying out my new Pentax in cave!)


3. Blevin's Gap with Nathan on 4.8.09

This is Nathan looking through the squeeze to get down to the lower level. Yeah - that'd be an 8-1/2 inch gap there.

photo by Nathan Williams

And I don't normally post photos of me - but I actually really like this one - and anyway this is part of the gorgeous pool of water on the lower level.

4. Jess Elliot with Angela, Andy, Al, and a bunch of other nice folks from the Dogwood City Grotto 4.11.09

Angela hanging out in a cool portion of Jess. I used two CF-SIT lights for this shot - one on the side and then the other next to me.

5. Hooper's Well with Nathan and Stephanie on 4.14.09 (Steph's 1st pit)

So this is most definitely the wackiest shot I've taken so far, I climbed up the rope about 20 feet, Nathan set up a slaved flash to sidelight Stephanie and himself and then got on the opposite rope. I had my camera set to bulb in one hand, a manual flash in the other, lens cap dangling out of my mouth.... and then I started spinning and twirling...bleaugh. Steph even sat on the rope to keep me from spinning but I still did..ended up attaching my QAS to the other rope and standing in my foot loops to stop spinning for a few moments... finally got one with enough light and without my boots or kneepads in the frame... really like the angle down the rope on this one.

6. Limrock Blowing with Danielle, Stephanie and Nathan on 4.16.09

A bit of Dynamic CF-SIT on the downstream side.

7. Limrock Blowing with Peri, Michelle and Tommy on 4.18.09

Multiple photo composition of Michelle here - because I was working with only flashes - but I like the way it ended up.

Someone made the comment on Flickr that this looked like the caving mafia.... I'm going to go with it - the caving mafia -Don Michelle, Don Tommy and Don Peri

8. Blevin's Gap with Stephanie and Nathan on 4.23.09

Nathan and Steph after 30 different alignments of flashes and "a little to the lefts"... "no, an inch to your rights"

9. Iron Hoop with Michelle, Tommy, Nathan, Angela, Andy, Stephanie, Josh, Colin and Randy on 4.26.09 (topped out at 11-1/2 hours on this one!)

A very happy Stephanie in Iron Hoop. (And by the way instant mashed potatoes are incredibly yummy as a hot in-cave food..... mmmmm....taters! But do watch out - they can be rather hot.)

Check out Colin's photos of the trip.


And then go to the Realms Flickr for all the cool 3-D photos that Nathan took with both of our cameras - bring your red/cyan glasses with ya!! And be seriously prepared to be AMAZED!!!

10. Neversink with Nathan and Stephanie on 4.28.09

This would be the dead rat we found at the bottom of the pit... ewww.

11. Blevin's Gap (yes, again) with Buddy, Joe (their first pit), Don and Nathan for the premiere of SIT 2.0 in-cave (which was very cool and a great success!) on 4.30.09

Here's Joe - man he was so cool - had no problems at all!

12. Stephen's Gap with Stephanie, Danielle, Casey and Nathan (and Fred + 1 later on) on 5.2.09 for Paul and I's first anniversary. (Paul was sick which totally sucked - so he didn't get to go - he let me go anyway) He is feeling MUCH better now and on the road to recovery - albeit a bit spacey from the codine laced cough syrup.

Nathan, Steph, Danielle and Casey ready to hike up to SG.

Man oh man was there a lot of water - and it was simply gorgeous. Here's a little behind the scenes shot I took per Nathan's request. I think this was a 6 second exposure using all natural light.
And then here's a 3 photo panorama of the main waterfalls.

I took some other photos on some hikes and out and about and such - be sure and check them out on my flickr.

Silly Cavers

I know, I know - major blog neglect. I'm going to be better about it. Still have a lot to catch up on - and I will. But tonight several of us did a little ropework - some for the first time.

Geoffrey on rappel with Nathan belaying him.

Nathan coming up over the lip.

Nathan, Stephanie and Geoffrey. (with some daisy-chaining 101)

And then there was some major silliness during dinner...

The Rotunda

The Beauty of the Rotunda by Nathan Williams

Scenic drive, tents, sleeping bags, Fall Creek Falls State Park, campfire talk, "Craft night," restless sleep with cave dreams, coffee, cheese and pickle breakfast, drive, hike, riverbed, thermocline cave cool, silly Polaroid picture, friends, Camps Gulf entrance, tripod balance, pelican case clunking, breakdown climbing, gear passing, mud sliding, slipping, water, heaving, sweating, laughing, clambering, descending, Rotunda echo, water break, organizing, gear check, planning, pointing, directing, breakdown climb, umbrella twirl, duct tape, battery, careful with the compact fluorescent, double - triple check, walkie talkie, nervous, excited, lights out, 3....2....1.... And then there was light in the very darkest of places.

p.s. - Definitely click on the photo to see it larger!... its simply phenomenal... oh and I'm the tiny yellow- shirter on the left... it was a great trip and I had a blast helping with this shoot on Saturday!

TAG Is....

I'm sure by now some folks have heard there's going to be a National Geographic article about TAG. Stephen Alvarez, the photographer who's been privy to so much exotic cave beauty in places like Borneo, Papua New Guinea, Belize, and many more, has turned his focus a bit closer to home - right into TAG. A beautifully lit (with flash powder I might add) shot of Surprise Pit was snapped two weeks ago. He and his two friends (John & Luke) were back for more this past Saturday. Every one's been to Surprise - but very few really play down in Fern's mazey depths - and to me - that's the real Fern. Two plus years and 32 trips later it never ceases to amaze and challenge me. And I hope it never ever will.

Steve P., Ron M., Steve C. and I met Stephen A., Luke and John at the turn off to Fern at 9:40 or so on Saturday. We tossed a few ideas back and forth as muddy water splashed across the windshield - areas that would be the most photogenic and the routes we'd need to take in between. The Crystal Room, The Balcony Room and Helictite Heaven were placed on our final itinerary. Sections of the Waterfall Dome route & the North Cave were scrapped just because of the time and distance considerations. If time and distance hadn't been a consideration - phew - we could have spent days dragging them all over the place. But we had to narrow it down to what we could show them in a span of one day.

Steve P. let me take the lead so I could practice my route-finding - which was cool - but a bit nerve-wracking all the same - making me all the more aware that I still have a heck of a lot more to learn in the Middle Cave. Johnston to the Blowing Hole I've got down cold and I know enough of the Middle Cave Short Cut route to get myself (and anyone else who's with me) good and properly lost. Anyway I've kinda rambled off subject...

A little sample of Helictite Heaven in Fern Cave.

I hope Stephen A., John and Luke were pleased with our final choices. We spent about an hour each time we stopped. Stephen A. would do a quick survey of the area, pull out certain gear from everyone's packs for each shot depending on the subject and size of the area and set to work. Stephen A, Luke and John definitely did most of the grunt work hauling the heaviest loads - camera, strobe, various other lights and equipment were all safely locked in pelican cases and stuffed into monstrous packs. They crammed them through crawls, shoved them through squeezes and balanced with them in canyons. Ron M., Steve P., Stephen C. and I hauled and helped with what we could. I always get aggravated with myself because I know I'm not really pulling my own weight on a vertical/photo trip like this one - but there's only so much I can physically drag through a cave - and still keep up with the boys (what a wimp, right?). I ended up packing a huge bag of flashbulbs that promptly maxed out the top of my already overloaded Lost Creek pack. I lost a cool point for forgetting the bulbs at the top of the Blowing Hole - but luckily Luke still had to come down - so he grabbed them for me before we headed into the Gold-Level Canyon.

So Stephen captured photos in the Crystal Room, some action shots in the Balcony Room, action and stills in Helictite Heaven, and then a few more action shots climbing up out of the Blowing Hole. He said he got some good photos - so our trip was a success. It really was an honor just to be along for the ride - getting to help and watch Stephen A., Luke and John capturing Fern on digital film - while getting in some route-finding practice along the way.

Everyone at the Blowing Hole - Ron and Luke are in the middle of derigging the rope.

Part of the talk as we hiked back down to the trucks from the Johnston entrance was a Q&A between Ron and Stephen A. on the general gist of the article that was to run with Stephen's photography. If I caught it correctly the article isn't on one specific cave - its on TAG - all of it - the caves and the cavers in it. Which really got me thinking as I tromped down the mountain's leaf-strewn rocks. Would readers really be interested to learn of TAG? Or would they flip the page instead to one of those wild fantastical far away places Nat Geo is so famous for? What makes TAG special? What's the heart and spirit and soul of TAG - this place I now call home? Whose voices will be heard echoing up out of our caverns into the nations ears? What is TAG - to me?

Fair warning - another long introspective ponderation (Yes, it is a real word.) ensues - if you can't handle some pondering throw up the white flag and get out now - the trip report is over.

Still here?

Well, ok then - on we go...

Six years ago I would have laughed in your face if you'd told me I was going to help with a National Geographic photo trip. I would have been rolling on the floor if you told me I'd be rapelling and climbing rope hundreds of feet off the floor and sketching for the Fern Cave Survey. Heck six years ago I'd never even heard of Fern - I didn't live in Alabama - and I'd never been caving. Why is TAG important to me? Because once I arrived here in the land of Swiss cheese limestone - I found two loves of my life at its heart - caving and my husband, Paul. Both of which I can't imagine living without now.

TAG can't be colorlessly defined as Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. Nor can it be defined as just the largest concentration of caves in the United States - or even home to the National Speleological Society. TAG doesn't just stop when you hit the state line like some sort of geographical bookend. Its much much more than that. Its the cavers and caves that call this area home that define the heart and soul of TAG. We are cavers not spelunkers. TAG is a challenge drifting up from the dark to come explore - to step off that lip into the unknown, crawl through that stream, squeeze down that hole. TAG is Fern, and Stephen's Gap, and Ellison's, and Blue Springs, and Mystery Falls, and Gourdneck, and Tumbling Rock, and Rumbling Falls and Neversink, and Camp's Gulf, and Valhalla. TAG is stories that become the stuff of legend when told in complete darkness. TAG is laughter caked in mud - quirky characters - vertical legends - defiant pride - fierce protection - tough stubbornness - the SCCi - and an "Off Rope" bouncing off pit walls. TAG is smiling at your bruises because they're reminders of what you got to see last weekend - pure white stalactites, walls of flowstone, draperies, caramel stalagmites, crystal rivers, bacon, aragonite, helictites, stoke marks, haystacks, waterfalls and mountains of breakdown. TAG is a pack to pass, a tripod to haul, a good grip, a boost up, a shoulder to stand on and a voice of a best friend to talk you through.

Lots of people in their day-to-day cubicle world would coolly shrug and say they'd trust their life to a friend. With caving - sure you're all out to have a good time and see some cool stuff - but I don't think there is any other sport or hobby where that kind of trust is more important. I'm an only child and love my family very much. By high school I began to think of my best friends as the brothers or sisters I never had. I've held onto that belief tightly and as a result - have brothers and sister all over Florida, a spattering across the US, and as of five years ago here in TAG. I'm a fiercely loyal sibling - by blood or by mud. So for me personally - TAG is the family that I quite literally and unconditionally trust my life with - every time we venture together underground.

It will be interesting to see how National Geographic interprets TAG - and which caves Stephen photographed will come to define it in the dusty yellow-spined volumes years from now. Be gentle and be true. Because in those few pages - crammed between brilliant environmental discoveries, far away peoples, cultures, causes to take up and exotic locales - all with perfectly kerned type and slick photography - you will lay bare the beating heart of my TAG - my friends - my family - for all the world to see.

More from Blevin's Gap

Just a bit more eye candy from the Blevin's Gap trip. Nathan has posted a lot more of the photos on his Flickr site.

Late Night SIT at Blevin's Gap

Nathan's Flickr Caption for "Final Moments of Light on Creation" - Just as the title says - "Final Moments of Light on Creation" was an unplanned shot of an unexpected formation group in Blevins Gap Cave. We had just wrapped up about 5 hours of shooting when I climbed to an upper level to shoot back down on a pool below. What I discovered was both unexpected and very nice. The formation by Sabrina is about forty feet tall. We took this shot using CF lights for the SIT method. By this time we had pretty much used up all the battery power. I had just time for one attempt with this. The light was not moved in this shot as I was hurried by the need to grab enough frames to compose a panoramic image. What you see here was created from 4 landscape oriented images blended together. On the final shot the CF lights powered down the moment the shutter closed. That was the absolute final shot with that system that day. We will return and do a more dynamic style very soon. This by far is one of the nicest caves I've seen in the city limits of Huntsville.

Ever have one of those moments where you feel like all is right with the world? Not the whole world - just your own little personal corner of the universe. I know this is going to sound cheesy - but its hard to describe. Its always a quiet moment of outward/inner observation - where no one is talking - cares seem to slide away in a single instant and its kind of like this little blip of perfect happiness. If given a choice - you wouldn't want to be any other place in the world and everything you've done has led you to this moment. It all just clicks and you realize - "Holy crap! I'm lucky to be right here, right now." By the time you realize you've had it - its already gone - but the memory always glows brightly. (I think someone needs to come up with a proper word for the feeling. As far as I know there isn't one. Combine equal parts deja vu, elation and reflection you've got a good definition for it.) My moments seem to be few and far between - and there's no way I can force them - but when they do occur - those moments always stand out sharp in my memory.

There are a few clear moments that I can think of straight away: a crisp October day's sky in FL with puffy white clouds as seen from a convertible full of friends in high school, looking up at the ceiling of the Rumble Room - and realizing I can actually see it, a party at New Years long ago at my grandparents house, hiking on Monte Sano with Paul and Gary, sketching the Hall of Giants in Fern with a perfect view of the haystack, my Dad and I wandering through Webster, looking out over the water and up at the starlit sky while sitting on the wall of the Castillo de San Marcos, my Mom and I at the beach, Paul and I walking the pooch up at the Green Mtn. Nature Preserve, backstage during the high school production of M*A*S*H & Fools, a late night design 1 project in Laura and I's dorm room, pausing to look back at Stephen's Gap, the place Paul and I got married not an hour before. Tonight I added another.....

So as the title of this post suggests - I just got in from a little evening photo trip to Blevin's Gap Cave (Photos will probably be posted on Nathan's Flickr in the next couple days I'd expect). All total - It was a great trip and I think we got quite a lot accomplished - spent about 5 hours or so in-cave and then hit up Awful House for some dinner/breakfast at about 12:15 am. Man - Blevin's is freaking awesome! I'd even venture to say its probably the best cave inside the Huntsville city limits. Its really short - but its jam packed with crazy-beautiful formations that are all massively impressive.

Tommy and Nathan getting their gear ready at the entrance.

There's a little entrance drop of about 15 to 20 feet into the first level - of mostly dry formations - but they are still a knockout. (The pack rat from the pack rat motel would be happy to give you a tour.)

We got to work setting up for some photography. Nathan used 3 compact fluorescents for all his SIT (Sustained Illumination Technique) shots tonight. He said he's got at least 1/2 a dozen keepers. There are a few shots of the formations that are just plain droolable - seriously - its like cave photography crack - after that first taste - you just have to have more! The SIT technique just brings out the most amazing detail in the formations - the color is really natural - not toned to the yellow side with a flash bulb or other lighting - and allows you to have an incredible depth of field too. And then (my favorite) its got the whole soft shadow thing going on that's almost a bit otherworldly.

Nathan focusing for a high angle shot.

Tommy looking extremely happy holding the light pole.

Here's a video of what goes into getting a single SIT shot - Tommy's modeling and trying to hold perfectly still for 8 seconds - I'm passing off the pole to Nathan with the compact florescents and then I'm hitting the button for the shutter to open (you can hear the timer) and then Nathan is counting down and moving the light across the scene to light it all evenly. (don't get dizzy - its a bit rough!)



And then here's the resulting photo -


There's a second drop into the lower level with a squeeze at the top of the drop - and I mean a squeeze - solid formation on the bottom, rock on the top and no way around it. Tommy guesstimated it at about 9-9 1/2 inches. He wasn't able to make it - which was a big bummer because its so flippin' pretty down there!! I have two maglights cable-tied to the sides of my helmet and I actually had to take my helmet off and hand it through because it wouldn't fit. I had to wiggle to get down with my rappel rack smashed flat against me and my back on the rock above and flail about with my croll scraping when I came back up. Nathan had to take off part of his vertical gear, squeeze through and then put it back on. After the squeeze its another 15-20 feet to the floor. And when you turn around what a site there is to behold - gorgeous live formations - a haystack, walls just iced with pretties, and around the corner, huge pool of water with a few lily pads. The bottom part one of those places where you think twice about stepping in certain areas - everything is so pristine - and very much alive.

We got/passed all the gear down and started pulling things out of the pelican cases. I was holding the light pole absently looking kind of up to where Tommy had poked his head in through the squeeze to talk to us. No one was speaking - just little drip splashes on the backside of the haystack. Nathan plugged in the inverter. On came the lights.

And there it was - my little moment - creeping up on me on a random Wednesday in the bottom of Blevin's Gap - under the cool light of 3 compact florescents - my eyes taking in Mother Nature's ribbons of rock and dollops of calcite - a moment where my brain dances and twirls, simply gobsmacked, and says - right here - right now - I am damn lucky to be alive. I grinned into the shadows. And just like that, it was gone, leaving me with a crisp memory of the scene and a smile I still can't wipe off.

The Tumbling Rock Twelve

Nathan's Flickr caption: This shot of the Elephants Feet formation in Tumbling Rock Cave was accomplished using the SIT method. For this Sabrina stood perfectly still for the 30 second duration shot.

Twelve of us went to Tumbling Rock on Saturday to take a little tour and help Nathan with some photos. (See a couple more here on his Flickr site.)Eight folks had never been to TR before so it was pretty fun to help show off one of my favorite (and 2nd most-visited for me) caves. Paul, Geoffrey, Nathan, Kandi, Katie, Rachael, Dan, Allen, Seth, Kelsey, Blake and I were the sherpas - I mean... attendees. We lost Katie when we started to go under Sugarloaf Mtn. She kinda discovered she was a bit claustrophobic so Dan and Nathan ran her back to the entrance and the car. It was completely okay - everyone has their limits and she'd reached hers. She was fine when she got out. I lead everyone on a ways and Nathan and Dan caught back up to us a short time later. We ran into 3 folks making their way out becuase one of them (Deana) had sustained a blow out. Luckily Seth had a roll of duct tape so we fixed her up and talked about the HSV grotto while we did it. Seth also had a sharpie - so I signed my handywork and told them to come on out to a grotto meeting.

Deana and her fixed up boot.

My lovely handywork - if that isn't a sweet blog advertisement - I don't know what is.



A literal herd of Boys Scouts were touring the cave too so we kept running into them and past them until we hit the Kings Shower & Topless Dome. They'd already been up to see the dome and the last of them were trickling back down into the passage to head back out when we appeared on the scene. The last couple chaperons that were beginning to head out really got see all 396' of Topless - seeing as how we turned on the 3 huge bajillion candle power spotlights we'd lugged through the cave. There's nothing like watching water droplets fall in slow motion almost 400 feet ...with music. Believe me - its the only way to see Topless Dome (everytime I see it all lit up like that with the music - I feel like I'm watching Journey into Amazing Caves - live).

Allen & Paul and a couple boy scout chaperons watching Nathan set up the computer speakers and MP3 palyer for the sound and lights spectacular.



A few nice horn corals in Topless.

Allen, Seth, Kelsey and Blake decided to head on out early since we were still shooting photos and there'd be multiple photo stops on the way back out.

We had a late lunch after we left Topless and threw in a little hot chocolate break near the Hidden Door. Nathan and I fired up our little coke and pepsi can stoves and fixed Dan, Kandi, Paul and Rachael a cup of hot chocolate. (Geoffrey was too good for a cup apparently - so he didn't have one, and Kandi apparently wanted to sit in it to warm up her butt)

Pepsi Stove

Nathan pouring water for a cup of hot chocolate

My Coke can stove

Dan, Rachael and Kandi with their hot chocolate

My ad for taking Salmon Packets into caves - yummy.

I tried to convince Geoffrey how tasty the Salmon was - but as you can see he really wasn't going for it.

Will post some photos from a hike on Sunday in the next couple days. And I still owe you a few from my parent's visit too.