Trip Report: 15 January, 2005
Georgia Speleological Survey
c/o Brent T. Aulenbach
195 Windy Court
Lilburn, GA 30047-6442
10 February, 2005
Buddy Lane, SCCi Frick's Cave Property Manager
40 Hidden Brook Lane
Signal Mountain, TN 37377-2063
RE: Georgia Speleological Survey 15-16, 2005 Trip Report for Resurvey of Frick's Cave, Walker County, Georgia
Dear Buddy,
The 13th day of surveying in Frick's cave was held by the Georgia Speleological Survey (GSS) on Saturday, 15 January, 2005. There were seven participants making up two survey teams. Meeting time was 9:30 am. After training everyone on how to read instruments and sketch, we entered the cave at 11 am.
Suzanne De Blois, Rodney Clark, Katheryn Gaton, and Paul Moser made up one survey crew. Both Rodney and Katheryn learned how to read instruments and set point. Paul learned how to sketch. Suzanne had her hands full having to teach three beginners and she got extra thanks for taking on training so many at one time.
They worked on surveying several obscure upper level side passages off the main trunk passage past the first breakdown pile from the main entrance. They also surveyed another low side passage from a formation passage near the first breakdown pile. These all seemed to end in too tight continuing pancake passageways. The team exited the cave at 8:15 pm.
The second survey team was made up of Steve Buer, Ben Theune, and myself. We planned on taking on the wet stream crawl where the majority of the water enters the cave. Unfortunately, water levels had increased significantly from rain a few days earlier. We all dressed in wet suits. The plan was to try to push upstream in a parallel passage that had less water coming out of it to avoid caving and digging in the main water flow. Then try to reconnect with the passage containing the main water source, cave to the back of the lead, and survey on the way out. The parallel passage remained a separate parallel passage, though we could hear the main streamway next to us. A wide gravel bar that filled the passage to 4 inches of the ceiling separated the two passageways.
The passage we were in went upstream and ended in a breakdown area with several small rooms. There was one lead where the water was coming out of which was blocked by two sandstone cobbles. I could wiggle the cobbles but I could not get them pulled out of the way. The entire passage turned out to be about 130' long.
I then checked out the main streamway. I went upstream about 80'. It did not require digging as described. The passage was about 1.5' high with 0.5 to 1' of water flowing wall to wall. At this point, I would have really had to dunk my head in and maybe shift some gravel to get further. It was apparent that water levels were too high to survey - no place to even set a point.
Our survey team then exited a cave and did an overland survey to a small cave in the stream downstream of the cave and surveyed this 42' long cave. Steve managed to read instruments while never entering the cave by doing a backsight from the second entrance! The team finished up at 4:50 pm.
The two survey teams combined for a total of 745.1 feet of survey in 34 shots (includes overland survey and set up shots. Probably will need two more survey crews to complete the survey of the cave. The only passages needing survey are the low wet streamcrawl and several more high, dry crawls along the main trunk passage at ceiling level. The cave is now at 10,378 feet long (after removing set-up and splay survey shots).
The next survey trip will probably be in early March and should push the cave across the 2-mile mark.
On Sunday morning I went into the cave on my own to resketch some of the main streamway that needed more detail and had some side passages missing. I entered the cave at 8:30 am and sketched until 1:10 pm, exiting at 1:25 pm. The notes of the resketched passages are attached. I still need to do some resketching in Little Frick's.
Upon exiting the cave I met up with Doug Strait. He had just located a cave on the SCCi Frick's Cave Preserve near the 15' Pit Entrance to Frick's Cave. I had seen this entrance before, but recall that it did not go. Warm air was blowing out of the cave. Doug entered and said he saw about 150' of passage. The air was coming out of a too tight crack that might be enterable with a rock hammer. This could be a fourth entrance to Frick's Cave, likely connecting to the formation area north of the first breakdown pile, south of the Little Frick's connection. This will probably be surveyed on the next trip.
There were three new participants on this trip. So far, 50 different people have participated on the project in thirteen days of trips.
Brent Aulenbach was designated by the head SCCi Frick's Cave Property Manager as the SCCi representative for the trip.
I have been continuing work on rough drafts and electronically drafting the cave.
If you have any questions, comments, or problems, please feel free to contact me.
Respectfully Submitted,
Brent T. Aulenbach, Frick's Cave Resurvey Project Coordinator
cc:
John Hickman, SCCi Chair
John Klayer, GSS Chair
Suzanne De Blois
Paul Moser
Attached:
Copies of all survey notes with survey data file from Compass
Line plot of cave from Compass with passages surveyed on this
trip highlighted
Cave survey statistics from Compass
Reduced station locations from Compass
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Last modified: Monday, 20 March, 2006 bta