Exploring the Furthest Reaches of Crossroads Cave (Advanced)

OVERVIEW

Renee and I have been talking about doing another advanced trip into Crossroads for what feels like forever now, and now we’re finally doing it! We want to go further into the cave than we’ve ever been before. Crossroads has nearly 4 miles of surveyed passage, and we haven’t even come close to the most remote sections of the cave. Our plan is to explore those sections.

This is an advanced trip, meaning we want you to have already gone on at least 2 caving trips with us at the minimum. This is because we’ll be keeping a fast pace (which is why we’re limiting the group size), we’ll be in-cave a little longer than usual, and there will be tricky features we need to get through on the way to the back of the cave.
IMPORTANT: one of these tricky features is known as the Small Man’s Squeeze, and is exactly what it sounds like. Although the tight part is only about 3 feet long, there is some funky maneuvering required to get around a bend and it is pretty compressive. While we do not know the exact dimensions of the squeeze, we have both done this squeeze before without too much difficulty (as have several other people in ODC). The picture in the header is Renee in the squeeze, feel free to contact us for more info about this feature if you are concerned. One good thing about this squeeze is that because it is so short, if you get stuck we can pretty easily pull you free. Because the squeeze is required to get to the deeper parts of the cave, we are asking that you only sign up if you feel comfortable doing this. If we get to the squeeze day-of and you change your mind, it’s not the end of the world, but the point of this trip is to go deep and we would like to accomplish that goal.

Schedule:
9:00am – Leave Echols
11:00am – Enter cave
5:00pm – Finish caving and head back to car
7:00pm – Back at Echols

Gear to Bring:
– Water
– Snack/Lunch
– 24 hour emergency food supply
– A trash bag for hypothermia kit
– A container for any human waste – pack it in, pack it out
– Clothes that can get dirty/ripped/ruined, INCLUDING GLOVES
– Close toed shoes that can get dirty/ripped/ruined (I recommend boots, but hiking/running shoes with good traction will do)
– Caving helmet (please don’t use the club’s climbing helmets; the caving helmets are the old Petzl Ecrin Rocs or new Petzl Boreos)
– No fewer than 2 working headlamps with spare batteries
– At least 1 spare light in addition to your 2 headlamps (can be a headlamp or flashlight)
– A bag or backpack that can get dirty/ripped/ruined
– Clean clothes/shoes for the car (please please)
– Trash bag for dirty clothes, shoes, and backpack (make sure it’s big enough)
– Knee pads (optional but highly recommended)

Important notes:
– You MUST read the Caving Checklist provided by the club. It can be found under the Resources tab on the website. I have also linked it here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Lv1Hz8qOIvGb0BgVwFrU6NH1EyT3wPqt/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115487946960226883937&rtpof=true&sd=true
– You are responsible for gathering all of your own equipment. Most of the gear is available at the club’s gear room.
– You should be comfortable crawling around in tight spaces and being in the dark.
– Because caving is such a dangerous sport, I will be very strict in ensuring you have the proper equipment (i.e., if you are not properly equipped with EVERYTHING mentioned above (even trash bags and spare clothing), you are not entering the cave).
– It is a good idea to not have anything massively important scheduled for the evening of the trip in the unlikely event we are delayed

*Drivers get priority off waitlist!