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Due to the possibility of WNS contamination in Ky, this year’s caving will be very limited as already posted. As a result, we’ve worked to establish a Seminar program this year composed of in cave presentations and field trips inside of the Great Saltpeter Cave.
The following seminars are being offerred:
Speleology - Roger Brucker
Geology/Hydrology - Dr. Ralph Ewers
What Every Experienced Caver Knows About Karst, but Geologists and Engineers Don’t.
Every caver understands that pollution problems in karst are something special. We know from our caving experience that Mother Nature’s storm drains extend throughout limestone aquifers. Even though many of the caves we explore are dry and no longer function as conduits for water, it is clear to us that they did do this in the past and that the springs we see around the landscape are connected to conduits that are active water carriers even if we cannot enter them. We will explore a case here in Kentucky where tens of thousands of gallons of creosote have been lost into a karst aquifer for a century. Engineers and geologists have spent decades and hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to understand the problem at this site. Yet a simple dye trace, of the sort we will attempt at this year’s Karst-O-Rama showed exactly how the aquifer functioned and where the contaminant was headed, and it proved that the engineers were wrong. COME AND SEE HOW CAVERS ARE HELPING TO PROTECT OUR WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENT, AND HOW YOU CAN HELP!
Caving By Dye, It Goes Where You Can’t.
Learn How To Do A Dye Trace and Understand How Your Favorite Karst Aquifer Works
This seminar will show how to properly conduct a dye trace in a karst aquifer, how to avoid pitfalls, and the legal and ethical requirements for doing so. You will learn how to introduce the tracer, monitor for the dye most effectively, and the appropriate techniques for analysis.
There are many sites here in Kentucky and around the nation where citizen’s groups are concerned about contamination of our springs, caves, and karst groundwater, and they need the help of caver’s like you to assist in tracer studies. Only with the facts that tracer studies provide can the activities that cause these contamination problems be properly controlled or opposed and prevented.
Native American Cave Culture and Use - Dr. Ken Tankersley
Saltpeter Cave History - Dr. Gary O’Dell
Bat Biology and Ecology - Brooke Slack, Ky Dept. of Fish and Wildlife
Cave Surveying and components - Howard Kalnitz and Tammy Otten
Karst-o-Rama will be offering a survey class on Saturday this year (back in plenty of time for the banquet, we promise!) It will consist of two parts, classroom style instruction and hands on experience. All skill levels are welcome, from first time surveyors to those who would like to hone their sketching skills. If there is interest we could possibly cover data reduction and cartography. In order to design a class to suit the needs of those interested and have available enough equipment, please send me an email with your name and experience level and what you would like to work on (what is your goal). This will help us to make your time at KOR more meaningful.
Vertical Caving - Matt Keller
Cave Rescue and components - Dana Sutherland
Each of these seminars will be comprised of a 1-2 hour classroom style presentation, followed by a trip or tour in the cave, in the preserve or in the region. Please bring a chair and refreshments for the in cave portion, and information regarding the field trip portion will be provided on site at registration.
