 |
Jamaican Caving Notes |
 |
| Caving News | Jamaican Caves Organisation | JCO Main Page |
| JCO Funding and Tours | Contact the JCO |
June 7, 2004 FONTABELLE CAVE 2 Position: WGS84 - 18 23' 59.1" N, 77 39' 10.5" W Field notes: MARK BELLINGER Cavers: R. S. Stewart, M. Taylor, I. C. Conolley, M. Bellinger, D. K. Roggy, R. Stirling Time in: 14:00 EST, Time out: 16:30 EST THREAT VULNERABILITY: High Finding this cave was half the adventure. The road was overgrown with weeds, and fallen trees had begun to block the road. We walked short distances to clear the path and spare the car’s underbelly. Finally, Martel and Stef discovered the road leading to the cave. A fairly stiff hike up the hill brought us to a large opening - two openings actually. The first leg was a rappel. Thru a dark hole and somewhat slippery beginning, the rappel became a nice smooth descent. Going thru the cave took us into a cave full of white, chalky limestone. The nicest feature was the long ribbons of deposit. A few ten thousand years and these ribbons will look like drapes. One of the more memorable parts of the journey was the numerous rockfalls. Starting from early-on, we managed to dislodge more than a couple of rocks. No one was hurt, but it is a sobering sight to watch that slow moving rock begin its journey to your friends below. Lesson Re-Learned: Treat the top edges with the utmost care and stay away from the rockfall zone. We must also double-check our gear as well as each other’s. A triple-check is okay too. June 7, 2004 FONTABELLE CAVE 1 Time in: 16:30 EST, Time out: 17:00 EST The entrance to Cave 1 is close to Cave 2. Indeed, you would think they are the same cave. But, as they don’t connect, it seems appropriate to have different names for each. This cave required more of a scramble to descend, but a fixed line was laid anyway. This is never a bad idea, especially when it takes less than 5 minutes to rig. It had been raining and things were slippery. And, did I mention the mosquitos. Never have I seen so many. They were truly swarming. Everywhere they were. I took a shower in the river the night before and found my entire body itching from bites. The cave looked similar to the first. It was a large cavern. I found some graphitti, too. Not so different from other things I have seen, but these were dated from the 19th century. So, the interesting question for me is: when does graphitti become an artifact? |
| Jamaican Cave Notes - Main Page | June 2004 Caving Notes - Main Page |