sign in sign up
<<
Home , Cave diving, Fossil Cave, The Last Dive

Underwater Journal of the Section of the National Speleological Society

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Analyzing For CO Hits Home in the Ottowa River, Canada

Advanced Sidemount Training Cave Collapse Due To Divers Bubbles

Volume 42 Number 3 July/August/Sepetember 2015 Ginnie Springs

Photographer: Guy Bryant 386-454-7188 www.ginniespringsoutdoors.com

2 Underwater Speleology NSS-CDS BOARD OF DIRECTORS Underwater Speleology Volume 42 Number 4 October/November/Decemberr 2015

CHAIRMAN Joe Citelli contents (954) 646-5446 [email protected] Featured Articles

VICE CHAIRMAN TJ Muller When Analyzing for CO Hits Home [email protected] By Michael Angelo Gagliardi...... 6 TREASURER Cheryl Doran Cave Diving in the Ottowa River, Canada [email protected] By Peter Buzzacott...... 8 SECRETARY Forrest Wilson Diving With Dave Warnes 1988 to 2015 [email protected] By Ken Smith...... 12 PROGRAM DIRECTORS Advanced Sidemount Training Joe Tegg [email protected] By Peter Delannoy...... 15

Al Clements Cave Collapse Due to Diver’s Bubbles [email protected] By Doron Nof, Lakshika Girihagama and Cathrine Hancocks...... 18 TRAINING CHAIRMAN Jim Wyatt Great Suwanee River Cleanup 2015 (352) 363-0013 [email protected] By Fritzi Olsen...... 24

NSS-CDS Suwanee River Cleanup Day By Michael Angelo Gagliardi...... 25

Columns

From The Chairman By Joe Citelli...... 5

Beyond The Panhandle ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER By Jennifer Idol...... 10

Adam Hughes Milestones 295 NW Commons Loop SUITE 115-317 By Eric Parks...... 26 Lake City, FL 32055 (561) 704-3038 We Are Stronger Than Me [email protected] By Michael Angelo Gagliardi...... 27

Please mail Section business to: Off To the Side NSS-CDS 295 NW Commons Loop, Suite 115-317 By Rob Neto...... 28 Lake City, FL 32055 Instructor Listing ...... 31

Front Cover Photo: Kristi Bernot and Marius Clore in , Ginnie Springs Photographer: Gene Page Back Cover Photo: Orange Grove Sink Photographer: Jennifer Idol

www.nsscds.org 3 Underwater Speleology editor’s notes Team

EDITOR ART DIRECTOR Cheryl Doran [email protected] The trouble with quotes on the internet is that ADVERTISING SALES you never know if they are genuine. [email protected] ~Abraham Lincoln~

DEPARTMENTS I hope everyone has had an enjoyable summer. SKILLS, TIPS, & TECHNIQUES Georges Gawinowski [email protected] The CDS would like to welcome our new Board of Directors member Al CONSERVATION CORNER Clements. Nathan Spray has stepped down as Property Manager and Al Michael Angelo Gagliardi will be filling this position.

MILESTONES We also have a new operations manager, Adam Hughes. He has al- Shirley Kasser [email protected] ready immersed himself in a project with me including sorting useable THE LOOP maps, preserving originals, and repurposing outdated ones. I believe he Joe Citelli mentioned to me he is in cave diving nerd heaven with what he has come BEYOND THE PANHANDLE across so far. Look for a bevy of maps to become available in the online Jennifer Idol store in the near future. Welcome Adam.

OFF TO THE SIDE Our thanks to both Nathan Spray and Bruce Ryan for their dedication Rob Neto [email protected] and service. INSTRUCTOR’S CORNER Carl Griffing Among the “finds” tucked safely away in the recently emptied CDS stor- [email protected] age unit were screens and artwork from some of the original organization EDITORS T’s along with original maps, notes and information from our past cartog- SENIOR EDITOR raphy committee members and donors. Barbara J. Dwyer ASSOCIATE EDITOR I am with Adam on this one, I love cave history and we are working on Russell Edge ways to share these items with our members.

Views represented in UWS articles are proprietary to the au- Congratulations to Jennifer Idol on becoming the first woman to dive all thor and do not reflect the views of the NSS-CDS BOD or Edi- 50 states. She shares the adventures of her overhead dives while on this tor. We encourage the process of freedom of speech. You are welcome at any time to make rebuttals to articles previously quest in her UWS column, Beyond The Panhandle. printed in UWS. Please send articles or responses to: [email protected]. Among the articles in this issue you will find a reminder on the impor- For rates and ad sizes please go to www.nsscds.com tance of gas analysis, cave diving in Canada and a celebratory dive in . (I am still fact checking, but I think this diver might be older than Underwater Speleology (UWS) is printed quarterly (four times yearly) by the NSSCDS, 295 NW Commons Loop, Suite 115-317, Forrest!) Lake City, 32055.

UWS is a membership benefit. Information on membership fees and registration can be found at www.nsscds.org. Dive safe,

Please send address changes to NSS-CDS, 295 NW Commons Loop, Suite 115-317, Lake City, Florida 32055. Cheryl Please submit letters and articles to UWS EDITOR, 295 NW Commons Loop, Suite 115-317, Lake City, Florida 32055.

UWS text, illustrations, and photographs may not be repro- duced or reprinted without the expressed consent of the NSS- CDS or its authors, artists, or photographers.

NSS-CDS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

4 Underwater Speleology from the Chairman Joe Citelli

Summer is over and as the cooler weather prevails seamlessly. We welcome Adam aboard and we con- many of us will gravitate more to the as the ocean gratulate him and his wife Mariah on the birth of their becomes less and less welcoming. For those among first child, Hadalyn. us who have been away for a while, please remember to brush up on your skills before venturing into a cave. Your board has been doing a lot of new and exciting Safety trumps all. things. With the assistance of KUR we are beginning to repair the lines in Cathedral Sink and, if conditions allow, Our Properties Chair, Nathan Spray had to step down possibly map the system for future use. We are also due to personal time limitations. We wish Nathan using the wood left over from the Cow Springs project and thank him for his service to the NSS-CDS. Nathan to do repairs on the deck there. Please note that Cathe- stayed with us until we could find a replacement for him. dral is still closed to diving but this is part of our effort to Your Board has selected Al Clements as his replace- maintain our properties so they may be opened for use ment, and we would all like to give Al a hearty welcome in the near future. to the NSS-CDS Board of Directors. Al has the ability, talent and energy to fill the Property Managers position Vice-Chairman Sylvester “TJ” Muller has been a very and in the short time he has been here he has shown busy man as of late. He has coordinated a joint effort himself to be a very valuable asset to the CDS. with the NSS to protect Alachua Sink from being dam- aged by development on adjacent properties. At his Looking to the future, a major goal of this board is to urging, legal counsel has been retained by the NSS to streamline operations and put processes and procedures ensure that the laws pertaining to this are being adhered in place that will run in perpetuity, i.e.: things remain the to. In addition, he has gained the support of the Sierra same no matter who is on the board and no matter what Club along with a grant to the NSS intended to protect their skillset may be. In short, we are striving towards the fragile ecosystem that is the Mill Creek . running the CDS like a business. This will require mak- ing cost cutting decisions for certain functions. A first TJ is also working closely with Curt Bowen on the pro- and major step in this direction is to rid ourselves of the duction of a PSA (Public Service Announcement) to de- burden of keeping a storage warehouse. We will be de- ter untrained people from entering submerged caves stroying old, unnecessary records and digitizing those and has obtained funding from supporters of the pro- which we must retain, i.e.: certain training records. Of posed Presley Act in conjunction with the YMCA to course anything of historic significance will be properly achieve this. We have received a $5000. donation from preserved. the YMCA to fund this project.

Our business manager, Bruce Ryan, who has faithfully As always, we like to remind our members that the NS- served the CDS in that position for many years, is step- SCDS belongs to them and they are its greatest asset. ping down. We thank Bruce for his dedication and wish We encourage member participation. If you want to get him well for the future. He is being replaced by Adam involved, please call or email us. We will find a spot for Hughes. Adam is an avid cave diver and brings with you. Until the next time, be safe and be well. him an expertise in taxes and accounting. Additionally, we will retain an accounting firm to remain in the back- Respectfully, ground so that if in the unlikely event that Adam can no longer fill this position the needs of the CDS will be met Joe Citelli, Chairman NSS-CDS

www.nsscds.org 5 When Analyzing for CO Hits Home By: Michael Angelo Gagliardi

I am writing this account with the full approval of the dive shop’s owner and of my own accord, in hopes that it is of service to the cave diving community. I am not a medical professional; I am an artist and a cave diver. It is my intention to present the facts and to relate the incident as honestly as I am able.

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, tasteless gas that is a product of incomplete combustion. It is 200 times more cohesive to hemoglobin than is , which simply means hemoglobin likes CO a lot, a lot more than

it likes oxygen. Standard treatment is with hyperbaric O2. A chamber ride does not rid you of existing CO; the CO that is attached to the hemoglobin will remain attached to that hemoglobin. This is simply because of it’s affinity for hemoglobin, even in a pure oxygen enviornment. However, the pure oxygen environment allows

for O2 to bind with any hemoglobin that is unbound to CO. Aside from diving accidents, carbon monoxide poi- soning causes more than 200 deaths per year in the United States. Most of these deaths occur during winter months by faulty or inadequately ventilated space heating systems.(1) Cause of death is determined during an autopsy by testing the level of CO in the victim’s blood. (2,3) For dive purposes, CO contamination can result from a compressor failure. The first line of prevention is to do regular maintenance on the compressor and to have the gas tested quarterly. What happens when a shop does this and still has a compressor failure? That is what this article is about.

As most of you are aware, I am a diligent promoter of all ten. With nothing more I could do at the moment, I rented gas analyzing, particularly, but not limited to CO. This is tanks, which received a 0 ppm reading on both analyzers, because I was a member of a mapping team in Mexico and did the dive. Upon completion of the dive, I tried that lost a diver due to CO poisoning, which was discov- the shop again and reached the owner. I told him what ered during ’s autopsy. Upon returning to USA, happened, but he had already discovered the problem. I purchased an Analox CO analyzer and have never failed He immediately had shut down his banks and stopped to analyze every tank I dive for at least CO and O2 levels. selling gas. By the time of my second call, he was al- I also purchased a Sensorcon CO analyzer as a backup. ready calling and e-mailing costumers who had recently On Thanksgiving morning this habit may have saved my purchased gas and telling them not to dive the tanks. In life before a dive into Cow Springs. short, he had an accident and was taking all precautions and thinking safety first, being open and honest with all of That day, I analyzed my tanks at the site and discovered his customers. that my back gas contained 35 and 38 ppm CO and my stages contained 10 and 12 ppm CO. My O2 bottle, which In my research since , the common factor with had been filled separately, was 0 ppm. The strange thing any CO or possible CO accident is that they all were repu- that happened, even though I have mentally accepted table stations that test their gas regularly right up to the that a CO hit can happen anytime and without warning, is moment of the accident. That is what happened here - an that I was not prepared emotionally to discover I could be accident. While we may never know exactly what hap- hit twice. I used my Analox, and then got the same read- pened inside the compressor, we do know the following: ings off the Scensorcon. My first reaction was that maybe the analyzers were wrong. We returned to Dive Outpost • The compressor was maintained accorded to stan- and borrowed a third CO analyzer and got even higher dasrds of practice and the gas was analyzed regu- readings. My cell phone doesn’t work in Luraville, so I larly. The most recent maintenance was performed used Dive Outpost’s phone and called the shop where I on Friday, November 21, 2014, and the filters were got the fills and got voice mail. I left a detailed message checked and no defect was found. about what was happening and the readings I had got-

6 Underwater Speleology • I filled my tanks on Monday, November 24, 2014, The lesson here is simple. Do not trust anyone to keep and analyzed them pre-dive Thursday, November 27, you safe, even if that person/shop is doing everything cor- 2014. rectly. It’s your life and it is worth far more than the cost of an analyzer. • Sometime between regular maintenance on Friday, and my getting gas Monday evening, a filter that had Remember Brendan’s Law: Know what you’re breath-

been checked burned out and combusted, causing ing. Analyze your gas for O2 and CO. Analyze your the above incident. gas each time, every time, anywhere. Carbon Monox- ide has and will kill. In short, despite being diligent and correct maintenance paractices, an accident happened anyway. Sources 1)Center for Disease Control and Prevention The shop owner, by contacting all affected costumers, http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6030a2.htm helped make this accident a non-fatal one. I didn’t be- 2)Center for Disease Control and Prevention http://www.cdc.gov/ come a statistic because I became diligent about ana- mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6303a6.htm lyzing my gas. The shop owner, by being forthright and 3)Wikipedia proactive, prevented others from becoming a statistic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_monoxide_poisoning 4)Goggled “how is CO poisoning confirmed in an autopsy” and got The shop owner then preformed free VIPs and O2 clean- over twenty Newspaper accounts of coroners confirming CO poi- ing on all affected tanks and also paid for this to be done soning Cause of death. by shops local to out of state customers. He was com- 5)RPC Engineering and Science pletely open with his costumers, explaining the event and http://www.rpc.ca/english/pdf/BAWhyDoSamplesFail.pdf showing the effected part. His station was broken down 6)Trace Analytics and re-cleaned for . The station was https://www.airchecklab.com/resources/Carbon-Dioxide.pdf partially re-opened and I have gassed up there 3 times with all tanks reading 0 ppm CO and the proper O con- 7) by Fred Bove MD, PhD. 2 http://www.scubamed.com/divmed.htm tent.

Compressor filter that combusted from the inside out.

www.nsscds.org 7 Cave Diving In The Ottowa River, Canada

By: Peter Buzzacott

I travelled to Montreal for the Undersea Society (UHMS) annual scientific meeting but first, I had plans for the weekend. A rental car was ready to collect at the airport and two hours later I had four dive tanks in the trunk from a dive centre in Ottawa. Two more hours further west, I arrived at my bud- get hotel, microwaved dinner and banded-up the rental tanks for sidemounting. Tomorrow, I was planning to dive river caves.

As soon as I knew I was going to attend the UHMS con- lee side of the flow. Depths are shallow, usually 10-30 ft, ference I put a post on cavediver.net to identify where the and the passages cut through or under islands, traverse best cave diving can be found in Canada. I contacted Ca- multiple entry ponds and many even end in mid-river re- nadian cave diver Dr David Sawatzky whom I knew had surgences.The walls are dark and goethite is frequent. mapped these caves in the ‘90’s before moving to Nova Scotia. David sent me his detailed map and some intel, This weekend was a “Biodiversity Blitz” which started with including that the area in which the caves are located was a welcome brief and introductions. I was the diving guy, recently purchased by the Nature Conservancy of Cana- there was a guy looking for ants, a moth guy, a beetle/ da (NCC), a group dedicated to preserving Canadian wil- spider guy, three ‘herbies’ (looking for herbs), a few with derness with rich biodiversity. an affinity to snakes and turtles and a couple oftwitchers (bird-spotting). With so many scientists in the group, con- E-mails flowed back-and-fore during which I reassured servation conversation was animated. the NCC that, deep down, cave divers are risk adverse. Also, I explained that I wouldn’t need a local recreation- I geared up in chest-deep water near a convenient dock, al diver to buddy with me to be safe and I promised to then entered the cave and used a half-inch thick rope write a report detailing my observations, water tempera- through the cave to assist my progress, leaving a water ture data and recommendations for future cave diver access requirements. Some background enquiries were probably made both about me and about cave divers in general before any success. Two weeks before flying out I received word that the NCC had approved my application for a Research Permit to dive their caves.

The area the caves are located in predominantly rests upon granite, but large pockets of Ordovi- cian exist and in these pockets we find Canada’s most extensive cave systems. The Westmeath Freshwater Caves were carved out by water shortcutting through fractures rather than flowing around bends in the river. Accord- ingly, the walls are carved with parallel ridges Here are the walls in the Bonnechere Cave. Identical to the walls in the Westmeath and patches of scalloping that is steeper on the freshwater Caves in the Ottawa River. 8 Underwater Speleology logger near the entry. The area had had pert at the Canadian Museum of Nature to identify resi- substantial rain in recent weeks and the river was three dent mollusks. Inside the cave I found large concentra- feet higher than normal so the flow through the cave was tions of big mussels, many open and feeding. I collected really pumping. The water was the color of strong tea a few empty shells and also a gastropod, a cephalopod and visibility no more than three feet. None of my photos and a brachiopod. These appeared, to me, original and from inside the cave worked out, despite using a video not fossilized. In nearby Bonnechere Cave the manag- light and a primary canister light. Soon I reached a near- ers pump the caves dry each summer and similar-looking by pool – I had completed a short traverse and surfaced fossils can be clearly seen in the walls, which look identi- to look around. Just before the ascent I spotted a home- cal to the walls I was looking at in Westmeath (whenever I made fish trap, probably left by some holidaying children, got close enough to a wall to see it). Maybe these ancient so I recovered that to prevent unnecessary loss of aquatic shells were cut free from the limestone, I don’t know but life. Then, when I lifted it out of the water I realized there I look forward to finding out from the NCC. I picked up a tabulate , blackened on one side, so recently re- leased from the limestone I’m guessing. I reached fifths and turned my dive. Swimming out, I passed a Walleye fish, and at the exit I collected my temperature logger and came across a snapping turtle. My first day had been a great success.

The next day the local neighbor, Jim, collected me at the dock and took me up river to the west side of the peninsula where a couple of passages on the map intrigued me. Entry to the The river entrance to the Bonnechere Caves small bay was made easier due to the higher-than-nor- was a 10-inch-long salamander in there. In Slovenia mal water, but boils on the these are cave adapted with white skin and no eyes but surface suggested a sub- here ‘my’ salamander, known locally as a ‘mud-puppy’, stantial flow. I geared up was grey and looking up at me. I handed him over to Ben, on the shore after Jim left an NCC summer technician who set the poor thing free to collect the NCC team. after I’d re-entered the cave, heading further upstream Alone, just me and the past organic forms growing on sticks and rubble. Picking sound of burbling water, up a small rock I found a white crustacean about 1/8th a solitary heron looking- inch long with antennae. He didn’t react to my light but Mud puppy down from an overhang- these caves are so long and yet rich in nutrient through- ing branch. I felt totally at out, that I wondered how likely it is that cave adapted spe- peace. Silently I donned cies might live in here awaiting discovery. my tanks, checked my regs, gauges and lights, turned on my GoPro and slipped below the surface. Within three feet We’d been asked to collect a few shells for a mussel ex- it was black so I tied off a jump reel and searched about for the main line. Soon I found it, tied in and headed on, my hands outstretched due to the poor visibility. Below me I found big river mussels and above the cave entrance I spotted piles of mussel shells on the river bank, so otters must live here, eating mussels that are fed by the nutrient flow concentrated by the cave.

I had a rough idea which passage I was in after bringing along a laminated map, cellotaped around the edge for extra waterproofing, but after 15 minutes or so the direc- tion of the changed gradually. Initially I’d been heading into a strong current but by now I was angled about 45 degrees to the rope, then as I kept going I

Collected ‘ancient’ shells with a Canadian ‘quarter’ for scale Continued on page 30

www.nsscds.org 9 An Overhead Look At Diving 50 States

Article and Photography: Jennifer Idol

story I wanted to tell. However, I was also informed that this fish was in a cave and I would need training to get this opportunity.

I was assured that I could reach this fish at the front of the cave and a cavern course would suffice. I was then told the fish could be a little further back, so I should probably also take the intro to cave course. And, if I went that far, full cave wasn‘t that much further, so I should aim to take that as well.

I spent time that November completing all three cave classes and was now able to include an additional signifi- cant realm in my story. The first dive after these classes,

Larry Hack descends into Jug Hole on Jennifer Idol’’s first dive after cave I captured an image of my buddy, Larry Hack, descend- class. ing into Jug Hole; the famous light rays depicted in this cavern zone connect our terrestrial knowledge with un- I saw the Gulf of Mexico burning from the Deepwater Ho- known passages ahead. It also forever captured my love rizon oil spill in 2010 as I flew back from a dive trip in for caves. Tobago. As an experienced diver and underwater photog- rapher, I felt compelled to make a difference for our local I was fortunate as a long-time Texas diver to be friends waters and set out on a photographic expedition to docu- with talented cave divers who could introduce me to our ment our national underwater treasures. This August, I cave systems. Jacob‘s Well was a long fabled cave that completed my journey and became the first woman to I had previously no desire to dive, but that had changed dive all 50 states. and I now wished to include this beautiful underwater landscape in my journey. When I first shared the oil spill I saw in our coastal wa- ters, I learned that most people have no context or un- I developed my skills and was eventually able to join Trey derstanding of what lies underwater and realized then Lessard on my first Texas cave dive. We created a dive that my experiences as a diver are meaningful. Revealing underwater landscapes helps others love and appreciate our natural resources.

Representing all types of aquatic environments was im- portant for telling a complete story of American waters. Underwater caves are a significant geological wonder that many people are unable to experience and, as cave divers, we are privileged to be stewards of these complex ecosystems.

I began my journey with fifteen years of experience; I was a trained technical diver for and had no in- tentions of ever becoming a cave diver. On one of the first dives, I was told about a fish that no one hadyet Trey Lessard enters the restriction in Jacob’s Well. photographed and this seemed a perfect inclusion for the

10 Underwater Speleology was enriched by the diversity of aquatic environments and the many divers I met. By my journey‘s end, I saw more underwater sites than I had imagined were in our country. I even dove in a privately held cave in Oklahoma, where, unfortunately, I did not see that mythical fish swim- ming to the back of the cave.

This journey has cost a significant amount of money and time, including training, to reach all these new locations. I further complicated my training in these environments with my need to document the entire journey with my pro- fessional equipment. Five years later, I now have more than 26 certifications and 20 years of dive experience spanning nearly every dive I developed my skills and was condition. (Note: Interest- eventually able to join Trey Les- ingly, when I learned ice sard on my first Texas cave dive. diving, I found myself reas- We created a dive team to help sured by having preceded share this important natural re- it with cave diving.) source with locals who mostly understood the cave as a swim- As I begin to share the full ming hole and fabled tale of trag- extent of my American ad- edy. With a team to support the venture, I hope my photos complicated dives, I was able communicate the complex to create images that I used to beauty in all our waters, design a kiosk; and together we with the notable inclusion constructed an educational kiosk of caves and mines around that now greets visitors there. the country. Jennifer Idol I enjoy diving on a team; safety is one of my core values and I en- Underwater photographer joy developing relationships with and designer other divers. Trey Lessard and Shannon Wallace introduced me to the Ozark Cave Diving Alliance (OCDA); an adventurous group who helped me expand my story of caves in America to Missouri. Roubidoux Springs was a de- lightful introduction, with OCDA exploration and participation in a crawfish study.

Members of the OCDA work hard as a team to achieve goals and dive frequently to develop skills, practice res- cue skills and have fun. As an OCDA team member, I was able to document permit accessible sites in Missouri; showing diverse systems from Blue Springs to Ben- Top: Peacock Springs is home to many cave dwell- nett Springs. I also fulfilled ers, including numerous divers and this blind crawfish caught mid-water. a dream to dive a lead mine Upper middle: Aerolito, Cozumel, Mexico and photographed mine carts Lower middle: Support divers prepare to collect and diving with them in Mine La set stage and cylinders for exploration Motte. in Blue Bottom: This Oklahoma amphipod is not the fabled fish promised at the back of the Oklahoma cave that My quest to dive 50 states convinced Jennifer Idol to complete cave training.

www.nsscds.org 11 Diving with DaveWarnes 1988 to 2015

by Ken Smith

Dave Warnes 1960’s In 1987, as an inexperi- was expecting him to fail us then, but we got away with enced category 2 cave it. diver, I went to the Nullarbor with the Underwater Explor- ers Club (UEC) of . In 10 days we dived Finally on the 30th of July 1988 we arrived at Goulden’s Weebubbie, Tommy Graham’s, Murra el Elevyn and to for our category 3 test. An imposing range of the rock pile in Cocklebiddy. The caves were not classi- examiners was waiting for us; Peter Girdler, Ron Allum, fied by the CDAA at that time. However, I came home with Glen Harrison and Tony Richardson to mention a few. the strong feeling I should upgrade my skills and become After the test we nervously waited in the Bellum Pub to a category 3 diver. be called in by the panel of examiners. We had passed! Dave’s hard work in training us had been successful. We To become a cat 3 diver I needed a buddy to train with did a celebratory dive in and retired to the and in 1988 I joined with army officer Doug Alford. pub to celebrate some more. We set about training ourselves for the mysterious and much feared category 3 test. In those days the CDAA I continued to have a number of good dives with Dave did not provide training. What’s more the contents of the after I got my cat 3. We dived in Englebrecht’s east and test seemed to be a closely guarded secret. I asked cat 3 I remember Dave taking me on a complicated and very friends about the test. Mostly they just nodded in a know- tight tour through restrictions under the lake. After a year, ing way and told me I would find out on the day. This was I qualified for cat 4 and Dave took me for my first dive in not much help and just added to my feelings of anxiety. Englebrecht’s West. In those days the water level was higher and the entrance was a challenging, tight, zero vis- Doug said he knew someone in the Glenelg diving club ibility restriction. Dave went in first and tugged the line who had a lot of cave diving experience and had CDAA when he was through. I followed and spent a long time in number 1. Even better, he would be prepared to help us zero viz with my back mounted tanks pressed against the train! This sounded like a good idea, and that’s how I got roof and my chin in the silt. Suddenly I got through and to meet Dave Warnes. was rewarded by the sight of three divers in the distance with their blue light beams flashing around in the crystal This was the beginning of some very intensive training clear water. It was Dave, Stan Bugg and Des Walters. provided by Dave. He took us to West Lakes and showed us how to buddy breath while following a line and told us not to drag spare regulators in the silt. He laid a tortuous line path under Noarlunga jetty and made us follow it with blacked out masks. In some cases, the line completely disappeared under rocks and could only be found again by reaching out to the limit of stretched arms. Slowly Doug and I absorbed what it meant to be a serious cave diver.

Doug and I did many training trips to in May and June 1988. Piccaninnie Ponds was closed then, so we usually dived Little Blue, One Tree and Goulden’s. We kept our on all day and tried to stay warm in the winter weather. We did a lot of mask off training with a guideline in preparation for out cat 3 test. On one occa- sion we surfaced in Goulden’s with masks off in a tangle A young Dave at Tank Cave Photographer: Mike Turner of line to find Ian Lewis watching us with amusement. I 12 Underwater Speleology 1975/76. Note that the term “National Director “was first used in the late 1980’s when Lance Mitchell took on that title.

Dave’s wisdom and experience as a cave diver goes back to the very early days of cave diving in Australia. He was diving and taking photographs in Piccaninnie Ponds in the 1960’s. Around this time he made the first explor- atory dives in a cave with his buddy Mike Turner that we now call Tank Cave. In January 1972 he took part in the first cave diving trip to the . During this trip Weebubbie was explored underwater for the first time and Ian Lewis produced the underwater map that we still use today. Ron Doughton was on this trip and wrote an article for Skindiving Magazine describing the excitement of the discoveries. He described Dave’s light as “an underwater Dave in G , Tank Cave for his 70th birthday dive. laser beam that he (Dave) laughingly refers to as a torch”. Photographer: Ken Smith A number of photographs from this trip were published in Guidelines 105, September 2008. Dave guided me though the first and up into the lake. We swam around the lake and arrived at a short re- striction just below water surface. Dave went through first and shone his light back to guide me through. I visited this restriction again recently, but it is now about two metres above water level.

Years went by and I became a Tank Cave diver. Dave was on the first team exploring and mapping Tank Cave in the early 1990’s and in the 2000’s I was involved with a team which was continuing to map the more remote sec- tions of the cave. Dave was part of this and I particularly remember a long surveying dive we did in the S section. Much time was spent winding a 100m tape in and out as we did the survey.

When Dave turned 70 in 2005 we dived with him in Tank Cave. Peter Rogers took group photos of Dave and the divers in the 90 metre room. You can see that we had some trouble posing for this shot. Peter must have thought that Above: Ken Smith, Adrian Richards and Dave. Below: John DallaZuanna (JDZ), John Vanderleest and Dave getting cave divers to pose was a bit like herding cats.

Rob Dycer hosted a dinner for Dave on Saturday night and the CDAA presented him with a Dive Rite light. We wondered how much use Dave would get from the light as we thought he may retire from cave diving soon. As it turned out Dave got a lot of use from the light! In July this year, 10 years later, he took it into Tank Cave just a few days before his 80th birthday. Dave, Adrian Richards and I dived on Saturday to take some photos. On Sunday we took some video on a circuit dive along C tunnel, through J and back home along A. Dave certainly enjoyed these dives and is keen for another trip soon.

Dave is a life member of the CDAA. He was on the origi- nal 1973/74 CDAA Committee when Eddie Gertners was President and was the second President in 1974/75. He was also a committee member again the following year

www.nsscds.org 13 Above: Group Photograph in the 90 metre room of Tank Cave. Dave has the yellow rimmed mask and yellow light cord. Photographer: Peter Rogers Below: Dave enjoying his 80th birthday dive with Adrian Richards. Photographer: Ken Smith

Dave always stresses the importance of diving safely and not cutting corners with gear preparation or air use. He warned me about the dangers of over confidence. He said that one day something will go wrong on a dive you al- ways need to be prepared to safely recover from a problem. Even after his many years of cave diving, Dave approaches every dive with caution. We should all listen to Dave. He has more than 50 years of safe cave diving experience. Very few people in the world can claim this.

I fully expect that Dave will be cele- brating his 90th birthday with a cave dive. He will be looking for a buddy. Any volunteers? ….I reckon I will be too old!

Video of Dave’s 80th dive on YouTube- www.youtube.com/ watch?v=gwsFuKDCkCA.

14 Underwater Speleology Advanced sidemount Training

By: Peter Delannoy Photographs: Patrick Widmann

I pushed my right tank into the dark hole, turned my head sideways, and slithered into the restriction like a snake. A sudden blast of bubbles from my regulator slammed against the back of my throat. The concussive roar of the gas shivered around me as I traced the hose to where it was trapped between the wall of the restriction and my body. The left tank valve was beyond my reach. Exhaling, I pulled myself through the restriction. With my left arm free and the tank valve accessible, I turned off the tank and switched to the other regulator. It was July 1, 2014 and I was blindfolded deep in Palomita, Yucatán, México. This was my final dive, and I was in the process of finishing my advanced sidemount course with Patrick Widmann.

I came to cave diving in my fifties, not because of a midlife removed my pouch, made notes of time, depth, and tank crisis, but because I’d always been interested in scuba and then replaced the pouch and shifted one diving and hadn’t had the opportunity to try it out until 2008 body length along the line and repeated the process after I had retired as a professional mountain guide. I was around the circuit. I practiced removing one tank and immediately attracted to , and traveled then another holding steady on the line, then maskless, to northern Florida to earn my full cave certification in then running the circuit maskless forward and backwards. 2010. In July of 2013, I watched a YouTube video of an During of each session I dove finless and advanced sidemount course that left me slack jawed and practiced hovering and swimming. When I wasn’t diving amazed. I was ready to take my diving to the next level. I watched video footage of myself so I could evaluate my skills and adhered to a strict kettle bell regime of All of this brings me to the day I arrived in Tulum in March and aerobic exercise. I was leaving no stone unturned of 2014 and found my way to the training facility. I was before my return to Mexico. questioned about my experience. How many cave dives? Who trained me? Where had I dived? What were my Arriving back in Tulum, I first served as a student for a goals? A few hours later during the line drills in Cenote diver who was earning his sidemount cave instructor Carwash, I realized that my desire to dive small cave certification, and during the drills in the open water of would be a process that might span months rather than Cenote Carwash, I knew I was being watched to see if the few days I would be here. my skill level had risen to the point where I could do the avanced sidemount course. By the end of six days I had much better cave skills, but I wasn’t good enough for small cave training. A few days This time I had two instructors tormenting me and things after returning home to Phoenix, I made arrangements to got serious fast. They removed my fins right away and return to Tulum in late June and train again. Meanwhile, the free flows, valve shut downs, and false junctions at I began a rigorous training regime at my local area: Lake the tie-offs seemingly flowed together in a constant flux. Pleasant, Arizona. Without fins to balance trim the platform (horizontal trim) wobbles, and it’s much harder to maintain position in the Each training day I laid a line in a 300 foot circuit with water. Sometimes my feet raised up high and I kicked jumps and tie offs. My first priority was to learn the back down hard to flatten out again. The key is the “OK” on kick, which I practiced until I could run the circuit in both the line. When I felt it bumping around the inside of my directions swimming backwards and then again without thumb-finger loop, my body position was good. But when my mask and my eyes closed. For the hovering, I stationed the line ran tight against my thumb or index finger, my trim myself facing the line exactly as we had in the cave. I was bad and I kicked and arched my back until the line

www.nsscds.org 15 bumped along again loosely between my finger and my I wiggled, pulled with my right hand. No go. I realized I was thumb. When a blast of bubbles hit the back of my throat turned incorrectly so I inched backwards and unscrewed I followed the hose to the tank valve and shut off the myself. Turning righty-tighty, I switched hands on the free correct tank. Entanglements and line snaps during free tank and corkscrewed up and right, squeezing past sharp flows came at me like I’d kicked a hornet’s nest. According blades of limestone. I slithered free into the void where to my log book, the torment lasted for about 60 minutes I found Patrick waiting for me with the blind fold in his before the blind fold was removed and we surfaced. hand.

The next day, we started my training at Cenote Cristalino, I turned and established myself on the line, and then he a cliffed, turquoise pool not far from Playa del Carmen. blindfolded me. I visualized the corkscrew and pushed Floating on the surface, Patrick spit water in long streams into the jagged hole, careful to keep contact with the pondering my demise. Then he said, “I am going to run line. If anything, I’d already learned to be gentle with a line in the cavern zone through three restrictions. The restrictions. You ease forward, exhale past tight points, last one is gnarly. If you get stuck I will do everything I can but never blindly yourself into the hole. It’s a matter to pull you out but you must be careful. Don’t just shove of finesse, using the senses to feel how to turn your head, your way into the hole. Take your time, move slowly and flatten the chest, slip to the left or to the right, all the while turn with the passage. Are we good?” “I will do it.” I said inching forward. I felt good. I felt alive. nodding; nothing was going to stop me. The next morning we arrived at Grand Cenote on a In the back of my mind I knew that this drill was about beautiful Yucatán day—blue skies and fast-moving puff- small spaces and application of the skills I’d learned so ball clouds. Floating in six feet of water, I was about far. If I got stuck, or worse, panicked, then small cave was to start the most challenging drill of the course. A few a no go for me. I saw the first restriction coming. It was minutes earlier I had been standing in shallow water and a long horizontal slit—no problem for my width, but as I practicing directly from the valve of a tank with edged into the entrance I exhaled and let out the air in my no regulator. As I raised my face out of the water, I said wing. Then, reaching forward I pulled into the maw of the “This is really going to be hard.” first restriction. I extended my legs and kept my fins still and wiggled through the 20-foot cleft. The goal was to exchange the bad regulator on a full tank with a good regulator on an empty tank. The process The next hole reminded me of a lock. It was required breathing directly from the tank valve in order to pinched on one side and sort of a rounded opening on the facilitate the switch. other. I frowned. The line was trapped in the narrow pinch of the restriction. I made a mental note of this because We descended, and then came the blindfold. once blind folded I needed to remain OK’d to the line. If I inadvertently let go of the line in this restriction, I might not I can’t remember how many times I bolted for the surface, be able to reach it again. but I will never forget the moment that I managed to switch the regulator. I pulled the good reg off the tank, pursed I removed the bungee from the valve of my right tank, my lips inside the DIN valve and opened the tank. Water reached around and unsnapped the clip to my waist and air gushed down my throat, red lights flashed behind belt, and rotated the tank around in front of me. Lastly, I my eyes and I breathed into it and adjusted the valve unsnapped the inflator hose from my , completely freeing the tank from my rig, and pushed the Al80 into the rounded, left-most opening of the restriction. I followed the tank into the hole and used my right hand to pull myself through the key hole. On the other side I popped out into open water again where the line jogged to the right and penetrated the final restriction.

I kicked toward the thin, jagged hole. This restriction was different than the others—the line seemingly disappeared as it made an abrupt turn into the white limestone. As I pushed my tank into the opening I could see that the passage twisted. It was smaller than the others and resembled a corkscrew. I relaxed and turned with the passage. My helmet soon wedged against the rock with my left arm fully extended upward. I was stuck.

16 Underwater Speleology until I managed a breathing rhythm. Without taking my cold Dos Equis, I reflected on the process and what I’d lips away from the valve, I reached around with my right been through. Part of me was sad that it was over and hand and found the good tank. Pulling it near my face, I another part of me was sort of dazed. It takes time to gain took the good reg and attached it to the tank and slowly perspective after experiences like these. opened the valve, listening for the tell-tale sound of free flow. Confident that I had attached the regulator correctly, The bar tender leaned toward me. “Mas cerveza, señor¿” I switched to the second stage and took a breath. I had He picked up my empty. done it! I nodded.”Por favor.” The next day we motored north of Tulum, making a left turn into the Yucatán jungle and bumping along a The barman was young, a little shorter than I am with a limestone road until we pulled off to the left underneath cigarette propped behind his ear and a Mayan pyramid a tree. I looked around, searching for a pool of water and tattooed on his left forearm. He opened a refrigerator and saw nothing but tropical forest. When I stepped out of the set another beer on my coaster. “What you do in Tulum?” truck, I noticed a small elliptical hole in the ground behind His English is better than my Spanish. the truck: Palomita! “I’m a cave diver,” I said. He gave me a puzzled look. I walked to the edge of the hole and peered down into “Cueva,” I said, remembering the Spanish word for cave. the darkness. One end of a rope ladder was tied to the “Cueva diver,” scissoring my fingers. bumper of the truck and the other end dropped down the hole. There was a slight delay, and then I heard the clunk He smiled and scissored his fingers back at me. “In of aluminum slats hitting the floor of the cavern. Maybe cenote. You dive in cenote?” twenty feet, I thought. “Sí. I’m a cave diver.” I climbed down the ladder with one of my backup lights, and the tanks were lowered to me using a rope. I carried He laughed. “I like swimming in cenote. But no like cueva. each tank through the low cavern to a clear pool that was Too dark and…how do you say?” He held both of his maybe six feet in diameter. This was a gift. This was what palms a few centimeters apart. all the months of training had been for. I was excited and terrified at the same time. I was about to be blooded and “Pequeña,”I finished. I couldn’t wait to get into the water. “Sí.” he chuckled, turning to help another customer. I led into the cave, kicking along a narrow bedding plane with our legs extended to avoid kicking the ceiling. In “Cave diver,” I repeated to myself. many places the passage squeezed down to the point where the frog kick was impossible. In these situations. The words sounded different in my ears. This course had I gripped small nubbins on the bottom of the passage changed me forever. and pulled my body along the floor of the passage. In other places I lowered my head and turned it to the side to avoid scraping my helmet along the ceiling. Our legs were extended and our fins stilled: the reduction of silt disturbance was paramount to maintaining visibility. Often the passage pinched down to a hole passable by removing the right tank. In some cases the squeezed corridor remained constricted enough that I pushed my tank ahead of my body for long distances. Sometimes I felt as though I was squeezing myself through a garden hose. At the point where I reached fifths, the cave opened slightly and it was relatively easy to turn around.

I OK’d the line and was once again blindfolded. This was my last run. My last test and I wanted to do it right. Again, there were free flows and valve shut downs until after the final restriction I felt hands on my face removing the blindfold. A big high-five, and the day belonged to me.

Later in the evening, sitting at a roadside bar drinking a

www.nsscds.org 17 Cave Collapse Due To Diver’s Bubbles

Doron Nof, Lakshika Girihagama and Cathrine Hancock Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Institute, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, United States of America

This article is a layman version of an article that has just aquifer. Such an aquifer looks like “cheese” in the sense appeared in PLOS ONE (Girihagama, Nof and Hancock, that it contains both [a few meters (tens of feet) 2015). Conventional wisdom among cave divers is that in diameters] and a porous limestone medium whose submerged caves in , such as in Florida or the particles have a scale of a millimeter (1/20 of an inch) or Yucatan, are unstable due to their ever-growing size from less. (The name “karst” originates from the German name limestone dissolution in water. Cave divers occasionally for “Kras”, a region in Slovenia where the first scientific noted partial cave collapses occurring while they were research of karst topography was made.) Karst caves in the cave, attributing this to their unintentional physical are formed by groundwater gradually dissolving the contact with the cave walls or the aforementioned “natural” surrounding limestone such that their size is constantly instability of the cave. Here, we suggest that these cave growing. collapses do not necessarily result from cave instability or contacts with walls, but rather from divers bubbles rising to the ceiling and reducing the acting on isolated ceiling rocks.

Using familiar theories for the strength of flat and arched (un-cracked) beams, we first show that the flat ceiling of a submerged limestone cave can have a horizontal expanse of 63 meters (~ 190 feet). This is much broader than that of most submerged Florida caves (~ 10 m, or 30 feet). Similarly, we show that an arched cave roof can have a still larger expanse of 240 meters (720 feet), again implying that Florida caves are structurally stable. Using familiar bubble dynamics, fluid dynamics of bubble-induced flows, and known diving practices, we show that a group of 1- 3 divers submerged below a loosely connected ceiling rock will quickly trigger it to fall causing a “collapse”. We then present a set of qualitative laboratory experiments illustrating such a collapse in a circular laboratory cave Fig. 1. Florida map showing the approximate locations of the Jackson Blue (i.e., a cave with a circular cross section), with concave Springs, Indian springs, , and the Peacock Springs. See and convex ceilings. In these experiments, a metalball text for a discussion of these springs. Information taken from Esri, DeLorme, represented the rock (attached to the cave ceiling with a USGS, NPS | Esri, GEBCO, DeLorme, NaturalVue | Esri, GEBCO, IHO-IOC GEBCO, DeLorme, NGS. magnet), and the bubbles were produced using a syringe located at the cave floor. a) Cave collapse in Karst aquifers.There are at least Introduction: In contrast to most aquifers in the world two kinds of (submerged) underground cave collapse (consisting of a continuous and relatively uniform porous processes in a karst aquifer. The first one is a “major media), the Florida (Fig. 1) aquifer is a mixture of tunnels collapse” where, due to limestone’s continuous dissolution and a continuous matrix, usually referred to as a “karst” in water, the cave’s ceiling becomes too thin to support

18 Underwater Speleology the ever-growing cave and it collapses to form a . explanation given on most cave diving forums is that We shall speak about this case in the second section, caves are inherently “unstable” and this is why rocks fall where it will be shown that,while this kind of collapse is from the ceiling from time-to-time. While this explanation common in some isolated parts of Florida, most Florida is psychologically comforting to cave divers because it caves are too small for such a collapse to occur. The places no responsibility on the divers themselves, we second (less major) kind of submerged cave collapse is shall show here that it is probably incorrect in most cases. where a single or a group of ceiling rocks fall and either We shall argue that, even without resonance, the gas partially or completely block the cave (to cave-divers released by the divers can cause a collapse (by lowering penetration). This is a much smaller collapse process that the buoyancy that forces the ceiling upward). does not necessarily involve the dissolution of limestone and subsequent formation of a sinkhole. It is this collapse c) Stability and the loss of buoyancy. As mentioned, some process that we focus on in this paper. One example of caves may indeed be unstable, as limestone dissolution such a collapse is the 2011 collapse in Jackson Blue, allows them to grow too large for the thickness of the Marianna, Florida, where a 100 tons ceiling rock fell to ceiling, which acts like a beam, to support their and the cavern floor. Though this rock is probably too large the weight above it. Simple calculations presented in the to be associated with the processes we propose here, it second section suggest, however, that, for most caves, does belong to the category mentioned above. Another this is not the case. In other words, Florida caves can is a very recent collapse (2013) where a one or two-ton grow to sizes much larger than their actual sizes today. ceiling rock fell and blocked one of the Peacock Spring Yet, since large rocks do occasionally fall from the ceiling, exits/entrances (See Fig. 1). this suggests a process unrelated to cave stability. We shall show in the third section, that these falling rocks are There is actually a third kind of collapse involving partially probably a direct result of buoyancy reduction on isolated submerged caves. When ground water is excessively ceiling rocks, due to divers bubbles. (This reduced pumped out of the aquifer (for agricultural use), the water buoyancy acts like added weight to rocks hanging from table is sometimes forced below the caves’ ceiling causing the ceiling.) For example, we shall see that three divers a loss of roof--supporting buoyancy. These caves, now exiting a slanted cave slowly [15 meters per minute (~ 59 only partially submerged, often collapse to form a sinkhole. feet per minute)] through a 75 meters long (~ 230 feet) There is anecdotal evidence for a dramatic increase in and 5 meters in diameter (~ 15 feet) chimney extending formation rate of such sinkholes after deep freezes, when from 30 to 10 meters (~ 90-30 feet) will exert a buoyancy more ground water is pumped out to water the trees and reduction of as much as 500 kilograms (~ 1200 pounds). save the oranges from freezing. However, since this kind (Strictly speaking, buoyancy is measured in Newtons but, of collapse involves partially submerged caves, it is of no for simplicity, we shall use Kilograms, which is the unit relevance to the current study. usually used to measure weight). b) Accidents. It is hard to come by worldwide statistics of cave diving accidents, but in Florida alone there have been several hundred fatalities during the past 50 years. Most of them were due to lack of adequate training and/or inappropriate gear. With the exception of one well-known case, where the cave literally collapsed while divers were in it, all of these accidents were due to diver error as opposed to environmental causes. It has been suggested recently, that the exceptional case in question of no-diver- fault was probably induced by the bubbles released by the Fig.2. Three dimensionalschematic of a flat and concave roof. The beams divers, which caused resonance in the cave, leading to a rest loosely on the sidewalls. collapse (Nof and Paldor, 2010; Nof, 2012). This implies that the accident was due to divers actions, though, at the Ceiling instability of slowly growing caves - In this time, it was unknown this could cause a collapse. That section we will discuss the stability of two kinds of caves resonance mechanism described in (Nof and Paldor, shown in Fig.2, one with a flat roof and the other with a 2010; Nof, 2012)is much more involved than the simpler more realistic (and more stable) concave roof. We shall buoyancy mechanism suggested here (though both see that both cave configurations are very stable when involve bubbles). using standard dimensions of Florida and Yucatan caves. In fact, these caves do not become unstable until their Although this is the only documented case of an accident size exceeds that of Florida and Yucatan caves by almost caused by a cave collapse, there are many anecdotal an order of magnitude. collapses where rocks fell from the ceiling while cave divers were going through the cave. The typical anecdotal a) Flat roof. Using standard and familiar rock mechanics www.nsscds.org 19 (see e.g.Hibbeler, 1997) we first calculate the maximum shear stress, occurring at the centerline of the beam. We shall see shortly that this vertical shear stress is negligible in regards to the stability process we are now addressing. As is normally the case, the beam is compressed in its top part and stretched in the lower part. When the beam is long compared to its thickness, the maximum horizontal tensile stress is much larger than the shear stress. In contrast, when the thickness is greater than the length, the shear stress is the largest. One can show that, in the case of a shear failure, the critical condition is independent of depth due to equal growth rates of thickness and weight. Next, we follow familiar Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion, stating Fig.3.Maximum span of rectangular and arch beams as a function of beam that the shear strength is half the compressive strength. thickness. Overall, an arched beam is more stable than a straight beam. We find that the maximum span of the cave is incredibly For increasing beam thickness, the growth rate of stability is higher for the large, about 2800 meters (more than 8000 feet), clearly arched beam, as opposed to the straight beam. beyond the range of Florida caves. The lost buoyancy due to bubbles - Having established that Florida caves are structurally stable, we now proceed Baykasoglu et al., 2007and Tahir et al., 2011 suggest that to our proposed buoyancy reduction due to bubbles theory. the limestone is slightly stronger than concrete. Taking the Before doing so, however, it is useful to review some basic beam thickness (i.e., the cave ceiling depth below ground) principles of bubble dynamics adopted fromHaberman et to be 20 m (~ 60 feet), we found that the beam will break al., 1953; Batchelor,1967; Batchelor, 1987;Zeng et al., (i.e., the cave will collapse) when it reaches a span of ~ 63 2000; Bozzano et al., 2001, and Joseph, 2003, where m (~190 feet). This is much broader than most of Florida’s the rising velocity, shapes and stability of the bubbles are submerged caves, which are usually no more than 10- discussed. 20 meters broad (~30-60 feet), demonstrating that most Florida caves are stableto general failure. The presence a) Bubble dynamics: Bubbles released by divers are usu- of cracks will, of course, reduce the above stability criteria; ally cap bubbles (Fig.4). They rise at what is generally re- however, it is very difficult to estimate what will happen in ferred to as a “terminal” velocity of roughly 0.5 m/s (~1.5 such a case. Assuming the critical cracks are vertical and feet per-second), namely, just like the balance associated occupy half of the roof thickness, we find the critical cave with a skydiver, the driving force (buoyancy in the case width to be 45 m (~ 140 feet), which is still double the size of bubbles) is balanced by form-drag. For more informa- of most Florida caves. Note that a cave roof will need to tion, the reader is referred to the outstanding and informa- be less than 50 cm thick (~ 2 feet) in order to be unstable tive article of Batchelor, 1987 and textbook of Batchelor, at a 10 m (30 feet) span—an extremely unusual situation 1967. for most Florida caves. b) Concave roof.Due to minimal tensile stress, the arched ceiling case is much more stable than the previously considered flat roof case. With an arched ceiling, most of the stress is of compression form, which stabilizes the cave since limestone is six times more resistant to compression stress than it is to tensile stress. (This idea of increased arched stability was known even to the Romans, who used arched beams throughout their structures. Other cultures were probably also familiar with this concept.)

To examine this case, we consider a symmetrical two- hinged arch (Fig.2b and Fig.2a) with a rectangular cross section. Using familiar mechanical principles we find that the maximum length is about 250 meters (~ 750 feet). Fig.4.Schematic of a spherical cap-bubble rising through a liquid. As the bubble rises, the environmental decreases. However, surface As expected, this is considerably larger than both the tension imposes a maximum bubble size (rmax) beyond which the bubble flat beam case and the typical values found in Florida is unstable and breaks up (~ 7-8 cm, roughly 3 inches). Consequently, the caves. This implies, once again, that Florida caves are bubble maintains its maximum stable size by constantly ejecting gas around structurally stable. the rim as it rises.

20 Underwater Speleology Bubbles are subject to surface-tension-controlled instabil- per minute). Note that these 16 liters (0.57 cubic feet) per- ity, associated with waves on their upper and lower inter- minute are normally measured in reference to surface air faces. These interfaces can intersect, causing the bubble consumption (i.e., volume of air per minute consumed at to break. Thus, this instability determines the maximum ), not the consumption of pressurized size of a bubble, which is approximately 7-8 centimeters gas at depth. However, since the diver’s absolute lungs (~ 3 inches). When a bubble, having reached its maximum volume times the breathing rate (not consumption of size, rises, it attempts to accommodate for the decrease pressurized gas) does not change with depth, it is also 16 in environmental pressure by increasing its size further. liters at depth (though this gas is normally under higher Due to the above-mentioned instability, such an increase pressure than it is at the surface). These 16 liters turn into is prohibited. As a result, the bubble ejects smaller bub- 18 liters (0.64 cubic feet) upon rising from the bottom to bles along its periphery (see Fig. 4), allowing it to retain the ceiling of the cave, because the surrounding pressure its maximal size. For other interesting aspects of bubble reduces from an absolute pressure of 1.7 atmospheres dynamics, the reader is referred to Kenyon, 2011and his (i.e., ambient plus atmospheric) at the bottom to 1.5 discussion of static bubbles generated by dolphins. atmospheres at the top of the cave. b) Buoyancy reduction process. Archimedes law states C) Bubbles-rock interaction. Assuming (for the sake of that the buoyancy of a submerged object is the weight of argument) that the ceiling of the cave is flat so that bubbles the liquid that the object displaces as it is forced into the do not escape away from the rock, we find that it will take liquid. As should be the case, it is identical to the sum of the divers 82 minutes to displace the entire amount of the vertical hydrostatic pressure exerted on the object. water situated directly under the rock (i.e., the 1.31 m3 or Hence, a rock attached to the ceiling of a submerged ~ 46 cubic feet). Displacing an amount equal to the rock cave weighs 37% less in water than in air (i.e., its in- volume (0.26 m3, or 9.2 cubic feet) would take 16 minutes. water density is 1.7 gr/cm3 (0.914 ounce per-cubic-inch) Without performing detailed fluid dynamics calculations, When the water in which the rock is submerged contains which are beyond the scope of this study, it is hard to bubbles, the buoyancy is reduced (since water with tell what fraction of the water in the cave participates in bubbles weighs less than water with no bubbles), making the buoyancy reduction process. Clearly, the entire water the effective weight of the rock larger. volume of the cave does not participate in the process, nor is it merely the water directly beneath the rock that As a simple example, consider a semi-spherical rock responds to the loss of buoyancy. Thus, for simplicity, we (Fig.5) with a radius of half-a-meter (0.5 m, a bit less then shall assume this volume to be equal to the rock volume 2 feet) attached to the ceiling of a cave. The ceiling is 5 and that the relevant water is situated immediately beneath meters (~15 feet) below the water surface in the basin into the rock. This means that a complete displacement of the which the spring debouches and its bottom is 2 meters (~ rock volume is achieved after 16 minutes and 5 minutes of 6 feet) below its ceiling. It is 2 meters (~ 6 feet) broadand bubbles gives us a 30% displacement. With the latter, the has minimal flow in it. The rock weighing 706 kg (~ 1500 rock will now weigh 533 kg (~ 1174 pounds), as opposed pounds) in air, weighs 445 kg (~ 980 pounds) in water to the original 445 kg (~ 980 pounds), corresponding to without bubbles. A cave diver lingers near the bottom a 19% weight increase. For certain rocks, this amount is of the cave, under the rock, releasing gas at a typical sufficient to cause them to fall, as our qualitative laboratory breathing rate of 16 liters per minute (about 0.6 cubic feet experiments will demonstrate shortly.

It is important to realize that there are actually two opposing bubble-induced forces acting on the rock. The first is the reduced buoyancy discussed above and the second is an opposing force directed towards the ceiling by the excess pressure, resulting from the arrest of the vertical fluid speed on the surface of the rock (Fig.5). This force has not been discussed yet and will now be addressed. We refer to it as a drag-force (not lift) even though it is pointed vertically, because, by definition in fluid dynamics, drag is a force parallel to the flow whereas lift is perpendicular to the flow. Using Archimedes Law, we showed that the bubble induced buoyancy loss is much greater than the aforementioned excess force on the rock, as Fig. 6 clearly Fig.5. Streamline of bubbles around a semi-hemispherical ceiling rock. demonstrates. The non-dimensional number (k) is the The ceiling rock is completely immersed in water. Bubbles released by ratio of the excess force on the rock at point A (drag) to the divers create a flow around the rock. Because of the advectivebubble- the bubbles induced buoyancy loss. induced flow, there is an excess pressure exerted on the ceiling causing a drag on the rock.

www.nsscds.org 21 Fig.6.The drag / buoyancy loss ratio (k) as functions of relative bubble volume (α) and the vertical bubble propagation velocity (WB). The ratio decreases as α increases and WBdecreases. However, the ratio is always

small (compared to unity) for any α and WB, hencethe drag force is negligible compared to the buoyancy loss. (1 meter is roughly 3 feet.)

Laboratory experiments -To illustrate our ideas more Fig.7. Laboratory experiment for bubble-induced cave collapse (with a vividly, we performed two sets of qualitative laboratory concave ceiling). The apparatus is a cylindrical chamber [radius and width are 6.4 cm (less than 3 inches) and 3.3 cm (more than an inch), respectively) experiments. By “qualitative”, we mean that our filled with water (colored). The chamber is equivalent to a cave witha experiments are intended to demonstrate a process, rather circular cross section. A metal ball (equivalent to a ceiling rock) is attached than establish “proof” of our theory or an examination of to the concave surface of the cylindrical chamber by a magnet. Air bubbles are released at the bottom of the chamber using a syringe. The tube on the numerical values. As a result, the bubbles-to-rock length left side of the chamber removes water displaced by the bubbles. In this scale ratio is not comparable between the laboratory and demonstration, the released bubbles accumulate in the vicinity of the metal real cave scenarios. Similarly, the bubble size used in the ball, due to the concave shape of the roof. (a) Experimental set up before bubble release. (b) Bubbles released at the bottom using a syringe. (c) laboratory experiment is not realistic. Time at which the metal ball loses its buoyancy due to the bubbles. (d) The ball falls to the bottom of the chamber, due to gravity. We constructed two small Plexiglas caves, one with a concave roof (Fig.7) and one with a convex roof (Fig.8). The radius and width of the cylindrical chamber are 6.4 cm 9 abit less than 3 inches) and 3.3 cm(a bit more than an inch), respectively; whereas the metal ball’s radius is approximately 0.75 cm (~1/3 of an inch). Bubbles are released at roughly 2-3ml/s (0.12-0.18 cubic inch per second). The concave roof, though more realistic, allows for bubbles to accumulate near the rock, which enhances the buoyancy reduction process by an amount we have not taken into account.The convex cave (Fig.8), on the other hand, allows an investigation of the process without the abovementioned bubble accumulation (despite its unrealistic configuration).

The metal “rock” was held in place by a magnet and bubbles were created by a hypodermic needle. The narrow tube on the left allowed excess fluid (created by the injection of bubbles) to be expelled out of the cave. As our calculations suggest, the rock fell down once the Fig.8. Laboratory experiment for bubble-induced cave collapse (with a buoyancy was reduced beyond a critical value. This was convex ceiling). Now, the apparatus is a cylindrical chamber (radius and the case regardless of the cave ceiling configuration, i.e., width are the same as before) with a convex ceiling. It is again filled with water (colored). The chamber is equivalent to a cave with a circular cross the site of bubble accumulation. section. Air bubbles are again released at the bottom of the chamber using a syringe. The tube on the left side of the chamber removes water displaced Summary and discussion - Using fluid dynamics by the bubbles. In this demonstration, the bubbles cause a flow past the metal ball and accumulate away from the metal ball, due to the convex principles, we showed that isolated ceiling rocks in shape of the cave ceiling. (a) Experimental set up before bubble release. (b) submerged caves could be unstable to buoyancy Bubbles released at the bottom using a syringe. (c) Point at which the metal perturbations due to bubbles released by divers. There ball loses its buoyancy due to the bubbles. (d) The ball falling to the bottom is plenty of anecdotal evidence for such submerged cave of the chamber, due to gravity. 22 Underwater Speleology collapses. However, hard evidence is difficult to come by. as the total time allowed in a cavern, should probably The only known case to be reported on in literature is that be considered and imposed in certain popular caverns. of Indian Springs in 1991. Recently, Nof, 2012 proposed Diving in particularly fragile caverns and caves should that this particular collapse was due to resonance in the probably be limited to re-breather diving that does not cave. It is, however, plausible that this collapse was due generate bubbles.Cave divers are advised to watch for to the simpler process proposed here, i.e., rocks fell from rocks whose volume is roughly the same as the gas they the ceiling due to diver’s bubbles, causing a sediment expel while passing under them. slide upon impact with the marginally unstable cave floor (see Figs. 3, & 4 in Nof, 2012 ). Acknowledgement

The process we propose here is particularly active near Nof acknowledges Dr. Dave Loper and Forrest Wilson, for cave exits, where the presence of bubbles is maximized beneficial discussions regarding general cave collapse because of their expansion due to the lower surrounding issues. Girihagama acknowledges Dr. Lisa Spainhour for pressure. A recent case fitting this description is that of helpful discussions regarding Section 2. The Geophysical Peacock Spring (http://www.floridadiveconnection.com/ Fluid Dynamics Institute, Dr. Daniel Kuncicky (GFDI), florida-cave-divers-give-mother-nature-a-little-help/), Alan Michael, and Anthony Diaz (GFDI) are thanked though reports suggest it occurred when the park was for their help with the laboratory demonstrations. The closed (i.e., no divers were present). It is still possible, authors sincerely thank the reviewers, particularly Dr. however, that divers presence earlier weakened the rock- Hezi Gildor, for critically reading the manuscript and ceiling connection, or that divers were present in the cave suggesting numerous improvements. This is contribution even though the park was closed. number 470 of the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Institute at Florida State University. Both Lakshika Girihagama Another case is that of Steve Bogaerts, who claims that a and Cathrine Hancock were partially supported by GFDI. cave through which he passed collapsed behind him, forc- The study was supported by NASA Doctoral Fellowship ing him to find an alternate, previously unknown, exit (see Grant NNG05GP65H,AGS Grant (1032403), LANL/IGPP http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGwhLqDwmD8). In Grant (1815), NSF (OCE-0752225, OCE-9911342, OCE- general, Yucatan caves are probably more prone to a 0545204, and OCE-0241036), BSF(2006296), and NASA collapse than Florida caves because they are shallower (NNX07AL97G). so that bubbles are subject to greater expansion as they rise from the bottom to the ceiling of the cave. Numerous broken are found on the bottom of many Yu- catan caves suggesting such collapses. However, these probably occurred when the sea level was lower than it is today and the caves were dry. During those times the stalactites were not subject to any buoyancy and were thus less stable.

Finally, we also examined the possibility that material fatigue, of the kind that was responsible for air traffic accidents in the middle of the previous century, caused the collapse (through frequent generation of bubbles). It turns out that the frequency of bubble generation in caves is a few orders of magnitude smaller than that causing the collapse of windows in pressurized airplanes Bagde et al., 2005, so the likelihood of this mechanism being responsible for the limestone collapse is very small.

Pragmatic recommendations - Our analysis suggests that caverns (the largest part of the cave that is normally closest to the spring and usually subject to daylight) are probably the most prone to a collapse. This is because they are subject to a larger number of divers due to their larger size and relative ease of diving. They are also subject to the greatest pressure difference between their bottom and ceiling, implying the largest totalvolume of accumulated small and large bubbles near the ceiling. Limits on the number of divers at any one time, as well

www.nsscds.org 23 Great Suwanee River

Cleanup 2015

By: Fritzi Olsen

For the sixth year, the Great Suwannee River Basin If you are interested in participating, please visit Cleanup is gearing up yet again. Over the past five http://tinyurl.com/mmqfbdy to access the breakdown years we have removed 88,000 pounds of trash of cleanup sections. Register your group, planned from the Suwannee and its tributaries. This year, cleanup date and the river section you choose online we intend to pass the 100,000 pound mark. Current at http://tinyurl.com/nljmvvr. Problems will have a wrap up party to celebrate this achievement, with the date and location to be Current Problems is available to assist you as you announced at a later time. plan your cleanup and to provide supplies (grabbers, buckets, trash bags, etc.). If you have questions or We are once again recruiting dedicated river need assistance, please contact Current Problems’ cleaners to tackle not just the Suwannee, but also Executive Director, Fritzi Olson, at 352-215-7554 or the Santa Fe, Ichetucknee, Withlacoochee, and e-mail her at [email protected]. Alapaha. These additional rivers suffer the same fate as the Suwannee when trash and harmful As always, we look forward to having participation of garbage accumulates on the river bottoms and along the cave diving community. They have contributed riverbanks. By cleaning up the tributaries we are so much to the success of the Great Suwannee helping to maintain not only the health and beauty River Basin Cleanup over the years, and it is so of each river, but also that of the Suwannee River much appreciated by Current Problems. down to the estuaries and Gulf of Mexico! We are also including Shired Island this year in an effort to Michael Angelo Gagliardi is planning several small begin clearing the coastal islands of what is mostly cleanups on behalf of the CDS starting with the first plastic trash. Adding the coastal islands along the along the Suwannee on September 12. Nelly Mikhail Gulf will help make their shores safer for the wildlife William has volunteered to act as Conservation we all love. Volunteer Coordinator, so to volunteer and get up to date information go to their Facebook page CAVE The 2015 cleanup will take place during a roughly CONSERVATION VOLUNTEERS www.facebook. three-month window from September through the com/caveconservationvolunteers or contact Nelly at first week of December, with businesses, civic clubs, [email protected] fishing and boating groups, churches, government agencies, non-profits, chambers of commerce and groups of friends all encouraged to participate.

24 Underwater Speleology NSS-CDS Suwanee River Cleanup Day By: Michael Angelo Gagliardi

The weather kept us off the river, however the group worked the roads leading up to Charles Springs and WSPSSP. We picked up 224 pounds of trash!

Our volunteers were Tom Sergent, Renne Power, Angel Hall, Travis Marques, Jennifer Miller, Nancy Loughrin, Al Clements, Zelda Gagliardi, Wayne Kinard, Sandy Robinson and Michael Angelo Gagliardi.

For information on additional cleanup days please visit www.facebook.com/caveconservationvolunteers or contact Nelly at [email protected]

www.nsscds.org 25 Since the last UWS publication, Julie Ralph received her Abe Davis Award and Anthony J. Gonzales received his Henry Nicholson Award. I know many others are progressing towards their own award. These are wonderful accomplishments that exhibit dedication and effort, and I look forward to sharing the news of these accomplishments with you.

Today, Allen A. Smith will regal us with the story of his journey to achieve his Abe Davis award and the moments he enjoyed along the way. Please take time to enjoy story and take time reflect upon your own accomplishments.

Reaching a point that others take note of is a milestone. of me and the beckoning possibilities for exploration in Reaching a point that changes one’s own attitude is a the dark transepts. The austere beauty of the cave world, watershed. even more than the lavish beauty of a coral , seemed like God’s private amusement. I was awed by the feeling My 100th cave dive was a milestone. It was a 35 minute I had now become privy to God‘s private amusement. I dive, noteworthy only because the only reason for diving kept repeating to myself, “Blessed are You, o Lord, our the Olsen Line in 20 foot visibility was to get my Abe Davis God, Who has created a world with such marvels in it.” Award by the end of 2014. I soon discovered the joys of a surface interval at Olsen But intro cave was both a milestone and a watershed. I Sink. I could inflate my buoyancy compensator, roll onto had added one more C-card to my stack and, although I my back, and lie there on a real water bed in the filtered had mastered the required skills with great difficulty, I still sunshine. If I turned my head I could see the feathery had a formidable new skill set. I took enough pride in my green ring of ferns around the sink. What a lovely place new skills that I surreptitiously practiced running lines and for a nap! doing lost line drills in the Barry University pool on Sun- day mornings. It also added another degree of freedom Apprentice was another milestone and another water- to my diving; I now had access to half a dozen caves shed: I now had the freedom to go anywhere I could get to around High Springs and the skills to enjoy them. With on thirds. The proviso that I return the way I came wasn’t a little help from my friends, I learned the joys of riding much of a restriction as very few circuits can be done with the current out of Ginnie and Madison Blue. It also made a pair of high pressure 100’s (which hold 17% less gas me a member of the cave diving community, a commu- than low pressure 85’s). nity with far more cohesiveness and mutual concern than my open water dive club. (I know, it’s a community full I could have happily stayed at the apprentice level. Gin- of quarrels, but they are family quarrels.) Cave Divers’ nie, Peacock, Madison Blue and Little River all had Forum gave me the opportunity to learn from my peers, branches to explore. A simple finger spool made it pos- with thought provoking discussions as well as a voice in sible to navigate the cave world and I reveled in my new those discussions. Many of those forum discussions led privileges and celebrated my new status with a trip to the to face-to-face encounters in Cathy’s kitchen or the Little Bone Room with Forrest Wilson. Devil Pavilion. Full cave certification was also a milestone. I had perse- The second watershed was my first dive in the Olsen Tun- vered through the critiques of several instructors, slowly nel at Peacock Spring. This tunnel looked like a flooded honing my skills and judgment, until Tom Johnson decid- cathedral! 60 foot visibility showed off the long series of ed that I was ready to learn on my own. Little changed, I Romanesque arches forming the main tunnel and arch- had I had a card that entitled me to go anywhere and do ways off to the sides seemed to lead to transept chapels. I was equally fascinated by the beauty of the scene in front Continued on page 30

26 Underwater Speleology We Are Stronger Than Me From The Conservation Chair: Michael Angelo Gagliardi

Archiving Our Cave Systems Archival : adjective of or relating to archives or valuable records; contain in or comprising such archives or records.

Recently, I was in Alachua’s City Hall supporting BoD ments, to organize volunteers and begin grant writing to member Sylvester “TJ” Muller in his efforts to protect the raise the funds to complete our goals. Anyone with grant Alachua Sink System. The work being done, and the writing abilities or experience who would like to volunteer, support by so many individuals, has made me think about please feel free to contact either me or Al. other conservation efforts, and what we can do to protect the springs and water filled caves of not only Florida or I would like to end this writing with a few short paragraphs even the USA, but the world. written, at my request, by Bill Harrison, the team leader of Roubidoux Springs. One thing we can do, is not to wait for these systems to be threatened but be prepared for those times when we are called to action. At the Alachua City meeting, both ”When Michael Angelo called and asked me to lead a sides tried to explain what was beneath the ground. That team of fauna counters for the Roubidoux Spring system, is the first thing we need to do, know what’s beneath us, I was honored, but also reluctant to accept the position. what are in these springs. We then need to do more to I am not the most talented fish ID diver by far, and was tell people what is in these systems. We need to provide also afraid that I could not personally commit to diving the evidence of what is in these systems … we need to ar- system every month, since it is a good drive from home, chive our systems. the flow conditions are often temperamental, and I have a busy SCUBA teaching schedule during the warmer Some of this is accomplished with system mapping. Un- months. We discussed these obstacles, and agreed that derwater photographers and film makers have reached if I assembled a team of six counters, we could rotate the an even greater audience with their videos and still im- responsibility to make every effort to get two or three of us ages. Kelly Jessop began archiving the biological trends in there each month. Also, we were given some personal with fauna counts and water quality monitoring using hy- training and a fauna ID chart to help with the counting dro labs. This in turn inspired a similar program in the aspect. Midwest in Missouri’s Roubidoux Springs and Cannonball Cave. I would like to organize a team to begin a fauna We began our efforts in October 2013, and have enjoyed count and water quality monitoring program in the CDS’s the process, only missing several months due to flow con- systems starting with Alachua Sink and Cow Springs. It ditions making the system inaccessible to us. Also, we is my belief (as TJ stated at the board meeting) that docu- gained additional interest, swelling our team to a total of mentation of these systems is essential to their protec- ten possible divers, so that it just seems that there are tion. As I have been doing in Missouri, I would want to set always a couple who want to go each month, and no one up a minimum six man team and train them in performing considering it to be a chore. Plus, for those of us who fauna counts. The fauna count dives will then be made have already made a great many dives in Roubidoux, this by teams of 2-3 man divers each time. The methodology gives us a new perspective on the dives and another rea- will be consistent with the NFSA and Missouri efforts and son to enjoy each dive there. water quality testing will follow soon after. Thanks for all the help from my team: Bob Bost, Bjorn Loftis, Jim Marshall, Dagmar & Jesse Pogue, SLIM, Dave None of this is free, and none of this can be done without Frawley, Bill Cowley, Peggy Harrison. the help of the membership. Sensors are not cheap and, quite frankly, not in the current CDS budget. I will be Bill Harrison” working with BoD member and property manager, Al Cle-

www.nsscds.org 27 off to the side...... By Rob Neto

STEEL VS ALUMINUM

Every now and then the topic of diving steel cylinders ver- some common steel cylinder sizes and their gas capac- sus aluminum cylinders pops up on the social media sites. ity. It can be interesting to read the arguments for or against either one, but I haven’t yet seen anyone do a detailed A common thing seen here is that to get the equivalent comparison of the advantages or disadvantages of each. amount of gas in aluminum cylinders when compared to Part of the reason for that may be that those arguing for the most popular steel cylinder sizes, we need to carry the use of steel cylinders tend to live and dive in North one to two additional aluminum cylinders. Rather than Florida where steel cylinders are common and those ar- use two 95 cf/15 L cylinders we would need three 80 guing for the use of aluminum cylinders tend to live and cf/10.5 L cylinders, or two 108 cf/17 L cylinders would re- dive in Mexico where aluminum cylinders are more com- quire four 80 cf/10.5 L cylinders. mon. So there will always be a bias to each side, it’s just human nature. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this? First, it does add the of an additional regula- In a previous article, I reviewed the differences between tor or two and the management of an additional stage diving in these two climates and explained that wing lift cylinder or two. For cave divers just starting out this is not isn’t really a factor of the type of cylinder one dives but recommended. In fact, standards won’t allow a basic or rather the type of exposure protection one needs (see apprentice cave diver to use a stage cylinder. So using UWS 2014 1st quarter issue). What wasn’t discussed is aluminum cylinders limits those divers to 160 cf/4200 L of why divers choose to dive one type of cylinder over the gas. While this is sufficient gas in shallower systems such other. Most commonly divers beginning to dive sidemount as those found in Mexico, this isn’t as suitable when div- have single 80 cf/10.5 L cylinders that are easily adapted ing deeper systems such as those found in North Florida. for . So training standards tend to have an influence on what cylinders are typically used by geographic region. Another part of it is geographical. Traditionally, alumi- num cylinders were the only type of cylinders available What about after that? Why not use aluminum cylinders in popular cave diving destinations such as Mexico. That once you’ve received that full cave card, built up some ex- is changing, and more and more steel cylinders are be- perience, and taken a stage class? Aluminum cylinders coming available for rental. But what are the benefits of are lightweight and easier to handle in the water, smaller this? in diameter and can be used in smaller restrictions (than 95s, 108s, and 120s), and are usually less expensive than Let’s look at some common cylinder sizes and compare steel cylinders. Why not use three aluminum 80 cf/10.5L gas volume. As most of us know aluminum cylinders cylinders instead of two 85 cf/13L cylinders? Not only are have an 80 cubic foot (cf)/10.5 liter (L) capacity. And un- they lightweight and easier to handle but you can leave like steel cylinders, they don’t get cave filled. What this the first cylinder (stage) on the line as you continue your means is we get 80 cf/2100 L per cylinder. Here’s a list of penetration with the remaining two cylinders and be more

28 Underwater Speleology streamlined and create less drag. Seems like a wash? inders are 2.4lbs/1.1 kg negative when empty. Three Maybe not… aluminum Luxfer80 cf/10.5 L cylinders are 13.2lbs/6 kg negative when empty. That’s a difference of 10.6 lbs/4.9 Using three cylinders does require the added expense kg, which is a pretty significant difference. If you decide of an additional regulator set as well as the task load- to use aluminum cylinders instead of steel cylinders you ing mentioned above. Also, with the positive buoyancy of may need to find somewhere to add 11 lbs/5 kg of weight aluminum cylinders you might have to find somewhere for so if you end up having to tap into your gas reserves you additional weight to maintain . Steel cyl- won’t be struggling to hold a stop at 20 ft/6 m at the end inders have greater negative buoyancy and can be used of the dive. as ballast as well as be a gas source. If you don’t have anywhere to put that additional 11 lbs/5 Or is this truly the case? Is there that much difference kg the choice may seem obvious. But wait! What if that between the buoyancy characteristics of empty steel cyl- 11 lbs/5 kg of weight makes you negative? What if you inders and empty aluminum cylinders? Let’s see. Most only need 5 lbs/2.3 kg with empty cylinders to remain common steel cylinders used in sidemount diving are any- neutral? If you happen to dive in a , the likelihood where from neutral to 2.5lbs/1.2 kg negative when empty. that you need 11 lbs/5 kg of weight is not great. In fact, Most common aluminum cylinders are neutral or 4-4.4 many sidemount divers who are diving in wetsuits with lbs/2-2.25 kg positive. That’s a big difference. There steel cylinders are over weighted and will need gas in the may be as much as18.2lbs/8.3 kg difference between the wing even with empty cylinders. If that’s the case then cylinders when comparing two empty steel cylinders with aluminum cylinders may be the better choice. three empty aluminum cylinders. But who will ever come out of a dive with empty cylinders? Hopefully no one, but What this basically comes down to is don’t just write one don’t we try to plan for the worst case scenario in cave method or the other off. Weigh the advantages and dis- diving? (Check out the weighting article in UWS 2015 2nd advantages (pun intended) and go with what works best quarter issue). for you and the dive you’re planning. That may always be steel cylinders. It may always be aluminum cylinders. Or Let’s look at an example. Two Faber LP 95 cf/15 L cyl- it may alternate.

NSS-CDS BUSINESS AFFILIATES

Bird’s Underwater, Inc. Bonne Terre Mine/West End Diving 320 NW Hwy 19 12464 Natural Bridge Crystal River, FL 34428 Bridgeton, MO 64044 352-563-2763 314-209-7200 www.birdsunderwater.com www.westenddiving.com

Cave Adventurers Chattahoochee Scuba 5211 Limestone Lane 5870-K Veterans Parkway Marianna, FL 32446 Columbus, GA 31909 850-482-6016 706-507-2573 www.caveadventurers.com [email protected]

Depth Perception Dive Addicts 4015 W Gandy Blvd 12356 South 900 East Tampa, FL 33611 Draper, Utah 84020 813-344-9859 801-572-5111 www.depthperception.com www.diveaddicts.com

Dive Outpost Extreme Exposure 20148 180th St 25 South Main Street Live Oak, Fl 32060 high Springs, FL 32643 386-776-1449 386-454-8158 www.diveoutpost.com www.extreme-exposure.com

Ginnie Springs Manta Industries and High Seas Mill Work 7300 NE Ginnie Springs Rd. 860-742-2699 High Springs, FL 32643 386-454-7188 www.privateerdivers.com www.ginniespringsoutdoors.com

Worldwide Diving Travelers dba WDT Rango Extendido Georges Gawinowski Las Flores #617, Col. Flor de Maria 22586 132nd Street Live Oak, FL 32060 Mexico, D.F. 01760 954.292.2901 www.rangoextendido.com [email protected]

www.nsscds.org 29 Continued from page 9 Continued from 26 ended up at 90-degrees, progressing sideways hand- anything, but my own judgment was almost as restrictive over-hand, perpendicular to the rope. Given the strength as my apprentice card. I still found occasions to practice of the flow, I decided to avoid the ahead and the lost line drill, and I still took courses. I did finally start turned the dive, passing a big catfish on the way out. doing the Nicholson circuit.

Back at the surface I finned over to the large boil further My first dive in Mermaid’s Lair in Grand Bahama was an- around the bay, but once there I felt the strength of it other watershed. The profusion of underwater scenery and opted to skip this passage. The cave is not going was beyond belief; and stalactites lined ev- anywhere and apparently the best time of year here for ery yard of the main line and stretched off to the sides diving is in autumn, when the flow is way down and the as far as my light could reach. The main line was not a visibility optimal. Jim came back in his boat and picked tunnel, but only a path of least resistance through a bed- me up, then invited me back in autumn. I can’t prom- ding plane decorated with . And what spe- ise it’ll be this year Jim, but when I can then I will, aye. leothems! The stalagmites glowed orange inside in the beam of my light and in the few areas devoid of stalactites the ceiling was carved into grotesque orange and black shapes. Diving in Mermaid’s Lair matched the descrip- tions I have heard of acid trips. Like drug trips, speleo- thems are addicting. I have seen many beautiful caves since then, Cow upstream, Sac Actun, Nohoch Na Chich, Taj Mahal, and Chan Hol, but Mermaid’s Lair is still my first love.

The final watershed was the day Carl Griffing took me into Cow upstream. It was soon after my full cave certifica- tion and Carl’s confidence in my ability to the dive with- out damage to the cave was a tremendous complement. Cow upstream had enough difficulty to test my skills, and Waiting for a lift home after the second dive. enough beauty to amaze me. Here was a Florida cave that rivaled the caves of Grand Bahama and the Mayan Riviera! Beauty can be built up a Acknowledgements: My sincere thanks to the Nature drop at a time, but it can also be Conservancy of Canada for permission to visit these sculpted a grain at a time. dynamic and precious ecosystems, thanks to Dr David Sawatsky and Paul Heinerth for their assistance in mak- Each of these watershed moments ing this happen, and a special mention to Jim who could has significantly deepened my af- not have done more to make a cave diver welcome. fection for flooded caves. So I keep returning to my caves for adventure, PostScript: When the temperature loggers were down- the joy of watching my own skills de- loaded the water temperature on the first day was 14.4 velop, fellowship, the peace of the degrees Celsius (57.9F) and on the second day in the cave environment and to enjoy the western cave it was 15.4 degrees Celsius (59.7F), indi- beauty of God’s secret handiwork. cating that the water flowing through each cave may be sourced from different depths in the river. The scientists that weekend identified 198 species, being 105 fauna, 92 flora and one mushroom. None of the identified animals Would you like to share your story or submit an application for were fish or crustacean and yet the caves are home to your award? Email me at [email protected] or mail them to many species of these and also likely support otters and me at PO Box 150096 Fort Worth, TX 76108 Awards applications other visitors. In my final report I recommended access be limited to full-cave divers only because of the flow, can be found at http://nsscds.org/NSSCDSAwards relatively poor visibility and potential for getting lost (it’s a 10,000 ft maze). Access can be arranged through the Dive Safe, new owners, but please remember access is a privilege and let’s be extra nice to them at this early, crucial stage. Eric Parks You just never know what we might find in there. NSS-CDS Awards Coordinator

30 Underwater Speleology Current NSS-CDS Instructor Listing Jim Wyatt, Training Director, [email protected]

Jon Bernot 378 Basic 340 Cave Mal Maloney 374 Cave Olivier Prats 384 Basic Cave High Springs, Florida, USA High Springs, Florida, USA Bermuda Dunes, CAL, USA Q-Roo, Mexico [email protected] CCR Cave, Survey, Stage, Sidemount, Sidemount [email protected] DPV [email protected] Emanuela Bertoni Cave www.IntoThePlanet.com Martin Robson 350 Cave Quinta Roo, MX Bill McDermott 266 Cave Somerset, UK pachacavediving.com Paul Heinerth 165 Cave Nags Head, NC, USA CCR Cave, Stage, DPV, Survey, Deep [email protected] Hudson, Florida, USA Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Survey, Cave, Overhead , Sponsor, CCR Cave, Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Cartography, Sponsor Sidemount Brent Booth 241 Cave Sponsor, TrainingCommittee www.obxdive.com www.eau2.com High Springs, Florida, USA www.scubawest.net [email protected] Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Overhead Nitrox, Jim McMichael 376 Basic Sponsor Ken Hill 326 Cave Brooksville, Florida, USA Reggie Ross 286 Cave [email protected] Lakeland, Florida, USA [email protected] Gainsville, Florida, USA [email protected] Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Sponsor, Training Peter Butt 186 Cave Steve Mortell 356 Cave Committee High Springs, Florida, USA Lamar Hires 191 Cave Broomfield, CO, USA [email protected] Stage Lake City, Florida, USA Stage www.ReggieRoss.com [email protected] CCR Cave, Sidemount, Stage, Sponsor [email protected] [email protected] Evgeny Runkov 371 Cave Juan Carlos Carrillo 342 www.diverite.com 123 Cave Ekaterinburg, Russia Mexico DF, Mexico Lake City, Florida, USA [email protected] Cave, Sidemount Falk Hoffman 313 Cave Stage, DPV, Deep, CCR, Sponsor, [email protected] Henstedt-Ulzburg, Germany Sidemount, Survey Phillip Short 365 Cave Deep Cave [email protected] Bournemouth, UK Andrey Chivilev 377 Cave [email protected] CCR Cave Tyumen, Russia Robert Neto 370 Cave www.philshorttechnical.com [email protected] Tom Illiffe 156 Cave Greenwood, Florida, USA Stage, Galveston, Texas, USA Sidemount, DPV, Survey Edd Sorenson 375 Cave Mel Clark 373 Cave Sidemount www.chipoladivers.com Marianna, Florida, USA Mill Creek, Washington USA www.cavebiology.com [email protected] Sidemount, DPV CCR Cave, DPV [email protected] [email protected] TJ Johnson 368 Cave Michael O’Leary 335 Cave www.caveadventurers.com Orlando, Florida, USA Lake City, Florida, USA Bill Dunn 170 , Stage, DPV, Deep Cave, Survey, Stage Terrance Tysall 264, Cave Conyers Georgia, USA Sidemount, Sponsor www.cavediving.org Orlando, Florida, USA Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Training www.dayo.com Sponsor, DPV, Sidemount, Survey, Stage Committee [email protected] Bill Oestreich 253 Cave [email protected] [email protected] Crystal River, Florida, USA John Jones 321 Cave CCR Cave, DPV, Sidemount, Sponsor Jim Wyatt 355 Cave Van Fleming 296 Cave Lake City Florida, USA www.birdsunderwater.com High Springs, Florida, USA Kernersville NC, USA Stage, DPV, Survey, Deep Cave, CCR Deep Cave, Stage, DPV, CCR Cave, DPV Cave, Sponsor, Sidemount, Training Conrad Pfeifer 287 Cave Sponsor, Training Chairman [email protected] Committee Mars, PA, USA Cave Dive Florida.com www.jpjscuba.com [email protected] [email protected] Steve Forman 106 Cave Winter Haven, Florida, USA Brian Kakuk 366 Cave Daniel Patterson 353 Cave German Yanez Mendoza, Cave Stage, DPV, Training Committee Abaco Bahamas High Springs, Florida, USA Stage, Cozumel, Q-Roo Mexico [email protected] Stage, Survey, Sidemount DPV, Deep Cave, Cartography, Sidemount, Stage, Overhead www.bahamasunderground.com Sponsor, Training Committee Nitrox Mark Fowler 379 Cave [email protected] www.danpattersondiving.com www.germanyanez.com Wicomico, Virginia, USA [email protected] CCR Cave Elena Kryzhanovskaya 382 Cave Luis Augusto Pedro 318 [email protected] St. Petersburg, Russia Sao Paulo, Brasil Cristina Zenato 325 Cave www.markfowlerscuba.com [email protected] Cave CCR Cave Freeport, Grand Bahama [email protected] [email protected] Georges Gawinowski 369 Adam Korytko 364 Cave Live Oak, Florida, USA Tulum, , MX Mark Pergrem 319 Cave CCR Cave, Stage, Sponsor www.caveheaven.com Dallas, Georgia USA [email protected] [email protected] www.atlantatechnicaldivers.com www.cavedivertraining.com [email protected]

Carl Griffing 372 Cave Maxim Kuznetsov 352 Cave Bil Phillips 315 Cave Houston, Texas, USA Gainesville, Florida, USA Tulum, Quintana Roo, MX www.caveandtechdiving.com DPV, Stage, Sidemount, Sponsor Stage, Sidemount, DPV, Survey, [email protected] www.vodolaz.com Cartography, Sponsor [email protected] www.speleotech.com Harry Gust 337 Cave Tek-Center MX Jeff Loflin 360 Cave Renee Power 383 Basic Cave [email protected] Bonifay, Florida, USA Altamonte Springs, FL www.cave-diving-mexico.com Sidemount, Stage, DPV, Overhead Nitrox, [email protected] Deep Cave, Sponsor, Training Committee www.JeffLoflin.com Cave Diving Section of the National Speleological Society, Inc. NonProfit Org 295 NW Commons Loop Suite 115-317 US Postage Lake City, FL 32055 PAID Tampa, FL RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Permit #602