I’ve been spelunking (crawling through underground caves) a couple of times over the years, so I was really intrigued by the recent cave rescue of a Brooklyn man in Merlin’s Cave about 30 miles southeast of Albany a couple weeks ago. I doubt that many you are aware of the many caves in the area other than Howes Cavern and Secret Caverns, but there are dozens of non-commercial caves and underground caverns below ground that can be explored because of the unique limestone rock far below.
Because of the large number of hibernating bats that call these caverns home, the caves are closed to explorers from October through April. But now it’s mid-May, and there was nothing stopping a group of experienced caving adventurers from Brooklyn from exploring the cave.
Merlin’s Cave descends about 400 feet below the surface and extends for a little more than 2,000 feet in length. After exploring the cave, one of the group was belly-crawling through a difficult section of the cave that’s called the “bear trap.” He slipped because of the wet, muddy surface of the rock and became tightly pinned in a deep crevice. He was wedged there for nearly six hours.
His friends tried to chip away the rock that held him with a hammer but it didn’t work. Because of the 50-degree temperatures in the cave, hypothermia started to set in because of the damp, cold rock walls. He was fed Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups by his friends to keep his energy up as they continued to try to free him.
Finally, other help from the state Department of Environmental Conservation and the Albany-Schoharie Cave Rescue Team arrived. Using a battery operated rock drill, they finally freed him from the crevice.
I’ve never been in Merlin’s Cave, but I have explored Knox Cave, which is on the same ridge a little more than a half-mile away.
The first time I went caving with Oneonta State’s Outing Club was in 1968. Six of us descended down a 50-foot steel ladder into the entrance chamber. We crawled through small tunnels and explored mid-sized rooms. Finally, we came to a difficult section called the “Gun Barrel.” It was a tight, straight, tubular crawlway about 50 feet long, 18 inches high and 14 inches wide. The locals refer to that section of the cave as “Fat Man’s Misery.” Many people were rescued from that section over the years. Three or four years ago, I revisited Knox Cave with a friend of mine and his son. When we got to the Gun Barrel, we discovered that the entire side was cut out, allowing for easy passage. No one will ever get caught there again.
My other caving experience was in the Adirondacks. A friend and I did Eagle Cave at Chimney Mountain. At that time, we didn’t have a map and it wasn’t too well explored, so our time in the cave was limited. Today, access is very difficult because of private land.
Years ago when I did Knox Cave the first time, things were different. Our light source was a carbide lantern on our hard hats. For those of you with no experience with carbide lights, pieces of carbide were put in a canister. Water dripped on the carbide, creating acetylene gas. We lit it and the light from the flame reflected off a shiny disc on the hat. Things are different today. Most of the caves are owned by the Northeastern Cave Conservancy. For the protection of the people climbing down into the caverns, several rules were put in place. An approved hard hat with a chin strap is required. There is a minimum of four people in a group, with a maximum of 15 cavers. Knee and elbow pads are suggested and ankle high boots with a good grip are an advantage. Permits are required in many of the caves.
Bats are dying because of white nose syndrome, so make sure your equipment is clean. And most importantly — don’t break off pieces of limestone as a souvenir.. Leave it as you found it for others to enjoy. Good luck and be careful.