Caving With Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania Council 11-18-18

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Yes, they were at it again. This time there were two new Troops to introduce to caving. Eastern PA Council set this one up at the same time as the one in October. This trip originally had sixteen people, but one Troop backed out at the last minute. It’s a shame because they missed a very good time with these girls. Maybe they’ll come out again when they can. We have been having a tremendous amount of rain and unprecedented snowfall for this time of year. As a result the cave actually had a good bit of water in it.

I like to use this cave for beginner trips because it is stable. But I’ve never seen this much water in this cave. Parts that usually have a little sticky mud had water over the top of my thigh. I choose to avoid the lower parts of the cave. For most of the girls this was their first wild caving trip. I didn’t want to take any chances with them and I didn’t want anyone cold and miserable. But they all got very muddy, and had a blast. How could I tell? Watch the video. L…
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NEW? Come Caving With Us

If you have not seen this already, please take a look at the National Speleological Society’s (http://caves.org/) web pages in the Youth Group Liaison Committee’s (http://caves.org/youth/index.shtml ) section about The Boy Scouts of America and Caving (http://caves.org/youth/bsa_caving.shtml). There is information on that page you will need to know and may find useful when planning your cave exploring activity.
·         National BSA Youth Caving Presentation is a must see. This will give you a lot of insight and preparation before you even start planning. All adult leaders should view this training slide show.
·         The Guide to Safe Scouting section on caving can be found here.  This must be read and understood before filling out the Trip Plan.
If you have any questions about any of these, please feel free to let me know. I know my way though them. Some of the important points to keep in mind while planning your trip are;
·         The Crew’s/Troop’s party should not exceed 16 members including “Two Deep Leadership”.
·         All members of the party are expected to practice Leave No Trace ethics and good Land Owner Relationships.
·         All members of the party must follow the instructions of the cave guide.
·         The Unit’s adult leaders are responsible for the discipline and behavior of all the Unit’s members.

I will be providing a helmet and headlamp for each participant to use for the caving activity. In addition, each participant must provide for themselves;
·         4 – fresh “AA” batteries
·         Rugged clothes in layers (i.e. jeans, t-shirt, hoodie) that will get muddy
·         Lug sole boot
·         Gloves
·         Knee pads
·         Small pack (i.e. string bag) with
o   Water bottle
o   Snack (crush proof)
o   Small Personal First aid kit with any personal medications (i.e. epi pen, inhaler, etc.)
·         Large plastic bag
·         Complete change of clothes, including shoes, down to the skin
If you have any questions about this list, please feel free to let me know.

All participants should be in good physical condition.
Caving is a physically as well as mentally demanding activity. All participants should be within the “Maximum Allowable Height Weight Ratio” chart.
Maximum Allowable Height Weight Ratio
Height (inches),
Maximum Acceptance
60
166
61
172
62
178
63
183
64
189
65
195
66
201
67
207
68
214
69
220
70
226
71
233
72
239
73
246
74
252
75
260
76
267
77
274
78
281
79 & over                
295



























Cost:
We ask for a $20 per person donation to Youth Opportunities Underground (www.youcave.org) for the trip and the use of a helmet and headlamp. This helps us with gear maintenance, cleaning, replacement, and continues to provide this program to all youth groups and youth organizations. All our guides are volunteers.
$20.00

Additional Cost Options:


battery management – provide batteries and manage installment throughout the trip
$2.00

Knee pads and Gloves rental per trip
$3.00

Coveralls rental per trip
$10.00


Options for sale on site:
·         16oz bottled water $1
·         16oz bottled Propel $2
·         Cliff Bar $1.50

Dragon Breath Grotto is a cave exploring (spelunking) program for all Boy Scout Troops and Venturing Crews in the BSA Northeast Region Areas 4, 5, and 6. We are experienced cavers who are also BSA adult volunteers. BSA Units or individual Scouts can join us in our adventures. Come caving with us.

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by Kirsten Alvey-Mudd



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