Caving Adventure
June 1st , 2022 by Lillian Tso
Caving Adventure: Journeying into the Center of the Earth
June 01, 2022
All cave names have been censored in order to protect and preserve the caves themselves as well as the safety of all readers. Caving is inherently dangerous; do not enter caves without the proper training.
Last year, I joined Outdoor Recreation at Georgia Tech (ORGT): an organization on campus that connects students to the outdoors. Through ORGT, I am currently a Caving Horizontal Instructor and Vertical Instructor-In-Training where I help lead caving trips for students at Georgia Tech. In addition, I get the privilege of exploring some of the most fantastic and breathtaking places on Earth. From wet multi-drops to horizontal caves littered with stalactites and stalagmites, every cave I have been to has been an adventure.
I have been able to lead two caving trips, and in my opinion, these trips were the most special. One of the trips was to a cave in Alabama: a horizontal cave that contains a large stalagmite about ten feet tall (aptly called the Christmas Tree). I was in charge of planning this trip: I gave presentations to all the new cavers about how to move through a cave, landowner relations, and leave no trace rules. Additionally, I led the participants through the cave and was able to share my love of caving with them!
I think another exciting part about caving is seeing what I am capable of doing. Being able to push your body physically and mentally to your limits allows you to grow as a human. Caving lets me do that whether that be I am dangling 200ft above a pit, rappel rack in hand, or I am squeezing through narrow passageways in waist deep water. When I received my Wilderness First Aid Training, the trainers emphasized using your surroundings to help you through incidents that could occur. If you are in a cave, you only have what is in your cave pack: that’s it. However far you walk into a cave, you must walk that same amount back and go through all the same obstacles again. Because of my training, I understand and accept these risks, and I mitigate as many as possible when caving.
Additionally, it’s the excitement of being able to see things that only a handful of people in the entire world get to see. I believe that preservation is an important part about caving; caves are not personal playgrounds that everyone should be able to access. Once a cave formation is broken, thousands of years of history is lost. I have been able to explore very preserved caves, and it is just amazing to see what the Earth is capable of and how much diversity the Earth possesses. There are a bunch of national parks and cave conservatories that are helping preserve caves! Check them out if you would like to learn more
Take nothing but photos, leave nothing but footprints, kill nothing but time
In the future, I hope to continue to push myself out of my comfort zone and explore more caves. I hope that I am able to see more of these relics of the past and show new cavers the joys of being underground!
