Expeditions

The Caucasus in winter time - Pantyukhina cave

Michał Górski

Six cavers from Wrocław, invited by and accompanied by two Russian cavers, went to Pantyukhina Cave in the Bzyb massif in the Caucasus Mountains in Georgia in February/March 2009. From a camp at - 1100 m they explored the surroundings of the eight sumps in the deepest part of the cave. Another goal was climbing along tributary streams, as the hitherto known way to the deeper part of the cave seems to be a subsidiary series. They climbed many chimneys and discovered a meander 400 m long, with many leads left. A thaw at surface cause a marked increase in amounts of water near the entrance.

On the cave system on the Churí-tepui (Venezuela)

Branislav Šmida, Charles Brewer-Carías, Marek Audy, Federico Mayoral, Lukáš Vlček, Darko Bakšić, Jaroslav Stankovič

In January and May 2009 (see also JASKINIE 53), two expeditions with participants from Venezuela, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Croatia explored caves in meseta (tepuy) Churí in the Chimantá massif in Venezuela. More than 14 km of cave passages were explored. The largest system - Cueva Muchimuk-Colibri - is now 8 km long, with galleries 20 to 50 m wide. Novel biospeleothems and mineral aggregates have been discovered in the cave. Cueva Juliana was prolonged to 3 km. Giant forms of champignon-type biospeleothems, up to 1 m in diameter, are present in the cave. Cueva Charles Brewer after connection with Cueva del Diablo (Devil´s cave) is now more than 7,3 km long. The participants conducted geological, geomorphological and biological research.

Cembavieya 2009 Spanish-Polish expedition

Zbyszek Grzela

Eighteen Caverns from Wrocław and Żagań in Poland with five Spanish colleagues continued exploration in the El Cornion massif of the Picos de Europa in July 2009. Exploration in CEV 181, G5, G 13 did not result in connections. A big chamber was discovered in G 13 and sone series crossed seemed to belonged to another system, not yet entered from the surface. A table shows the results of exploration in the Polish zone

30 years elapsed and what a gift!

Marcin Furtak

Cavers from Żagań, who started their adventure in the Austrian Alps in 1979, continued exploration in Jack Daniels cave in the Tennengebirge Ost. In 2009, behind an artificially widened squeeze they climbed a chimney and discovered extensive horizontal series rich in stunning speleothems - Partie Koziorożców (Capricorns' Series), after the Zodiacal signs of both discoverers. With new two kilometers added, 5.5 km long Jack Daniels is the longest cave in the massif. A table shows the main achievements of the successive expeditions of Bobry Żagań to the Tennengebirge Ost.

Speleoproject Arabica 2009

Tomasz Macalik, Agnieszka Nieciąg

The comic relates the expedition of cavers from Wrocław to the Arabika massif in the Caucasus in August 2009. They continued exploration of PL-1.

Poland

1 km in Siwy Kocioł

Filip Filar

Speleoklub Tatrzański continued exploration of Siwy Kocioł in the Czerwone Wierchy massif in the Tatra Mountains. They mostly climbed chimneys, some of them leading toward the earlier known series. The cave exceeded 1 km in length.

Tomanowa Valley

Jakub Nowak

Detailed search and survey in the Tomanowa Valley in the Tatra Mountains resulted in discovery of one bigger cave, described in Jaskinie 54 and three small ones, presented here.

Cave and shelters on Muronka in the Beskid Śląski group (Kuźnie nature reserve)

Jerzy Ganszer

Sixty eight small caves and shelters have been surveyed within a large sandstone rockslide in the Beskidy Mountains. The results and shown on plan and in a table.

A cave in Zechstein strata near Lubin

Jan Lis, Michał Krotofil

An open fracture in Permian dolomites has been encountered in Lubin copper mine in Lower Silesia, at the depth of ca. 400 m. The walls of the void are covered with brilliant crystals of ore minerals. The neighbouring part of the deposits is now abandoned and the void is gradually collapsing.

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Last change 2009.03.17