Post by Tech Support on Jun 27, 2005 0:37:29 GMT -5
2005 NSS Convention
COME SOUTH WHERE THE BIG ONES ARE!
Come to the NSS Convention in Huntsville this July. Come for the camaraderie and companionship. Come for the sessions and events. Come for the scenery of the southern hills. But best of all; come south for the CAVES! The southeast is blessed with some of the most spectacular caves in the world and the Huntsville Convention is right in the heart of the action. We are organizing pre-convention and post-convention cave camps, as well as LOTS of caving during convention.
TAG caves remain roughly 58 degrees (14C) year-round, offering a cool respite from the hot Alabama summer weather. While July is not the rainiest season of the year, afternoon thunderstorms can pop up quite often. Please consider this before venturing into any flood-prone cave! Within an hour’s drive of the Convention campground, there are probably 5000 known caves. Most of these lie on private property, and many of them may not be available for visitation during the Convention. Please check with the Convention staff before you venture out, and we will help make your visit a successful one.
Pre-Convention Cave Camps
Marion O. Smith has offered to open his place in Rock Island (near Spencer), Tennessee. This region offers some spectacular caving. Horizontal caves such as Camps Gulf Cave (5 miles long), with some of the largest volume rooms in the south; Lost Creek Cave, a walking river cave (1300 ft long) and Rocky River Cave, a beautifully decorated river cave (1400 ft long) and also the site of an on-going major clean up effort by the SERA Karst Task Force, are but some of the offerings in this area. Vertical caves in the area include 163 ft deep Conley Hole open air pit, Keystone River a 3 mile long cave with 246 ft deep in cave pit, as well as Rumbling Falls, a 16 mile long cave with an impressive 200 ft rappel down the center of a 5-acre underground chamber. This pre-convention camp starts on Monday June 27 and will run for the week. Directions to caves will be provided and caving trips will be self led.
Other pre-convention camps are in the works. Check the convention website for updates to schedule.
Caving during Convention
The Huntsville area offers world class caving within a very short distance. We will have a cave information booth set up at the convention to help you find the perfect caving trips. The closest large horizontal cave to the Convention is 2-mile-long Hering Cave. Other horizontal caves not too far away include 3-mile-long Limrock Blowing Cave as well as Guffey and Tumbling Rock, each with around 6 miles of passages to explore. All of these are suitable for the entire family. Shelta Cave lies directly underneath the NSS Office property in downtown Huntsville, and contains a few nice, large chambers and a lot of history. For those wishing for something a little more challenging, Kennamer Cave has a mile-long through trip with several challenging climbs along the way. Gross-Skeleton Cave is also a 2-mile-long through trip, and has a few short but mandatory swimming sections.
Of course, TAG is best known for its wide variety of vertical pits and shafts. Many of these, such as 190-foot-deep Natural Well, are only a few miles from the Convention campground. Access will also be arranged to visit other classic pits like Neversink (160'), Stephens Gap (140'), Valhalla (230') and Surprise Pit (437'). For cavers with sufficient vertical skills, a variety of deep multi-drop caves will be available. Sinking Cove Cave offers a classic 450' deep pull-down trip with five pitches. 500' deep Fern Cave has numerous routes to reach its bottom. Guys Cave, Thunder Hole, Wilkson Hollow Horror Hole, and others all provide excellent vertical day trips. The legendary Ellisons Cave is about a 2-hour drive from the Convention site, and contains vertical shafts of up to 586' in depth. Rumbling Falls Cave is perhaps a 2-1/2 hour drive away, and includes an impressive 200' rappel down the center of a 5-acre underground chamber.
The Southeast Cave Conservancy, Inc. will also have their caves open before, during and after convention. Check out www.scci.org for a listing of the caves owned or leased by the SCCi.
Post-Convention Cave Camps
There will be a post-convention cave camp held in Sewanee, Tennessee. Remember the 1989 and 1998 conventions? Maureen Handler will open her property for camping and caving. Caves within walking distance include the multi-drop systems of Hang ‘Em High (528 ft deep and 3.5 miles long) and Main Well (400 ft deep and 7000 ft long). Close driving distance caves include pits such as 155-ft. deep Sawmill Well, 184-ft deep Cagles Chasm/Jeepside Complex and 160-ft deep South Pittsburg Pit. Horizontal caves include the beautifully decorated Cedar Ridge Crystal Cave and 8000 ft long Gourdneck Cave. The property will be open on Saturday and cavers are welcome to stay as long as their schedule allows.
Keep on eye on the NSS 2005 Convention website www.nss2005.com/ for additional cave trips and camps that will be scheduled as the convention gets closer.
Maureen Handler & Andy Zellner
2005 Convention Cave Trips Co-Chairs