Post by L Roebuck on Jun 11, 2006 8:09:48 GMT -5
What a drip: Students go deep to learn
A Radford University course teaches would-be caving guides the skills they'll need.
By Hart Fowler
On the side of a wooded hill in Giles County near Mountain Lake, a group of mostly college students and their instructor gathered.
Some wore kneepads and ratty-looking jeans; others donned the thick one-piece suits resembling the ones worn by construction workers or race car drivers. All wore helmets with attached head lamps.
Facing the nearly two dozen members of this motley crew was a craggy hole the size of a porch swing. Rust-colored steel beams barred the entrance, and a darkness blacker than any shade provided by the surrounding trees lay within the gaps.
David Goodman, coordinator of the caving section for Radford University's Wilderness Institute Course, unlocked one of the beams and pulled the cumbersome piece aside, leaving a 12-inch gap in the blockade.
"Tawnee's Cave is a nice beginner cave, and it's easy to show the human impact. That's why now it's gated," Goodman said. "It's taken a lot of use and abuse, and we'll use that as an educational tool."
The group slowly filed through like they were playing an awkward game of limbo. After the entire group was inside, the beam was restored, and the assembled cavers descended. As the entrance was left behind, head lamps were switched on to replace the disappearing light.
Forty feet into the cave and with the last of the natural light dissipated, Goodman gathered the group in the first cavernous chamber.
"Down here sometimes I feel like an astronaut on Earth," said Goodman looking forward into the blackness.
On-site learning
Tawnee's Cave is one of many outdoor classrooms utilized by Radford University's Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism for the Wilderness Institute, which is a rigorous five-week course that uses the outdoors as a teaching environment.
Whitewater canoeing, rock climbing and backpacking events are also used to teach students how to lead group expeditions. Students complete the course for credit toward a degree.
"First and foremost, this is about teaching outdoor leadership," said Mark Wagstaff, the course instructor for three years at Radford University. "A lot of these students go out and work in the field. And they also receive various outdoor certifications for completing the course."
The Tawnee's trip was the first caving expedition for outdoor recreation major Chambree McClure.
"I'm anxious to see the different formations and general cave anatomy," McClure said before entering the cave. "I want to see how caves form."
Southwest Virginia is a rich environment to study caves because of the abundance of limestone in the area.
"We have over 6,000 caves in Virginia," said Ernst Kastning, a professor of geology at Radford University. "All the ones around here were formed by the slow circulation of groundwater, which is slightly acidic and reacts with limestone, very slowly opening up fractures.
"They're not formed by an underground stream nor collapse. They sometimes take 100,000 years to form," he said.
Learning about the geology of caves is one part of the Wilderness Institute's curriculum. Learning how to lead groups through caves is another.
"I'm here to develop a leadership style," said Jon Guy Owens, director of outdoor programs at Hollins University. "I want to gain experience with the process of working with students."
Into the depths
Team members and their lights descended farther into the cave, looking like a disjointed train. They gathered in a chamber the size of the sanctuary in a country church. A creek, black in the darkness, ran quietly below. The sound of dripping water was constant.
Goodman pointed out the ripples and folds of one regal-looking formation that glistened like stone curtains high overhead.
"Those are called draperies for obvious reasons," said Goodman, his voice echoing against the rocks. "The horizontal tops make for a bat-friendly cave."
The guide pointed out a thick knotted stump of a broken stalactite that once may have hung 10 feet from the ceiling beside the draperies.
"People take those as souvenirs," he said. "They grow about an inch every 100 years. Caves are now state-protected against such abuse."
As the group moved onward, a boulder-looking formation nearly two stories tall blocked their way. Goodman and Owens offered members of the group a decision. They could climb around the obstacle, or crawl on their bellies through a narrow tunnel that ran underneath it.
"We call this challenge by choice," Owens said. "It's about choosing the level you want to challenge yourself."
The group took the challenge. The line of head lamps receded into the tunnel entrance known as a "pig hole" in cave-speak.
For these future trail guides and hiking escorts, the opportunity to earn credit for a college degree 100 feet below the Earth's surface is a choice well made. They will return to the surface equipped with knowledge that will allow future generations of cavers to enjoy Earth's natural wonders.
Full Article:
www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/sports/wb/wb/xp-69026
A Radford University course teaches would-be caving guides the skills they'll need.
By Hart Fowler
On the side of a wooded hill in Giles County near Mountain Lake, a group of mostly college students and their instructor gathered.
Some wore kneepads and ratty-looking jeans; others donned the thick one-piece suits resembling the ones worn by construction workers or race car drivers. All wore helmets with attached head lamps.
Facing the nearly two dozen members of this motley crew was a craggy hole the size of a porch swing. Rust-colored steel beams barred the entrance, and a darkness blacker than any shade provided by the surrounding trees lay within the gaps.
David Goodman, coordinator of the caving section for Radford University's Wilderness Institute Course, unlocked one of the beams and pulled the cumbersome piece aside, leaving a 12-inch gap in the blockade.
"Tawnee's Cave is a nice beginner cave, and it's easy to show the human impact. That's why now it's gated," Goodman said. "It's taken a lot of use and abuse, and we'll use that as an educational tool."
The group slowly filed through like they were playing an awkward game of limbo. After the entire group was inside, the beam was restored, and the assembled cavers descended. As the entrance was left behind, head lamps were switched on to replace the disappearing light.
Forty feet into the cave and with the last of the natural light dissipated, Goodman gathered the group in the first cavernous chamber.
"Down here sometimes I feel like an astronaut on Earth," said Goodman looking forward into the blackness.
On-site learning
Tawnee's Cave is one of many outdoor classrooms utilized by Radford University's Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism for the Wilderness Institute, which is a rigorous five-week course that uses the outdoors as a teaching environment.
Whitewater canoeing, rock climbing and backpacking events are also used to teach students how to lead group expeditions. Students complete the course for credit toward a degree.
"First and foremost, this is about teaching outdoor leadership," said Mark Wagstaff, the course instructor for three years at Radford University. "A lot of these students go out and work in the field. And they also receive various outdoor certifications for completing the course."
The Tawnee's trip was the first caving expedition for outdoor recreation major Chambree McClure.
"I'm anxious to see the different formations and general cave anatomy," McClure said before entering the cave. "I want to see how caves form."
Southwest Virginia is a rich environment to study caves because of the abundance of limestone in the area.
"We have over 6,000 caves in Virginia," said Ernst Kastning, a professor of geology at Radford University. "All the ones around here were formed by the slow circulation of groundwater, which is slightly acidic and reacts with limestone, very slowly opening up fractures.
"They're not formed by an underground stream nor collapse. They sometimes take 100,000 years to form," he said.
Learning about the geology of caves is one part of the Wilderness Institute's curriculum. Learning how to lead groups through caves is another.
"I'm here to develop a leadership style," said Jon Guy Owens, director of outdoor programs at Hollins University. "I want to gain experience with the process of working with students."
Into the depths
Team members and their lights descended farther into the cave, looking like a disjointed train. They gathered in a chamber the size of the sanctuary in a country church. A creek, black in the darkness, ran quietly below. The sound of dripping water was constant.
Goodman pointed out the ripples and folds of one regal-looking formation that glistened like stone curtains high overhead.
"Those are called draperies for obvious reasons," said Goodman, his voice echoing against the rocks. "The horizontal tops make for a bat-friendly cave."
The guide pointed out a thick knotted stump of a broken stalactite that once may have hung 10 feet from the ceiling beside the draperies.
"People take those as souvenirs," he said. "They grow about an inch every 100 years. Caves are now state-protected against such abuse."
As the group moved onward, a boulder-looking formation nearly two stories tall blocked their way. Goodman and Owens offered members of the group a decision. They could climb around the obstacle, or crawl on their bellies through a narrow tunnel that ran underneath it.
"We call this challenge by choice," Owens said. "It's about choosing the level you want to challenge yourself."
The group took the challenge. The line of head lamps receded into the tunnel entrance known as a "pig hole" in cave-speak.
For these future trail guides and hiking escorts, the opportunity to earn credit for a college degree 100 feet below the Earth's surface is a choice well made. They will return to the surface equipped with knowledge that will allow future generations of cavers to enjoy Earth's natural wonders.
Full Article:
www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/sports/wb/wb/xp-69026