10—The Daily Collegian Wednesday, August 13,1980
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Spelunking, or how to 'cave' with small comforts!
By BERNADETTE EYLER
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
What images do you conjure up when
you think of caving? Laurel Caverns?
Penn’s Cave? Commercial caves where
you pay a fee to walk into a big, open
room complete with bright, multi
colored lights and a Cub Scout Troop?
Naive as it may be, that was my image
of caving. So when two friends, Tim Kipp
(13th-geological science) and Steve
Carson (12th-business logistics) asked
me to go caving, I agreed wholehear
tedly.
They had decided to take me to a cave
called J-4 in Pleasant Gap. Since Tim is
the vice chairman of the Nittany Grotto,
the Penn State chapter of'the National
Speleological Society, we' had no
problem gaining access to the cave.
However, my enthusiasm began to
wane when Tim and Steve picked me up
last Tuesday evening equipped with
hard hats, work gloves, mud-caked
coveralls and work boots.
“What do we need all this stuff for?” I
asked. I didn’t remember any Cub
Scouts wearing hard hats in Laurel
Caverns.
• “We’re in for some serious caving,”
Tim answered.
, As soon we reached the cave, Tim
Tossed me a pair of mud-caked coveralls,
and Steve crowned me with a hard hat.
Not really sure that I wanted to go
through with it, I pulled on the coveralls
and contemplated backing out.
' “It’s really hot out here; why are we
putting on all these clothes? ’ ’ I asked.
“It’s only going to be around 50
inside the cave. Besides, there
won’t be any room for us to get dressed
once we’re inside,” Steve explained.
His explanation only served to further
dispell my Laurel Caverns image of
caving and heighten my uneasiness.
While Tim packed a knapsack with
extra supplies, Steve filled the carbide
Garden
FRENCH 75
NIGHT
>’ every Wednesday
Experience the drink that made
, Le Bistro famous .
.. 210 W, College . v '
■ 'across from Hammond Bldg.)
B€llS RR€ RINGING
Oct. 30, 31 ond Nov. 1,1980
Applications for the follouuing staff positions
ore noiu being accepted: Director, Set & or Costume
Designer, Choreographer, Technical Director, Lighting
Designer, Production Manager, Stage Manager.
Resumes and letters of application may be sent to Penn
State Thespians, c/o Communications File, HUB Desk.
Shouu auditions uuill be held in Schuuab Auditorium
September 7 & 8 ot 7:00 p.m.
Smart people read Collegian ads.
lamps with calcium carbide and water,
which react to produce acetylene gas.
The gas is then ignited and the lamp
attached to the front of the hard hat to
provide light.
Finally, we were all set. As we crossed
the littered quarry leading to the cave,
Tim pointed to an 18-inch wide sewer
pipe jutting out high up on the quarry
wall.
“There’s the entrance,” Tim said with
a note of pride in his voice.
“The entrance?” I asked in disbelief.
A sewer pipe was the furthest thing from
the entrance of Laurel Caverns as I
could imagine.
Tim went on to explain, “About six
years ago, the quarry owners, afraid of
being sued by injured trespassers, told
the Grotto to lock it or they’d dynamite it
shut. So we cemented in a sewer pipe
with a loqk and gate inside.” .
We climbed up the steep cliff leading
to the sewer pipe. Once on the ledge
outside the entrance, Steve lit the car
bide lamps, and Tim crawled in the pipe
to unlock the gate.
“You ready?” Tim called.
“I guess so,”’ I replied unen
thusiasticly.
So in I went, following Tim head first
through the pipe. It took me what
seemed like an eternity to inch and
squirm my way through.
“This is it,” Tim greeted me as I
wriggled out of the pipe to the floor
below.
I gazed about the room, searching out
its boundaries with the light from my
carbide lamp.
The cave was dark but not pitch black.
The walls were wet and covered with a
thin layer of carmel-colored mud.
Cluttering the floor were various sizes of
rocks and broken formations lying in
wait to turn an unsuspecting ankle. More
twisted and bent formations grew down
from the ceiling, giving it the effect of a
i 5 Toniteat £
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backseatA
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The Penn State Thespions
announce their Foil Shouu
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Caving can be an interesting and sometimes unorthodox experience. “Caveman” Tim Kipp (13th-geoiogical science), above, pauses while shimmying down the
18 inch wide entrance pipe to cave J-4 in Pleasant Gap. At left, Kipp smiles after completing his wriggling journey. Below, Kipp and Steve Carson (12th-busi
ness logistics), cross a quarry to the entrance of the cave. Both Carson and Kipp are members of the Nittany Grotto Club.
mud-covered ocean floor turned upside
down.
Leading the way down a five foot drop,
Tim carefully pointed out the hand- and
foot-holds. I scrambled down after him.
Upon reaching the bottom, I turned to
face the conquered beast behind me —■
the first of many in the 4,000 foot journey
to the end of the cave.
Tim continued through the large, high
ceilinged corridor. Once again, I stopped
to gaze, looking upward and twirling
slowly awed by the massive hanging
formations.
While I stood about gawking, they
moved on. Tim began telling us some
interesting facts about J-4 and caving in
general, as we scaled and crawled our
way through the next corridor.
“J-4 is a good novice cave because it
(Formerly Patriot
Steakhouse)
1630 S. Atherton St. Cannot be used In combination with
I All , Hniral other discounts. Applicable taxes not
(At University unvej included. At Participating Steakhouses
serving [■■
Pepsi-Cola imnaj
• (Cl 1960 Pond*i ota Sytlanr Inc
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* .•'. . ’ •■ • ' V "'' '•*’'
£
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gives you a little bit of everything:
climbing, crawling and nice scenery,”
he said. “More than 2,000 people have
explored this cave and nobody’s ever
gotten hurt.”
He was beginning to sound like a
Laurel Caverns tour guide I half
expected a Cub Scout to pop out any
minute. He went on to explain the dif
ferences among formations, pointing out
examples of each.
“The ones that point down are
stalactites; the ones pointing up are
stalagmites. Up there are soda straws,
very thin stalactites. That’s a column,
formed when a stalactite and a
stalagmite join. Those flat, hanging
formations are draperies.”
Over the years, Tim said, some of the
more distinct formations and infamous
climbs and crawl spaces had been
christened: the Wedding Cake, a large,
sculptured stalagmite; Goliath, a huge
column complete with drapery decor;
the Birth Canal, a long, tight crawl
space; and the Funnel, an 80-foot deep
chimney.
After an hour, we rested and refilled
the lamps with water. Tim cautioned me
that at the very end of the cave there
were difficult spots, the first of which
involved crossing a pit to a narrow ledge
on the other side. .
I approached the drop off and looked
down. It was too dark to see the bottom
of the pit. I kicked a stone over the edge
as a test; it seemed like an eternity until
I heard it hit bottom. Gulping in an effort
to calm my jumpy stomach, I took a
deep breath and leaped across the pit.
However, the worst was yet to come.
, 5 .,... To,enter .the Formation Room at the
end of the cave, we had to crawl through
a very tight tunnel, another of the
“difficult spots.” Difficult wasn’t the
word. As I looked at the small opening, I
thought the biblical camel would have an
easier time getting through the eye of a
needle.
Too proud to even think of backing out
now, I fought off a wave of
claustrophobia and followed Tim.
“You have to lie on your side and let
your left arm drag behind you,” Tim
directed. “Just keep inching your way
up until you come to the bend. Now,
lower your left shoulder, turn your head
and lift your right shoulder out. Try to
push yourself with your feet.”
Slowly, I twisted and squirmed my
way up the slanted tunnel. Drops of
sweat rolled down my face; I used every
ounce of strength to inch my way
through. Finally, I emerged.
“I feel like I played the part of the
baby in a childbirth movie,” I gasped.
I plopped down on a flat rock and
scanned the Formation Room, filled
Sunday
Tahoka Freeway & Blackout. No cover!
Monday
Men’s Gusto Nite 8:30 p.m.-l:30 a.m. Grab
the gusto and Monday Nite Baseball!
Tuesday
Ladies Nite: featuring Tiger Lily, the
Saloon’s original “Upside Down Margurita”
and no cover!
Wednesday
The Original “Warren O. Fitting Oldies Nite”
from 9:00 p.m.-l :00 a.m. and No Cover!
Thursday
Tahoka Freeway
“Sex, booze and rock ’n’ roll” with no cover!
(and every Sunday thru Thursday it’s Happy Hours
from 4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.)
Friday (August 15)
Glenn Kidder
Saturday (August 16)
Glenn Kidder and no cover!
1
with hundred? of unique formations to*
dazzle anyone determined enough to]
crawl through the entrance. , \
Too soon, Tim stood up, “Ready to]
go?” he asked. ?
“I’m not too wild about facing that?
tunnel again, but I guess I have nol
choice,” I answered. ' l
The most difficult climb was nearjj
theend of our four hour journey. A
narrow ledge lead up to two walls;
surrounding a massive rock, slanted at*
about a 70 degree angle. It was studded]
with several stalagmites, giving it the!
appearance of a rooster’s comb. ?
Tim scaled it with amazing ease and]
called directions from the plateau]
above. Facing the rock, I straddled the!
gap between the walls. Teetering to keep!
my balance, I leaned forward to grab the;
lowest stalagmite.and pull myself to the*
right thejj
rock and the walhl took.a deep breath toj
relax. <
All of a sudden, I began to slip down!
the muddy wall. Panic swept over me., .j
“Push against the rock to brace],i
yourself, ’ ’ Steve shouted from below. ;
To my surprise and relief, it worked. T
shimmied up to the next stalagmite and;
pulled myself over the edge of the cliff tot
Tim and safety. j
Worn out from physical exertion, I;i
looked forward to crawling through the]
sewer pipe I had at first abhorred. Steves
gave me a boost through the second-to-;
last pipe. To my horror, a pair of?
swooping bats greeted me at the gate.?
The encounter only added to my haste to,
exit the cave.
With a final burst of strength, I pushed 1
my way through the sewer pipe, and
emerged into the 90 degree heat covered
with mud, completely exhausted and
significantly awed by one of Mothef
Nature’s many secret, underground
rooms. !
101 Heister St.
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© 1960 Ui.ltfcd Feature Syndicate, !nc<
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OF THE AIRPORT TERMINAL
15 CLOS6P FOR REPAIRS/
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Across
1 "The Big Red-"
4 Kind of poster or some
8 Shafer's figure
13 FBI agents
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15 Eel
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17 Small isle
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21 Chews on
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30 Lascivious look
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Down
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-28 "Do-others
On Thursday, August 14, (and most
Thursdays thereafter) Leland Enterprises
will be buying the following at the Penn
State Sheraton Inn on Pugh Street
between the hours of 11 and 5:
Gold Class Rings,
Silver and Gold Jewelry and Coins,
Dental Gold, Industrial Scraps, Platinum,
UHtaxma
FANTASTIC END OF TERM SALE
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LEE CAPRI PANTS
FOR GIRLS
REG. $24.99
SAVE $15.00
MADEWELL PAINTER
PANTS
REG. 14.99
SAVE $5.00 .
SASSON DENIM AND
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STRAIGHT LEG-FLARE LEG-BOOT CUT-PRE-WASH ED
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ADIDAS MEN’S & WOMEN’S
ORION JOGGER
0-499
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CONVERSE LADIES CANVAS
TENNIS SHOE
REG. $19.99
SAVE $7.00 H &ms
SAVE FROM 20%
TO 50% ON TENNIS
SQUASH, RACKETBALL RACKETS
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GOLD
Palladium, Coin Collections, and
Antiques of all types.
For Information Call
Leland Enterprises,
355-1642
LEE WORK PANTS
NAVY & TAN
M 99
DEE CEE PAINTER
PANTS
4/)99
REG. $15.99 9
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LEE PAINTER FATIGUES
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The Daily Collegian Wednesday, August 13,1980 —1
Crossword
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Mon & Fri 9:00-9:00
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SLEEPING BAGS-CAMPING EQUIPMENT!
TENTS AND CAMPING ACCESSORIES
by Mibc §benfe
Answers in Friday's Collegian classifieds.
MR. LEGGS
WORK PANTS
REG. $14.99 "4 “4^^
SAVE $3.00 R I
CHIC PASTEL
JEANS
4A99
REG. $25.99 1
SAVE $6.00 R
ARMY FATIGUES
FLAP POCKETS
4A99
REG. $14.99 HR H
SAVE $4.00
ASAHI MEN’S & WOMEN’S
CANVAS SHOE
0-499
REG. $24.99 R
SAVE $3.00 mam H
BATA CANVAS LOW TOP
LOAFER SHOE
-4099
REG. $18.99 R Jr
SAVE $6.00 H Sam
30% OFF
ADIDAS AND SPEEDO
SWi'M WEAR
College Avc.
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