Sufferfest Cave Style: CAVING- INTERMEDIATE/ ADVANCED

OVERVIEW

Ahhh Bone-Norman. The definition of Type 2 fun. Do you want to spend like 10 hours in a cave? Do you want to do what sounds like a heinous crawl? Do you want to get really dusty and then really wet? Do you want to be so sore you can’t get out of bed the next day? Yes? You are my type of person cuz that is exactly what we will be doing. The cave version of Sufferfest is where we wake up at an ungodly hour, drive 2.5 hours, cave for like 10 hours, drive 2.5 hours, then return to our beds and do not move. Except me… I have a meeting at 7 so that’s why the trip is so early (sorry not sorry).

Although this sounds awful the length is all you have to worry about. The cave(s) itself is pretty easy. Bone is a very dry mostly walkable cave with lots of crawls. Norman is a wet cave where you wade through a little stream thing for a while. There are no intense climbs. But I can’t say the same for crawling. There is about 100 feet of passage known as the Devil’s Pinch in between the two caves that is a relatively tight crawl (you can’t turn your head and you are army crawling). If you don’t like tight spaces this isn’t the trip for you.

BECAUSE this isn’t something we have done before and BECAUSE this is such a long trip I am going to be EXTREMELY picky about the waitlist. We will need to be going at a very quick pace so I need to trust that you can do it (which I know you can you got this). That being said you have to have gone on multiple odc cave trips or have had lots of prior caving experience to join this trip. As of right now, we are only gonna take one car but if there is a lot of interest we will take two (this will mean we will have to leave even earlier cuz we will move at a slower pace… do what you will with that info). This is also a THROUGH trip which means we do not go back the way we came, meaning we will only flag super critical sections or not flag at all. We will also need someone to bring their bike and be willing to bike back to the car to pick people up.

Schedule:
2 am- Leave cville
4:30 am- Arrive at Bone, drop off the bike and get ready
5:30 am- Enter the cave
3:30 pm- Leave the cave, bike person retrieve the car, stare at the night sky, ponder life
4:30 pm- back at the car get changed and leave
7 pm- Back in Cville and back to bed/ to a meeting

Gear we have:
– Caving helmet
– No fewer than 2 working headlamps with spare batteries
– Gloves
-knee pads (optional but I recommend)

Gear to Bring:
– Water (lots!)
– Snack/Lunch (a lot)
– 24 hour emergency food supply (just anything that can last you a days worth of meals)
– A container for any human waste – pack it in, pack it out (old water bottle or screwable tupperware)
– Clothes that can get dirty/ripped/ruined (long pants and long sleeves are mandatory- please try to avoid cotton)
– Close toed shoes that can get dirty/ripped/ruined
– At least 1 spare light (can be a headlamp or flashlight or even your phone )
– A bag or backpack that can get dirty/ripped/ruined (can be found at the gear room as well)
– Clean clothes/shoes for the car

Gear we have extra but please first try to bring your own. If you cannot get your own please notify us ASAP:
– A trash bag for hypothermia kit (hefty trash bags are good)
– Trash bag for dirty clothes, shoes, and backpack (make sure it’s big enough)

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 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, 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

If you have any questions or concerns or are unable to pick up gear, my phone number is (970) 294-8781