Dewdneys Cave – An Ontario Maze

Caving in Ontario – Ontario cave

old pics 165, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Another picture of Dewdneys cave taken some time ago – as in at least 15 years ago when my son was young – he is holding a portable fluorescent light in front of him and I had taken the picture with slow exposure using an old SLR.

In following upstream from the triangular entry shaft there is this section off to the right where these pheratic – bedding plane oriented tunnels lead off into a maze. Nobody seems to really know the full extent of the system but Marcus B. has the best idea as I am told he has a pretty extensive map. I recall a trip that I had taken some years ago with Lori Nichols and Rob Laidlaw, Lori described some long straight, extremely tubular white tunnels that her group found off in this direction.

Anyway my good caving partner seems to be making a slow recovery and we will probably be heading out tomorrow for a little exploration in this area that we feel is quite promising.

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Bad Old Chester – Some might Call Him Evil

His blue eye and white claw lead me to that conclusion.

IMG_6301, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

There we go – “Bad Old Chester”. Chester – the new “Rockhound”.

Sadly Shaka passed away in October. He had a tumor on his spleen – virtually unsaveable as the ensuing operation revealed. You may remember him from the post “Cave Police” (July 2006) and also “Bubbles at the Bear Lake Apatite Mine”(July 2006). Of course you can never replace so loved a member of your family but you can move on. I went through a slump that lasted several months during which time I found it hard to write or enjoy anything for that matter, but Maggie and I finally decided to get another golden. Chester came from a Mennonite farm up near Palmerston – his father an absolutely beautiful creature – pure white and of amazing temperament.

Chester has one white claw and it is this – according to Maggie – that makes him evil. I say it is his blue eye – the evil eye – try sleeping when he wants to play – you will understand the true meaning of evil. Joshua, my son also appears with Chester. Some suggest that it was from Joshua that the dog got his wicked nature.

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The Bancroft Gemboree – a cultural phenomenon

gemboree1 025, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

A few days ago Greg Warchol posted a comment that led me to believe that he might be a rockhound in the rough. His comments about visiting Bancroft and previous questions about the gemboree and where to find interesting rocks have prompted me to say something about Bancroft’s annual rockhound Gemboree.

A crowd sidles into the auditorium through a rather inconspicuous door at the end of the building. $12 gets you an adult pass that will last the event, four days of gem-encrusted heaven. I am soon convinced that the success of the show is not linked to its magnitude. The show at Tucson is far larger. It is the spirit and energy of this place. Its long-standing reputation as the largest and most important gem and mineral event in Canada draws rock hounds and dealers from everywhere. In a sense it is a right of passage, a pilgrimage that every rockhound worthy of the name needs to make. A strange conglomeration of people and products in a buggy forested wilderness of rock. A good many of those glittering jewels in museums and high-class jewellery emporiums had come from somewhere near here. Bancroft’s landscape encompasses some of the most diverse concentrations of minerals in the world. At a conservative estimate over 1600 species are found in the region.

Some might argue that it is the people that make the gemboree, not its location. It has become a cultural event, a Woodstock of sorts for mineral collectors. The crowd here is an unusual one: university professors, millionaires, kids, fashion models and eccentrics; a varied assemblage of humanity.

In the accompanying photo, gem and mineral enthusiasts pour over a table of semi precious beads. It is an opulent display of colour that is mirrored in any one of a great multitude of booths.

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Cave Police

IMG_2646, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Cave Dog and I collectively form the Ontario chapter of the “Cave Police K-9 unit”.

Remember;

1) Dont litter.
2) Dont bother the wildlife.
3) Dont touch the formations.
4) Tell someone where you are going and when you will be back.
5) Have a minimum of three light sources per person.

We are watching you – Be safe!

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Winter Caving in Ontario – Marmora

DSCF0048, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Winter caving needs to be quite selectively undertaken by those who might consider it as certain caves are used as hibernaculums by the province’s bats. Disturbing a bat from its winter sleep could kill it. The water passages in Marmora have in my experience been free of any bats. I suspect there is to much air movement and also the rushing water can vary quite drasticallly in height. Bats could be scoured from their roosts in a heavy spring thaw.

In the photo I am dressed in my winter caving outfit. Warmth is essential and though wool precludes the explorer from tight jagged squeezes, of which there are many in Marmora, it maintains its warmth, even when wet. As for the legs, neoprene is fine, but I must admit, stripping off in the snow, my feet felt like they were on fire, it was very painful.

Here I am following in along a channel in the ice. This is a section of passage where the water leaves the surface and disappears for a short time under a landscape of juniper and cedar. Numerous side passages lead off to other passages and who knows where. I had wanted to see how the tunnel felt during winter high-flow. The situation soon improved and the water became quite shallow. It is an environment of sparkling ice formations – very beautiful but sadly melting with the warmer weather.

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Emerging From the Blackened Tunnel – Canadian cavers go underground

IMG_4381, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Yes, this is it! Whereas we had all gropped through the icy water on our backs, desparately clinging to the scant sliver of airspace, Marc-Andre just plunged right in and wriggled through face first. Corneille had just barely struggled past me when Marc -Andre emerged from the water – flashlight in hand. The caver should never venture below the surface with less than three light sources. Your primary and secondary light sources should be on your helmet, a backup packed away somewhere else. as you can see Marc – Andre has a Petzyl headlamp, and carbide light on his helmet. In his hand he carries a flashlight.

We are now entombed within the rock, our journey back to the surface dependant upon our negotiating this obstructing pool. What followed was possibly one of the most inspirational caving experiences that I have ever had – pristine tunnels and untouched formations – kept that way by the appearingly inaccessible nature of the tunnels.

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Marmora Maze Caves – Ontario travel and cave explorations

IMG_2633, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Sorry to not show what followed Corneille through the water filled tunnel but I have just received an e – mail from Danni. Danni is a new caver and would like to know what the Marmora maze caves are like. Apparently after Dewdney’s Cave last weekend, Danni has a sore back. I can fully sympathize, I am also suffering with back issues but for different reasons.

There are a wide variety of different tunnels in the Marmora Karst. Most passages are small and crawly but conversely in what I call the resurgence tunnels (though the water flows into them not out) the passags are quite high and amazing for a mid-winter wander. There are frequent skylights up to the surface and long straight channels leading off in different directions.

This weekend I will be leading a caving trip to the area and new cavers are especially welcome as there are a wide variety of easy crawls and generally virgin passages. I am especially interested in following up the “Pilgrims Crawl” to see where it leads. A strong stream flows out of a limestone tube at the river’s edge and though I had wriggled along it two summer’s ago, I had stopped some distance in, out of physical and mental discomfort. I feel ready to give it another try sometime soon, just have to be sure the back is up to it.

TCG members who are interested in joining us for a day of swimming, caving and enjoyment of the terrain should contact me via e-mail to arrange a meeting point.

I WILL FINISH CORNEILLE’S STORY SOON.

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Strange Blue Light in the Underwater Tunnel – a companion arrives

IMG_4376

Originally uploaded by Mic2006.

I sit in the darkend cavity waiting expectantly. Sure enough, the water ripples and sloshes in the pool and to the accompanyment of clinking boulders I hear one of my fellow cavers begin the claustrophobic wriggle. Technically speaking, this is a duck. It is possible to traverse this watery section of passage by holding ones breath or wriggling carefully with ones nose above the water.

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Would You Believe That This is the Only Link to the surface World – a water filled passage!

IMG_4375, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

What kind of insanity had I got myself into I wondered? I had been the first of our little caving team to wriggle down this water filled passage. Others had done it before but when it is only your nostrils that protrude above the water and a little groove in the ceiling above that allows your nostrils unrestricted passage, things can get a little “dodgy”. Much to my relief I had made it through and I sat in the darkness listening for the next caver to begin their crawl.

What if they change their minds? What if I cant get back? What if it starts raining above and the little tube in which I am crouched rapidly fills with water? What if … Well come on now, get a grip of yourself I thought.

As I am sure you have deduced, this is quite different from the tourist caves that Maggie likes to view. This is a “wild cave”, the kind of passage that I enjoy; pristine and beautiful – where the unexpected becomes common place, adversity and beauty are one and the same.

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Enormous Sea Cave Faces out into the Lake

IMG_4101, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

At one time the level of Georgian Bay was well above where it presently sits. Only the very tip of the bluff was above the water. Fortunatly the dolostone is a tough material and it had resisted the abrasive scouring of the glaciers. Fossilized coral reefs are especially resistant, having a structural superiority to the more layered varieties of dolostone. Though dolostone is dissolved by water, it reacts in a different way than does limestone, possibly because of the way that it absorbs water – like a sponge.

About a kilometre along the walking trail from Beachy Cove hikers will spot an impressive sea cave in the clifface. It is situated 14 metres above the shoreline and it is possible to ascend a precariously buttresed series of platforms into its dank interior. From above the view is fantastic. The inside is a vast amphitheatre of fallen rock as though it were some bunker in Lebanon hit by Israeli rocket fire. The air is cool and sound echoes hollowly - swooping swallows pick the everpresent mosquitoes from the air.

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