Spelunking

peanut m&ms

headlamps

snow

rocks

and lots of mud

Five main components of yesterday's caving adventures.

The hike to the cave was intense. Lots of snow, and straight up the side of the mountain. No trail, just snow and rocks. It took about an hour (? give or take 30 minutes) to get to the entrance. Then we had to rappel one by one into the cave. The first part of the rap was tight, called the corkscrew. The second half of the rappel, you come through a hole in the ceiling of the cave and then it's just open until you hit the floor.

Here are some photos I snagged from one of the other girls in the group. 

This is Alex standing in the doorway that goes down into the cave. The metal door closes and locks so you can only get it if you have permission, someone who has already been down, and the key. Cam was our guide this time. He was a good guide. I freaked out a little going down into the cave, but he helped me out, and I did it. 

Rappelling down into the cave

 After the initial drop into the cave, we took a rope down this steep, slick, clay part.

 Yep. Good stuff. 

Me in the crawl. A little intimidating to a claustrophobic like myself, but I did it! And I'd do it again. It wasn't bad at all. (perhaps forcing myself into the cave conquered that fear)

Alex ascending out of the cave. 

Overall, it was an awesome experience. I was pretty anxious about going caving. I wanted to try it, but the idea of being in a cave had me a little on edge. I freaked out a little before the rappel, but I calmed down, and did it. The crawl was a little scary too, but I was surprised that I was really calm about it. I crawled through no problem, with a little coaching from Cort. It rocked. And I'd do it again in a heartbeat.