Lots has been happening on the 2024 Expedition, which contains teams working from both Park Headquarters and Camp 5, conducting science and exploration programmes. Ruairidh Macleod reports the latest from the field…
Science
Work continues investigating the impact of bird and bat guano on the development of the caves, building on work done on the 2022 and 2023 expeditions. This research is being spearheaded by Andy Farant, Hazel Barton and Max Koether, with support from Derek Bristol. Some additional samples were collected and investigations into the geochemical properties of the guano were undertaken. Limestone tablets placed in the caves in 2022 have been removed and will be analysed to see if any dissolution has occurred. This research is coming to fruition with a paper almost ready for submission, and another in the pipeline.
Exploration
Considerable work has been done in Racer-Easter cave, in addition to the science work by Hazel, Max and Derek, pushing many of the holes beneath the sediment pits in the mid-levels of Racer cave. Several fragments of passage were found, including two previously overlooked leads off the lower levels of Racer Cave. Approximately 1km of passage has been found in total. However, the connection to Lagang’s cave remains elusive. Several going leads have also been found in Stone Horse Cave, which require pushing and surveying. Likewise, in Cave of the Winds, a passage off Eureka explored at the end of the 2023 expedition broke into large passage. This needs surveying to confirm if the large passage is Disillusion.
From the Camp 5 team, 2.5km were found linking Shimmering Showers to Firecracker. A successful photography trip to The Velodrome and Defiance led to the discovery of a new lead that was pushed for 300m, and other new leads identified – these showed significant potential for parallel passages, including at a higher level. The Leads at Pointless and No Hope continued to be pushed: 2 climbs up for ~45m choked, but lots of wildlife was observed, and a draft at Easter Aven; many bats were seen.
Most recently, a new cave has been found in a batu just to the north of the airport runway. Although there was only limited time for exploration, this cave is roomy with passage dimension often 15x15m in a current length of 500m. The cave contains some impressive formations, such as the large stal columns in the picture below:
