The Caving Podcast

A titan in the world of cave rescue passed away peacefully yesterday. RIP NSS 8545RL

In the conclusion of this in-person interview, Dave shares his history of cave photography, and explains some of his techniques. He also talks about caving in Montana, and shares a few harrowing stories of caving back home in Indiana where he reveals several leads he’s left unexplored.  Order a custom cave suit from our sponsor, Sophireaptress! https://www.sophireaptress.com/ [https://www.sophireaptress.com/] NSS Calendar of Events https://caves.org/calendar/ [https://caves.org/calendar/] Find your local grotto! https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml [https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml]

Dave has found so much cave in Indiana, and inspired a new generation of Indiana cavers that got busy discovering and mapping back in the 80s and 90s. Dave was on the crew that connected Roppel Cave to Mammoth Cave, and has seen his fair share of harrowing adventure underground. Order a custom cave suit from our sponsor, Sophireaptress! https://www.sophireaptress.com/ [https://www.sophireaptress.com/] NSS Calendar of Events https://caves.org/calendar/ [https://caves.org/calendar/] Find your local grotto! https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml [https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml]

Jonathan wasn’t a caver until he became curious about a cave on a piece of property he purchased in rural Tennessee. Thanks to his openness to allow exploration of his cave, Helm’s Deep quickly became the longest cave in the state, and was a topic of much discussion at the 2024 NSS Convention in Sewanee, TN. In this talk he covers many of the discoveries made in the cave, including its surprising archeological significance. Order a custom cave suit from our sponsor, Sophireaptress! https://www.sophireaptress.com/ [https://www.sophireaptress.com/] Custom Cave Survey Pages https://www.customcavepages.com/ [https://www.customcavepages.com/] Find your local grotto! https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml [https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml]

The Out of Bounds Grotto is a caving club that was created for the 21st century–a virtual grotto that brings together cavers from across the country for the love of exploration, conservation, and the sport of caving with no geographic constraints. Tally founded the grotto with these things in mind and, as you’ll hear, is a tireless volunteer for many of the causes cavers care about. She’s also working to improve the caving experience for women who might otherwise have concerns about sexual harassment in what is still a very male-dominated world. Out of Bounds Grotto https://outofboundsgrotto.org/ [https://outofboundsgrotto.org/] Tickets to Floyd Collins: The Musical at SKyPAC in Bowling Green, KY 3/8/25 https://www.theskypac.com/event/ramsey-theatre-company-presents-floyd-collins-the-musical/ [https://www.theskypac.com/event/ramsey-theatre-company-presents-floyd-collins-the-musical/] Order a custom cave suit from our sponsor, Sophireaptress! https://www.sophireaptress.com/ [https://www.sophireaptress.com/] Custom Cave Survey Pages https://www.customcavepages.com/ [https://www.customcavepages.com/] Find your local grotto! https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml [https://caves.org/committee/i-o/grottos/new_grotto_page-v2.shtml]