Caving

The challenges of the sport depend on the cave being visited, but often include the negotiation of pitches, squeezes, and water. Climbing or crawling is often necessary, and ropes are used extensively.

Caving is often undertaken solely for the enjoyment of the activity or for physical exercise, but original exploration is an important goal for many cavers. Unexplored cave systems comprise some of the last unexplored regions on Earth and much effort is put into trying to locate and enter them. In well-explored regions (such as most first-world countries), the most accessible caves have already been explored, and gaining new caves often requires digging or diving.

Caves have been explored out of necessity for thousands of years, but only in the last century or two has the activity become a sport. In recent decades caving has changed considerably due to the availability of modern protective wear and equipment. It has recently come to be known as an "extreme sport" by some (though not commonly by its practioners).

Many of the skills of caving can also be used in the sports of mining and urban exploration.

Table of contents

1 Naming issues 2 Practice and equipment 3 Safety 4 Conservation 5 Caving around the world 5.1 Caving in the USA 6 External links

Naming issues

Clay Perry wrote about a group of men and boys who explored and studied caves throughout New England. This group referred to themselves as spelunkers. This is regarded as the first use of the word in the Americas. Throughout the 1950s, spelunking was the general term used for exploring caves in US English. It was used freely, without any positive or negative connotations, although only rarely outside the US.

In the 1960s, the term "spelunking" began to convey the idea of inexperienced cavers, using unreliable light sources and cotton clothing. In 1985, Steve Knutson (editor of American Caving Accidents) made the following distinction:

..."Note that I use the term "spelunker" to denote someone untrained and unknowledgeable in current exploration techniques, and "caver" for those who are."

Practice and equipment

The type of clothes worn underground varies according to the environment of the cave being explored and the local culture. Typically, the caver will wear a warm base layer that retains its insulating properties when wet, such as a fleece ("furry") suit, and an oversuit of hard-wearing (e.g. cordura) and/or waterproof (e.g. PVC) material. Wetsuits are worn if the cave is particularly wet, and lighter clothing may be worn in warm countries if the cave is dry.

On the feet boots are worn (such as wellies), and often neoprene socks ("wetsocks"). Knee-pads (and sometimes elbow-pads) are popular for protecting joints during crawls.

Ropes are used for descending or ascending pitches or for protection. Knots commonly used in caving are the figure-of-eight- (or figure-of-nine-) loop, bowline, alpine butterfly, and Italian hitch. Ropes are usually rigged using bolts, slings, and karabiners.

Perhaps the best way to find equipment is to attend a caver gathering and talk to a specialist caving supplier. Several of these have retail stores and sites on the internet. The novice caver should first consult more seasoned cavers before making investments in gear that might not be best suited for them.

Safety

Some common-sense rules apply:

• Always check to be sure there is no danger of flooding while you plan to be in the cave.
• Teams of at least three, or preferably four, cavers are safest. Caving alone is particularly risky.
• Always make sure someone on the surface knows where you are caving, when you expect to return, and how to contact cave rescue services in the event you do not.
• Carry back-up light sources.

Caving around the world

Most land in the eastern U.S. is privately held, so permission must be obtained from the landowner to look for caves. In the western U.S., a permit for publicly owned lands may be required. Some caves are closed completely for certain reasons, but even accessible caves may have many laws that apply in order to protect them

See also: List of Caves, speleology

External links

• British Caving Association (UK): http://www.british-caving.org.uk/
• National Speleological Society (USA): http://www.caves.org/
• Australian Speleological Federation: http://www.caves.org.au/
• Glossary of Caving Terms: http://werple.net.au/~gnb/caving/glossary/

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