12MB PDF - Association for Mexican Cave Studies

Tommy had made it through. He cameover to the hole Zeman was working onand pulled out the key boulder blockingprogress. Steve and Hal slitheredthrough. Dino and I grabbed the packsthat had been left and followed Tommy'sroute. By the time we hadcrawled through into the big stuff-20 by 30 meter trunk - Steve andHal were off in the distance hootingand hollering. Borehole! No othername would fit. We seemed to havepopped up at some sort of junctionfor there were three massive passagesleading off. One apparently connecteddirectly out over the gorget forwe could distinctly hear the riverroaring below. With the wind at ourbacks we ran down a good 800 metersof passage that afternoon t stoppingonly for lack of rope. We still hada long trip left to Camp II and soreturned to our packs. One thingwas certain t our short diversion hadchanged the course of the expedition.The following morning we beganour 16th day in the hole and it washigh time to leave. With the adventof the new discoverYt Camp II was leftintact for the return push. We packedout the final 20 pitches carryinggarbage t spent Nicad packs and wornout equipment.I slowly picked out the tumblerson the lock to the house with the dimglow of Hal's carbide. Hal made adash for the food stores. Before Igot to,the canned peaches I'd beendreaming of for the past six hours tI noticed an assortment of lettersposted to the drafting table. Freshwords to savor! I must have readthem four times before Hal called itto my attention that I was still inmy wetsuit and might be getting cold.In our absence we had been visitedby Ernie Garza and Blane Colton. Besidestelling of a new 175 metershaft near San Miguel they had rheckedout the message ended on a grimnote. Bill Steele had broken his anklewhile running the day before heShifflett and Lloyd at -760m inthe Metro t heading for Camp II.(Bill Stone)was scheduled to leave the States tand would not be out of the cast tilllate April. This was a blow.The happenings of the next fewdays were quite diverse. The longawaited reinforcements from Georgia ­Jim Smith t Jill Dorman and RichardSchreiber - arrived on the 29th ofMarch. Some friends from Mexico CitYtGerardo Fernandez and Gonzalo Herrera thad also come up for a visit. Anacclimatization trip was in order forthe newcomers t so Richardt Tommy andthe Mexicans took a trip to Camp II.Jill t Jim, Hal and I went on a gymnasticsexcursion to the 464 meterdeep Cueva de San Agustln. We oftenused the cave as a warm-up, for it49