NSS Projects

Association for Mexican Cave Studies
The AMCS has existed, mostly informally, since 1963, and is dedicated to the exploration, study, and conservation of the caves of Mexico, chiefly through a program of publications. There is no formal membership list. Anyone who shares the goals of the AMCS and pursues them with proper respect for the caves and people of Mexico may consider himself a member.
       Over the past eleven years, the AMCS has published 1550 pages of its annual magazine, the AMCS Activities Newsletter, 1753 pages in twelve AMCS Bulletins, and 2109 pages in ten AMCS Reprints. Over two thousand pages of older, out-of-print AMCS publications have been scanned and made available on CD. Our catalog is at mexicancaves.org.
Editor: Bill Mixon, NSS 5728 OS AL. Advisory Board: Peter Sprouse, NSS 14445 LB, William Russell, NSS 4357 HM CM, and James Reddell, NSS 4697 SC CM. Contacts: AMCS, PO Box 7672, Austin, Texas 78713, editor@mexicancaves.org, sales@mexicancaves.org.

Caves of Montana Project
Caves of Montana is a nonprofit project of the NSS dedicated to finding, exploring, and surveying caves in the state of Montana. The goal of the project is to study and help preserve these valuable resources. The project places particular emphasis on documenting all work done so that other individuals and groups may benefit from the findings. Membership is open to anyone interested in making a positive contribution to Montana Caves and there are no dues.In 2014, members of the Caves of Montana Project continued to work with land owners throughout the state to monitor bat usage in caves.  Members also participated in expeditions to the Turtlehead Mountain area in the Bob Marshall Wilderness.  This year, Tears of the Turtle Cave was explored down to a depth of 1629 feet, making it the deepest limestone cave in the United States.  Members plan to participate in continued mapping projects in the Bob Marshall Wilderness in the summer of 2015    Project Director: Jason Ballensky, jason@ballensky.com; http://www.cavingtheworld.com/montana

Coldwater Cave Project
Ongoing photo-documentation, survey, and resurvey efforts in Coldwater Cave were supported by Coldwater Project participants from Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois and Wisconsin this year. Coldwater Project participants continued to support exploration objectives, photodocumentation, cave rescue training and scientific studies including high-resolution cave microclimate monitoring and cave atmosphere profiles. Improvements were also made to the research facility to improve security and complete its sustainable, off-grid capacity.    Contact: Mike Lace (27245), Coldwater Cave Project Coordinator, michael-lace@uiowa.edu; John Lovaas (39799), Coldwater Cave Project Science Coordinator, jlovaas@mc.net. Project Web site:  www.caves.org/project/coldwater.

Fort Stanton Cave Study Project
The FSCSP is a long-term, on-going project operating under a Volunteer Services Agreement with the BLM and coordinating trips with the USFS.
The FSCSP is a private, non-profit organization and sponsors three 9-day expeditions yearly. Fort Stanton Cave, an extensive limestone cave in central New Mexico. After the discovery of the Snowy River Passage (2001), the 25,000 acres around Ft. Stanton Cave were designated (2009) as a National Conservation Area (NCA), providing protection for this valuable resource. Snowy River Passage is floored with a white calcite deposit regarded by many as the longest continuous cave formation in the world at 10+ miles, with no end in sight. The FSCSP fielded 8 exploration and survey trips during 2013.  These 8 trips netted over 5.5 miles of new passage, bringing Fort Stanton Cave up to 26.3 miles in length, currently the 20th longest cave in the United States and 75th longest in the world.The FSCSP fielded 4 exploration and survey trips during 2014.  netting about 5 miles of new passage, bringing Fort Stanton Cave up to 31.32 miles in length, currently the 14th longest cave in the United States and 62nd longest in the world.  The Snowy River passage, discovered in 2001, along with the side passages found since then now account for the vast majority of the cave, over 23 miles.  The furthest frontier of the new survey is now over 11.4 miles from the entrance of the cave making it the most remote cave passage known in the world. The FSCSP conducted or facilitated many science related activities during 2014.  These activities included ferromanganese, bio-mat and other deposit sampling; water sampling; monitoring temperature/humidity data loggers; and the BioSignature prototype equipment testing.  Contact Steve Peerman, our Project Director, at fscsp.director@gmail.com.

GypKaP - The New Mexico Gypsum Karst Project
The Southwestern Region sponsors the New Mexico Gypsum Karst Project (GypKaP), an NSS project to further the knowledge of the gypsum caves and karst lands in New Mexico. This project is the largest of its kind in the United States, and has drawn cavers from as far away as New Hampshire, Italy, and even Ukraine to its project weekends. The GypKaP project began in 1987 for the purpose of exploring, mapping, studying, and understanding one of the largest, least-explored, and least-understood karst regions in the United States. Most of the GypKaP study area is located on (under) private land in New Mexico, and land access entry to those caves is prohibited except during specific (and landowner-approved) project weekends. Since the inception of the project, over 170,000 feet of cave survey has been completed, and more than 170 new caves discovered and added to the New Mexico Cave Inventory.   Contact: Blake N. Jordan, GypKaP Director at blakenjordan@gmail.com, 6109 Concordia Rd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87111; 505-362-0101 cell.

Hawai'i Speleological Survey
 The Hawai`i Speleological Survey (HSS) is concerned with the systematic study, survey, and conservation of Hawai`i caves and maintains a database of information about these caves at the USGS Hawai`i Volcano Observatory in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Members of the HSS work with several federal and state agencies as well as with private landowners in conducting their work. Hawaii Speleological Survey members continued to work at a steady pace in 2014.  Many old projects saw ongoing attention and some new ones were endeavored.  As in past years, progress was seen in areas of survey/exploration, scientific research, education and conservation.  Total combined survey for the year is approximately 93,300 ft.  Areas investigated include the Kanohina System (HOVE and Kula Kai subdivisions, Ocean View, Kau); Caves in the Ranchos subdivision (HOVR, Ocean View, Kau);  South Kona caves; 1859 Flow, Mauna Loa; Puna district. Cave microbiology studies continue around the island in a number of sites.  Also, a number of sensitive archeological sites in caves saw aggressive study and documentation.

Illinois Speleological Survey
Founded in 1995, the Illinois Speleological Survey's (ISS) primary purpose is to protect, conserve, locate, record, explore, and study the caves and karst resources in the State of Illinois. To work towards these goals, the ISS host activities, seminars, and lecturers. Furthermore, the ISS manages data (cave locations, maps, and other data) to support cavers and professional researchers equally, as well as providing field opportunities to groups and individuals with an interest in karst research or conservation. The ISS continues to work towards its goals of protecting, conserving, locating, recording, exploring, and studying caves and karst in Illinois. In 2014, ISS cooperators mapped four caves and conducted ridgewalks on two parcels in the Columbia Karst of southwestern Illinois and submitted maps and locations for numerous caves in the Shawnee Hills of southern Illinois. ISS received and filled three formal requests for cave and karst data in 2014. Projects, contacts, membership, and other information about the ISS can be found on www.caves.org/project/iss or by contacting the ISS President, Bob Weck: bob.weck@swic.edu.

Isla de Mona Project
The Isla de Mona Project was formed to document the numerous cave and karst features that dot the interior plateau and ring the rugged coastline of this island preserve. To date, the Isla de Mona project has mapped 75 km of total survey on the island and has documented 190 of the 200+ known caves on the island. In 2014 3.6 km of cave passage were mapped, bringing the total number of known cave sites to 218. Expedition participants also actively collaborated with an archaeological research project identifying numerous culturally significant cave sites slated for future in-depth studies. Contact:  michael-lace@uiowa.edu.

Northeast Sump Exploration Team
The Northeast Sump Exploration, Team (NEST), founded in 1993, makes use of advanced cave diving techniques to explore caves that require the negotiation of water filled passages to gain access. Membership is divided into two categories, Diver Explorer and Support Team member. The Team conducts original exploration and scientific research in caves located primarily in Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. NEST surveys and further documents these sites through the use of still and video techniques as well as engaging in biological surveys and water sampling. The Team is available to provide support to scientific researchers in the region who can benefit from NEST's ability to access these unique environments. NEST is also available to support the NCRC in situations involving flooded passage and beyond sump rescues. During the year the Team continues an intensive program of training and equipment development as well as continued explorations at a number of sites throughout the region.
Team Coordinator: Joseph Kaffl, Sumpdiver@verzon.net.
VA Area Project Coordinator: Paul Montgomery, hopper1492@gmail.com.
Diver Explorers: Erik Tesnau, Jeff Mott, Dave Nicholas, J.D. Lewis, Zachary Lynn, George Phillips.

Quintana Roo Speleological Survey
Founded in 1990, the Quintana Roo Speleological Survey (QRSS) maintains a current catalog of cave survey information for both underwater and dry caves in Quintana Roo Mexico. As an official project of the National Speleological Society (NSS), we support conservation, safe exploration, and systematic documentation of these unique caves. Our present area of interest is focused on the northeast coastal region of Quintana Roo. It is bordered on the north by the municipalities of Benito Juarez (city of Cancun) and Lazaro Cardenas, extending south into the municipality of Felipe Carrillo Puerto. The Quintana Roo state border with Yucatan defines our area's western border. In total, this encompasses an 8500 square kilometer (3280 square mile) region. Our records integrate cave entrances and cave survey data utilizing 74 kilometers of land surveys and over 2000 Global Positioning Service (GPS) cave entrance way points. Both land surveys and georeferenced control points allow us to document regional karst features and trends between 326 independent underwater caves and underwater cave systems. At present, we archive over 1254 kilometers (779 miles) of surveyed underwater cave passage for this area. QRSS Web site:  www.caves.org/project/qrss/. QRSS Contact: Jim Coke: chac@consolidated.net.

The Speleosphere Project
The project goals are to explore and survey caves, systematically document the findings, and promote the conservation of caves and their surrounding environments.   We are continuing to add to the database of Guatemalan caves (www.speleosphere.org). In 2014, the Project worked with an archaeolist in Belize to help document caves that contained significant archaeological material. The cave locations won't be published in the database because of their sensitivity.   For the last several years, the Project has been working in conjunction with several projects based in SE Asia. We have been involved with mapping almost 50 km of caves in Laos with the Northern Lao - European Cave Project. This exploration was published in a series of atlases put out by the Speleoclub in Berlin, called Berliner Hohlenkundliche Berichte (BHB). We continue to document our trips in the NSS News. Go to www.speleosphere.org.  Contact: Matt Oliphant: bf821@lafn.org

Proyecto Espeleologico Sistema Huautla
In March 1965, NSS members from Texas discovered huge entrances to caves just east of the mountain town of Huautla de Jimenez, Oaxaca, Mexico. Two years later one of these caves had been explored to the point of being the deepest cave in the Western Hemisphere. Through the years those entrances were integrated into one large cave system with 21 entrances, 68 kilometers (42 miles) long and 1,545 meters (5,068 feet) deep. Sistema Huautla is the deepest cave in the Americas, the eighth deepest and the longest of the 16 deepest caves in the world. Proyecto Espeleologico Sistema Huautla (PESH) has the objective of conducting annual expeditions to continue the exploration and mapping of this vast cave system and other area caves. We will conduct all disciplines of speleology and include Mexican scientists as part of the project.

Go to www.peshcaving.org.   PESH co-leaders: Tommy Shifflett, NSS 14207 LB, FE, tommyshifflett@gmail.com and Bill Steele, NSS 8072 LB, CM, FE, speleosteele@aol.com.

Texas Speleological Survey
The Texas Speleological Survey was incorporated in 1974 after existing less formally since 1961.  The TSS is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to the management of Texas cave data in support of research, exploration, education, and conservation.  Its office is housed at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus of The University of Texas at Austin.  During the past year, TSS has been active developing new resources for Texas caving regions and on improving digital and paper file access for its approximately 13,500 Texas caves and karst records, 40 percent of which are caves.  The TSS has an active publication program, including TSS Bulletins (reports on caves and karst regions in Texas), a Reprint series (including updated reprints of past publications), TSS Monographs (for major works on Texas karst, including reformatted and quality-printed dissertations and theses), and a Karst Awareness and Education Series (aimed at a general audience).  On its website, the TSS provides significant digital resources for the caving community, including some digital reprints, TexBib, a searchable archive of over 13,400 bibliographic entries dating from 1866 to the present from publications ranging from newspapers through technical journals, and WALLS, a set of Tools for Cave Survey Data Management (including mapping and database software, for free download).  The TSS website was selected by the SciLinks program of the National Science Teachers Association as a quality educational website. For more information, contact the current President at president@texasspeleologicalsurvey.org or info@texasspeleologicalsurvey.org or for urgent issues, contact President Ron Ralph at 512-280-9648.

Ukrainian American Youth Caver Exchange Foundation Project
The Ukrainian American Youth Caver Exchange Foundation (UAYCEF), in cooperation with The Ukrainian Regional Union of Horizontal Speleology, seeks to both foster relationships between the caving communities of America and Ukraine, and to promote the exchange of speleological Related information between both countries with an emphasis on exploratory, cartographic and vertical techniques and skills. In pursuance of its goals UAYCEF operates a student exchange program, and leads annual trips to both Western Ukraine, home of the world's giant horizontal gypsum caves, and Crimea, an area well known for its deep limestone pits. Local cavers from the Kiev and Ternopol areas join trip participants on their explorations, and provide any needed instruction in Eastern European Rebelay Techniques on all Crimea trips. To date there have been twenty expeditions to the Ukraine (note: the annual 2014 summer expedition had to be cancelled because of a military conflict between Ukraine and Russia), with occasional side trips to Russia, which included a total of 91 participants from the US and United Kingdom. In addition, a total of ten youngsters have benefited from UAYCEF's student exchange program. The international caving community also has benefited from UAYCEF, not just from its annual trips and student exchange program, but from a wide range of other activities. These activities have included the introduction of SCT (Single Cable Technique) to the U.S., publication of various articles, slideshow presentations for various caving organizations and community groups, conduction of vertical rebelay workshops, and the development and testing of new and unique ascending, descending, and safety systems. Gratitude is given to the Cave Conservancy Foundation, PMI, IMO, Speleobooks, Gonzo Guano Gear, Howe Caverns and numerous NSS grottoes and members for their assistance over the years. Project Director: Chris Nicola, 2446 43rd. Street, Astoria, N.Y. 11103.   Phone/Fax: 718 204-8373, Email: ChrisOfUaycef@gmail.com

Western Kentucky Speleological Survey
The Western Kentucky Speleological Survey (WKSS) is committed to the exploration survey, documentation, and conservation of caves in eleven counties in western KY. The WKSS worked with the Pennyrile Area Development District in Hopkinsville helping that group understand the caves under and near Princeton, KY. One small new cave was explored close to Hopkinsville by Gerald Nix and crew. The WKSS continues to cooperate with the Kentucky Speleological Survey. Contact: Preston and Shari Forsythe, PO Box 1128, Browder, KY 42326, at pns_for@bellsouth.net, or 270-476-8870.

Williams Canyon Project
The Williams Canyon Project, explores and preserves the caves of Williams Canyon near Colorado Springs, Colorado including the commercially operated Cave of the Winds.   The WCP takes an active role in the management of the canyon resources.  The project currently has 24 trustees as well as 32 that have achieved partner status with the project. There are multiple dig and exploration projects currently active in the Canyon. The project and Cave of the Winds hosted the 2014 NCRC National Seminar.   Website:   http://www.williamscanyon.org/   Contact: Rick Speaect. rick@cavetopia.com.