old pics 065, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Some people might wonder what is wrong with this guy, why he might spend his Saturday afternoon in this disgusting manner, but in truth, he could think of no better way. (There is some air space just above the water behind me)

This picture was taken just before the duck that leads into the cavity as shown in the previous post.

You can see the scalloping on the walls. They give clues to the type of water flow. There are especially large scallopings in the space beyond. This is indicative of a relatively slow moving current. In caves where there is constriction at a ventury or narrow opening you will see small scallops indicating an especially turbulent flow. (eg. just above the water filled tube in Museum cave)

At this time I had not seen anything beyond what you see here but the cave had been breathing in and out and I was quite optimistic of onward leading passage.

There are a couple of interesting digs that have taken place in the area, one of which I am presently involved in and one that I had been participating in a couple of winters ago - the details of which were published in the Toronto Caver (Club magazine of the Toronto Cave Group).

In this winter dig that I had participated in - (XS Wire Cave), we had worked our way along a crevice for several feet down to a rocky tube. Our progress had been temporarily halted by a lump in the bottom of the passage. In freezing water (30 below up top) Greg Warchol removed the lump and we continued on to an "almost sump". I suppose we could have continued on - there was an echo from above the pool where we stopped, but the logistics and effort were just to much. Hindsight says I wish we had.

In light of the comment made in the preceeding post by Andrew, I am encouraged to hear that others are also having some success. Be safe please - caving can be hazardous.

19, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

As is usually the case in badlands, they form quite rapidly, a soft under layer of rock being laid bare by land clearance and grazing. If the rock beneath the soil were granite, its unveiling to the elements would go unnoticed but the unstable nature of the Queenston Shale makes it a perfect candidate for extreme and rapid erosion.

The lower foot of the Niagara Escarpment is mainly composed of this material and when exposed it soon decomposes to a sticky red paste. The colour is attributable to the presence of iron oxides. Where the rock has undergone some type of chemical alteration green bands wander through the red. If it were not for the appearance of a blocky greenish strata beneath I might well have left suspecting that some mad spray painter had passed that way just before me.

We entered the badlands from their lower end; it was fantastic. I stood on a smooth, flat bed of washed out clay, no doubt a treacherous morass of muddy, red water in a heavy rainstorm. Many trees thereabouts are buried some way up their trunks by the never ending tide of freshly deposited mud.

Rounded ridges of the eroded rock stretched toward me like thick maroon fingers of some buried giant. The green bands added to the whimsy and I for a fleeting moment imagined that the lava flow that creeps upon a town might look quite similar. There is a slightly eerie feeling to the land and I was not in the least surprised to hear the story of a fisherman who claims to have been followed by the spectre of a solitary woman in a white gown. She wanders through the thick bush beside the river and vanishes shortly after she is seen.

Japanese tourists with video cameras skipped across the top of the ridges and in an attempt to join them I scrambled upward. It soon became apparent that the accumulation of tiny pebbles made any sloping surface a chute that would quickly convey a clumsy oaf such as myself down into one of the chasms between the lobes.

IMG_1286, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

On my hunt for zircon in the Bancroft area I managed to find this old mine that had reputedly unearthed some pretty interesting mineral specimens - many of which were said to be radioactive - some of which are reported to have been zircon. Being a gemmologist I was interested to see the crystals, by my experience zircon crystals are generally box shaped with 4 sided pyramids at either end. "A doubly terminated tetragonal prism," as the lingo describes it.

From my book that is still as of yet unpublished I provide the following extract ...

"In 1955 a pit known as the “Blue Rock Cerium Shaft” was sunk in the bush to the south of Tory Hill. It dropped down to 440 feet, with three levels at 100, 250 and 400 feet.

There is apparently an adit somewhere nearby that leads down to the 100-foot level but I was unable to find it. The No. 1 shaft is about a kilometer and a half to the north, it was 657 feet deep with 4 different levels. “Lead Ura Mines” which later became the “Rare Earth Mining Company” initially explored the No. 1 pit in 1948. No commercial production was ever drawn from either of the “Rare Earth” sites but the legacy of that unsuccessful enterprise still haunts the bush making for an exciting day of discovery.

James and I wandered around the hillside wondering how the mine had appeared and where the head frame was situated. Eastern Hemlock and cedar had shrouded the already decaying concrete abutments and we trod carefully through the waist-high bush not wanting to find ourselves plunging down a hidden pit into the bowels of the earth.

As it turned out a huge concrete slab capped the shaft. James pointed to the cast iron hoops set within. It suggested the option of future removal if the company so desired. There was a small opening at one edge of the concrete slab and I tossed a rock through it. The stone bounced and boomed for six seconds before I heard a great hollow splash".

IMG_4403, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

The picture is a little blurry but I thought that I would post it today in memory of a time not so long ago when I was able to go outside without my nose almost freezing solid.

This is Donald of the SQS - a Quebec caving organization. Donald, Corneilie, Marc Andre and I had entered this Ontario cave and we followed it to its sump where there had been an especially harrowing diving accident some years ago. Two divers followed the underwater tunnels inward and only one returned. Fortunately the diver who came back went back to the surface for extra air tanks and then returned to rescue his buddy who had found an airpocket somewhere.

What was especially cool about this cave - aside from the dip at the entrance was the bats. They were fluttering around in the tunnels in significant numbers - possibly leaving the passages by an entrance other than the one we had used.

In reaching the furthest extent of the passages I was very interested to see the sandbars which seem re-worked each year. I cant be sure - maybe I was just confused by the map but in retrospect I think that maybe a passage; that is not mapped has been exposed from behind a sand bar. I hope to visit when the weather warms up to be certain. I was reluctant to probe further on my last visit as I did not want to disturb the sediment but with a map in hand I can seperate my confusion from reality. It's probably just wishfull thinking though.

IMG_6100, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

This is jeff; his glasses all fogged up from the steam. This is what there was behind the waterfall. It is an old industrial undertaking whereby the water up top was at one time diverted though a sluice down through a tunnel into turbines. This particular spot was one of the first places in Ontario where the power was produced for electric light bulbs. Its pretty historical in my opinion and especially scenic on a winter's night.

IMG_6094, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

This is quite interesting - it shows the junction of the Whirlpool Sandstone and the Queenstone shale layer. My good friend SNAFU and I had visited this place on a cold winter night. As we approached falls the noise was totally deafening and the spray and wind was phenomenal. We had to climb up slippery ice slicked rocks in the dark but what an amazing place to visit under those circumstances.

IMG_6086, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Not so flattering a picture of yours truly but it is indicative of when a long cold winter gets to be too much. I end up going out in desperation and doing strange things. I would be quite impressed if anyone could tell me where and what this is.

IMG_7148, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Well, Ive been under a little pressure as of late to post more about rock related subjects in Ontario.

Admittedly Ive been in a slump as of late. I hurt my back at work and could barely walk for months. Anyway I used my time to begin a new novel; "The Undiscovered Genius of Fester Talbot Albemarle". Well obviously it is quite different from my other book - "Rockwatching", which is incidentally on sale at Chapters right now for $6.99. I guess its run its course so if you had meant to get a copy now is the time.

Tonight I could not handle the cabin fever anymore and went for a little jaunt. Here I am checking out a karst area near to where I live. There is sound of rushing water from below but the climb down the shaft looks really slick. Incidentally there is a block of collapsed rock in a nearby trench that might require some looking at in the light.

Why am I wearing that wierd hat? Because I got it for Christmas and as its dark nobody will see me.

old pics 151, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

I happened to be cruising the internet a few weeks ago and noticed in a guest book for my old Regiment - The Queen's Regiment - the name of an old friend of mine - Andy Creech. We re-established contact after 21 years. Andy is on the left and I am on the right - a younger thinner me without a beard.

It sure is good to know that he and other friends from back then are still in contact and it bought back memories of many good times.

Andy is now married with children, having met his wife at the wedding of another old friend who had served with us in 2 platoon.

The photo is of poor quality taken with an old 110 snapshot camera - hence the grainy appearance. We were on patrol somewhere (I remember where but would sooner leave that unsaid) We had found this barn in which to have tea and waste some time and so that is exactly what we did. I remember these great big tractor tires lying on top of the hay; several people curled up in them and got some sleep. As for sleep, we were always tired, I remember starting to see things on more than one occasion - due I think to lack of sleep. I suppose a loaded gun and seeing things is probably not an ideal circumstance.

As for the old Regiment - it is no more. It became "The Princess of Wales Regiment" through some government restructuring. I am sure the new Regiment is a proud and worthy addition to the military but it is rather distressing to hear of the change.

Andy was amalgamated into the new regiment and went on to serve many more years - retiring if I recall in 1996. It looks like after I left they served in some rather "dodgy" places - glad to see he made it through.

IMG_7008, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Hidden beneath a cedar bush this tunnel entrance leads to some sizeable - stoop walking tunnel.

The passage is been broken open at this point and it runs on behind me as well - back down along the ridge - sloping downward toward the lake. The scalloping above the tunnel entrance could reveal the direction of water flow and In looking at this photo something just occurs to me, it might be a trick of the light or maybe not enough information to judge from but the shape and orientation of the scallops are suggesting a water flow inward from here - off up the ridge away from the lake. Who knows how the water might run beneath a glacier. The circular cross-section of the passage confirms its development beneath the water table.

In following along the tunnel behind Marc I recall him suggesting that he had spotted some furry creature but I never really learned what it was and it was gone by the time I got there, however the smell of urine in the this passage was really strong.

IMG_6946, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Here in a cave that we visited last weekend Greg examines a root - some distance beneath the earth.

Beneath the surface mythology and spirituality feel closer - is it in any way surprising that ritual and ceremony were so closely tied to caves by early man?

There is of course the old connection between life and death - closer to reality when crawling underground. As mentioned we frequently find bones and the remains of the forest creatures. A carcass is a living forest of fungus, its nutrient being a valuable source of food to the underground creatures. And in death new life is usually born.

The Mayans had an interesting view of the world - they saw their universe as existing on several levels, the surface of the earth being just one plane of that universe. With 190 gods that we know of several were assigned to the planes beneath the surface. The sun - bringer of life was swallowed each evening by "Xibalba" (shee - bal - bah) one of the underworld gods. As a jaguar the sun travel through the inky underworld - (caves and cenotes beneath the Yucatan Peninsula) to re-emerge at dawn as the sun again.

In the Mayan culture there is a strong belief in duality - of good countered by evil, life balanced by death, the surface and the underwold etc. etc.

This root that we found - protruding down into the bottom of the bone pit seemed especially significant - its living presence representing the duality that is the underworld - death bringing life. Maybe it is this proximity to the natural processes and the recognition of the unknown and superstition mixed with awe and wonder that brings on that feeling of spiritual connection.

IMG_6301, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

There we go - "Bad Old Chester". Chester - the new "Rockhound".

Sadly Shaka passed away in October. He had a tumor on his spleen - virtually unsaveable as the ensuing operation revealed. You may remember him from the post "Cave Police" (July 2006) and also "Bubbles at the Bear Lake Apatite Mine"(July 2006). Of course you can never replace so loved a member of your family but you can move on. I went through a slump that lasted several months during which time I found it hard to write or enjoy anything for that matter, but Maggie and I finally decided to get another golden. Chester came from a Mennonite farm up near Palmerston - his father an absolutely beautiful creature - pure white and of amazing temperament.

Chester has one white claw and it is this - according to Maggie - that makes him evil. I say it is his blue eye - the evil eye - try sleeping when he wants to play - you will understand the true meaning of evil. Joshua, my son also appears with Chester. Some suggest that it was from Joshua that the dog got his wicked nature.

IMG_1821, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Though Doug Shier tells me that all roads in the area lead back to Cobalt, I am warned by an older gent in the Silver Load Hotel’s restaurant to be careful out there if I am exploring the ore piles. It was a little cryptic; you might say kind of creepy. I thanked him for the advice, finished pouring my coffee and headed out. I wondered what he might be alluding to. Maybe he was talking about getting lost or falling down a shaft like the Chinese laundering family-hmmmm (They all disappeared one night leaving the food still cooking on the stove - never to be seen again - see one of my earlier posts on Cobalt).

Once out there it really began to play on my mind. I had followed an old tramline down a narrow valley between towering white pines. I was in a hidden valley that for some reason had escaped the miners axe. There was supposedly an abandoned mill a few kilometres up the path. My source told me that it was on the left hand side just before the tailings swamp.

From the impressive “Little silver Vein Mine” I had followed a short incline up to the tramline. I soon found myself pushing along a tree-lined tunnel of soft, feathery-limbed tamarack and cedar. It was a wonderfully “organic experience” that started off in a relatively wholesome way but eventually began to feel quite creepy.

The further I went the more subdued the forest became. Eventually there was only deathly silence. I found myself dwelling on the oddly disturbing feeling of being watched. I thought back to something that I had recently read of. It was the appearance of “Old Yellow Mane”. He is Ontario’s northern Sasquatch. Yellow Mane had first been seen in 1906 by miners at the nearby Violet Mine. He was seen again in 1923 by two prospectors who surprised him while he was picking blueberries. They supposedly threw rocks at the poor fellow and he ran away. As was reported in the North Bay Nugget, Yellow Mane was seen for a third time in 1946. A woman and her son saw him ambling along beside some rail tracks. I never found the mill or “Old Yellow Mane” but the walk was quite surreal.

27, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

From amid the leafy screen I wandered into a field of heaped lumber, greying with age and collapsed in piles. I looked for a head structure that might indicate the location of the old shafts I could not see one. Somewhere within the debris two shafts lie hidden. Sealed I would imagine, but beneath, they will lead down to a system of underground passages.

Numerous concrete pilings surveyed from afar suggested a Greek amphitheatre. The shattered stumps were lined up like soldiers boots. The roof and walls were gone. The floor was now open to the sky. A massive concrete platform at the far end of one room was topped by high octagonal platforms.

What I found most intriguing was a rusting metal silo. It lay on its side, a hatchway leading into blackness through its rusting skin. Rivets lined the hole. It was like a submarine or an old battleship washed up on a reef. Curiosity lured me forward to take a peek. Inside the murk hung like a polluted cloud. I could discern a shaft with some sort of propeller at its end. Henry D. later explained that the canister was probably one of the vessels in which the yellow fudge was mixed. The liquid had to be continually stirred or it would gel. I wondered what would happen if this toxic-brew solidified. Would someone have to scoop it out?

In Aimsley’s kitchen the kettle had been boiling for some time, none of us had noticed, I was absorbed in the story of his amazing life around the mine. Henry finally switched the stove off and filled the pot. With trembling hands Aimsley poured the tea. To my surprise not a drop was spilled. He had an especially wicked sense of humour and it punctuated most of what he said. Humour aside, he went on to explain the meaning of “Yellow Fudge.”

The yellow cake or fudge is the uranium concentrate typically containing 70 to 90% uranium oxide (U3 08) by weight. The cake is derived from the crushed and separated ore after it had been mixed with acid and leached. Technically speaking, the yellow cake is no longer yellow. Higher calcining temperatures in new mills produce a substance that is a drab, blackish-green colour. This is the base material from which fuel rods for reactors and nuclear weaponry is made. I asked Aimsley if he had any idea of where I could see some uranite ore. Fatefully, he jerked his head, like a hanged man back toward the front door and said in a matter of fact sort of way that if it interested me I could see some yellow fudge that was seeping from the beams in their barn! The wood had come from the mines and according to him, in one of the many spills it had been penetrated by the radioactive sludge. I wondered whether he was having me on.

With some small amount of trepidation I followed my hosts “out back.” It was exactly as they said. In the barn’s roof above there were yellowing planks where some sort of granular encrustation had collected. This I was assured was “yellow fudge.” Henry discussed the toxic horror in a matter of fact sort of way, tracing the powdery smear along the grain with his finger. I wondered if my curiosity would kill me. My mind was racing as I frantically tried to comprehend the absurdity of the situation. Was I absorbing a lifetime’s radiation in that little jaunt? Teetering at the door, Aimsley smiled serenely, oblivious to my concern. Should I even have been concerned? They weren’t. I backed out of there as fast and politely as possible.

I suppose the whole area is hot. Aimsley says that the unused uranium was poured back down the shafts when the mine closed and the whole thing was entombed beneath thousands of tons of rubble. According to him, all the acidic tailings were piped up to a nearby lake and that is where they were dumped, though, as Aimsley pointed out, it has done him no harm! He relates the story of “Bruce Evans”; who recently died in his 80’s, “and not of radiation poisoning”, he states, his index finger raised to emphasize the point. His job had been to pack the yellow fudge into barrels. “Lived a good long time that fellow did, and he had plenty of exposure to the stuff”.

IMG_6794, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Well - not quite but the strange stoppage at the end of the tunnel kind of reminds me of pictures that I have seen of Castleguard Cave's terminus beneath a glacier.

Here Jeff poses at the end of the tunnel - just a short walk and the odd amplification of the sound of roaring water, again that rather suferous stench and this bulging - apparently plastic cap that barred progress further along the tunnel. You might notice the pointed metal thing above Jeff's shoulder - it is certainly a valve of some kind that would shut off the water flow from behind. I wondered if this tunnel might have had something to do with the construction of the nearby dam and lake Gibson. I was suspecting that maybe water was diverted from its present course down the side of the escarpment during the construction process via this passage.

The nearby power station was built in the 1930's in part to boost up the processing of raw materials during the war. It has a head of 265 feet and sucks in over 8000 cu feet of water a second.

Anybody know anything about this place - I would be interested to learn of its purpose - also soon, my suspicions of the other tunnel and its possible cave-like appearance at its sink point.

Oh, BTW, if anyone has an interesting pictures of Ontario's underground - be it caves or tunnels, and a paragraph or two explaining the picture, I would be happy to post it.

IMG_6799, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Jeff examines the roof within and brings to my attention the oddly stained speleothems. We wondered as to whether the rock was this color due to natural iron pigments in the rock or was it some kind of pollutant leaching from the surface? I recall hearing of strange colored stalactites and curtains forming in a passage running under a cemetary in Toronto - in that case polluted by a century of formaldahyde and decay. I know that when we made an exploration of the "Stairway to Paradise" in Hamilton we saw similarly tinted formations and some really impressive orange soda straws hanging from the roof.

IMG_6798, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

Following in along the tunnel we negotiated a sloppy stream. The water was quite cold and a little smelly. It looks like there was once a narrow gague rail line that had run along the passage, the rails are clearly visible at the tunnel entrance. I cannot remember whether it was the Decew Formation that the tunnel cut along but I think it was - notice the smooth layer above - the rock is perfectly cleaved away from it thus leaving a ceiling that appeared to be cast in concrete (Though it is natural).

We were at this point totally perplexed as to the purpose of the shafts - the second one running parallel some 100 meters off to the side. There was quite a flow of water coming from the second tunnel but its mouth was blocked by a perforated wall - we hoped that this tunnel might have a connecting passage.

IMG_6782, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

To our great surprise we found two shafts that ran into the side of the gorge - needless to say, we were equiped with lighting as we had come to find caves and so we followed in to investigate.

IMG_1243, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

This is a great spot near Bancroft. An abandoned road runs northwards - an old settlers road - and though you can drive part of the way in your car, it soon degenerates to supposedly become impassable.

Just before an old cemetary there is a bridge and beneath the bridge this great wriggling expanse of blackend rock - it looks like lava - but is some kind of folded- ridged metamorphic material. The river sinks some distance off and It only flows on the surface during spring melt.

There is a pool below the bridge where the sinking river resurges - at times flowing very strongly but by late summer the flow is just a trickle. I am considering a crawl up the underground stream some day soon - I just have to summon the energy to get there. as for a trip the location is fantastic - one of the most atmospheric places in Ontario - a real connection to the past. The old wagon road crossed just a small distance downstream from where I took the picture. All sorts of cast iron pegs have been pounded into the rock - their purpose is unclear.

IMG_6208, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

A friend and I visited this cave some time ago, hearing that there was an interesting little pit some distance in we went mid-winter on a Sunday evening. From this crevice there is a tight bedding plane crawl running with water and not so enticing in below zero temperatures. Desperate as we were we opoted to enter the system from another opening a short distance away - and closer to the pit.

Most do not have a lot of good to say about the cave "a filthy crawl" but I thoroughly enjoyed the outing and though it was tight and cold would use the words of a fellow caver in saying "Quite charming" - though he applied that to a marble cave that I hope to visit this summer.

IMG_1813, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

At the edge of Cobalt there is a deep open pit that is said to drop down 250 feet. The bottom is filled with cold, black water. A cable cuts across the top right of the picture. At one time there was a spider web of these strands that supported a tin roof to protect the miners below.

The tunnels cut inwards along the silver seams. At night the “High grader” was said to make his own private excavations using stolen dynamite. Doug Shearer, a knowledgeable local historian said, why bother digging to steal the stuff?It was lined up in wagons beside the station, solid slabs of pure, raw silver. “What a waste of time! There was nobody to stop them from hijacking a wagon load”.

In Cobalt all the locals have an “abandoned mine story”. Down along the shores of Long Lake I met a guy who was walking his dog early in the morning. He reminisced about a candle-lit journey that he had made as a teenager from a tunnel far out in the forest. They walked along in the dark, their light flickering with an unpredictable breeze that blew from within. Eventually they were reduced to crawling, the hot wax raising blisters on their skin. Through a tight squeeze they emerged into sunlight window way up the inside of the “Glory Hole” I am not sure how much the water has risen since his youth but it would seem to me that one of these exposed entrances might be the one.

19, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

After crawling for half an hour up Pond Creek you pass beneath a shaft that leads up to a manhole cover. There are several flat shelves around this intersection that are piled high in molding fecal matter. I suspect that this is the central hub for the neighbourhood's raccoon traffic.

Ten minutes further along will put you at a passage that opens out from a claustrophobic slot into an arched dolostone tube. The floor is of wet, musty smelling gravel and it dips into a pool at the bottom of a natural, stone lip.

Old maps of the area led me to believe that somewhere up ahead the tunnel will fork. In a back garden near exhibition park I am told that there is a well where the property owner drops a bucket down to a pool of water. This surface portal might be just beyond the beam of my headlamp but I have only pushed the passage a little further. The stoop walking and crawling is a killer on the knees and thighs.

Check out the speleothems growing on the roof. The explorer must be careful so as not to damage them as these growths are easily snapped.

This was undoubtably one of the more unusual urban explorations that I have made. A future trip that I am considering is up a tunnel from which echoes this most incredible roar. An upstream wade in neoprene should prove quite interesting as I suspect that it leads to an under-city waterfall.

Costa Rica 3 270, originally uploaded by Mic2006.

One morning Maggie and I decided to head up to the "Peninsula de Papagayo", having no car we decided to take a Tourisimo bus. Here in Tamarindo the price is double that which you would expect. Walking down the Tourisimo bus lineup I asked for estimates and it seemed to be a consensus amongst all the various operators that it was a journey at which they would break even at 60 000 colones each way.

I made it known that I only had 30 000 colones to spend and walked sadly away.

It was not long before I was approached by Alan who offered to accomodate our needs at the suggested price and within minutes our driver Magno was picking us up.

We had a great day. The map showed that a ruin was situated at the tip of the Papagayo Peninsula. We cruised through the dry Guanacaste scrubland, Alan pointing out places of interest; he also helped Magno guess the route. It appears that the drivers here dont use maps and nor are they very sure of how to get from one place to another. I eventually had to lend my map to Magno and that in combination with many unplanned but supposedly purposeful deviations finally got us there. One point of interest though, in not using maps, the drivers are not sure how to read them either.

Beside the road we saw this rather sinister gathering - vultures picking through some kind of auto-generated debris. Is this what happens at an accident? I hoped that Magno had his licence. Were the drivers bones still in the seat?

The Peninsula de Papagayo turned out to be a big disappointment. we cruised through an arid grassland, high into the hills along the coast - a landscape populated by lonely tin roofed shacks and lightening scarred thorn trees. Stopping for a stretch I inhaled dust and dried cattle dung - very different from the mountainous jungle around San Jose.

Thinking we were set to explore a forgotten Mayan ruin I was in the highest of spirits until we ran up against the gates of a plush vacation complex. The whole end of the Peninsula is nothing but a giant golf course and at the end - the Four Seasons Hotel. Hundreds of workers combed the imaculate lawns picking lizards and stray leaves from the fairways. Not my vision of Costa Rica - not what I had come to see. I asked Magno to turn around a few kilometers short of the ruin. I did not want to see any such relic in the middle of a golf course.

Poe wrote of a burial that, due to the warm weather, took place in "indecent haste". The supposed deceased had been thrown from a horse and injured by a contusion which had "rendered him insensible at once". I am sure you can imagine the victim's horror when he woke underground to the realization that he had been buried alive. "An unendurable oppression of the lungs- a ridgid embrace of the narrow house- the blackness of the absolute night".

In Poe's opinion, it is rare that a cemetary be encroached upon and some of the skeletons are not found in postures that might suggest that they had been pre-maturely interred. That, to a claustrophobic, is what Poe so gleefully dwells upon; the horror of suffocation beneath the earth.

At the end of our short but beautiful Ontario cave tunnel, we had found a sump from which flowed a golden stream. It emerged from a low cobble-floored slot and beyond, the sepulchral draw of a subterranean breeze and inky tunnels of endless night. It was in theory a most beautiful spot and the horrors of the coming embrace of rock and water were washed off down the tunnel with the water.

Lying on my back, I felt the water trickling down my spine. It was an excruciating agony and I shouted loudly in protest, (much to the alarm of my companion). Taking several breaths, I tipped my head back and felt my helmet and ears filling with freezing water. I immediatly began to feel dizzy but wriggled onward until only my nose and lips protruded above the stream. The sump was short but tight and when I opened my eyes I could see that both they and my forehead had protruded into a cavity beyond. Looking up I saw the ceiling of a substantial crevice in the beam of my headlamp.

Wiggling further was difficult as the cobbles beneath and the roof above were pressing my lungs. I felt just a twinge of Poe's delicious horror and with hands that were aching from the cold I struggled back through the squeeze.

Catching my breath I slouched dizzily against the tube and resolved to try again in a few weeks when the water is warmer and some of the cobbles have been cleared out. It was too cold at that time and though I am now a little disappointed at my retreat, my companion and I know that a really exciting cave lies in wait.

SOME FURTHER UNDERSTANDING OF ONTARIO'S CAVING EXPLORATIONS CAN BE OBTAINED IN MY BOOK "ROCKWATCHING; ADVENTURES ABOVE AND BELOW ONTARIO" (see the sidebar to the right for order information).

Originally uploaded by Mic2006.

The classic cave as imagined by most generally forms in limestone. Limestone has a tight, interlocking structure that is impervious to water. Where the surface rock is limestone a karst environment usually develops. In this type of landscape the drainage is invariably beneath the surface where the surface flow penetrates to the underground along vertical crevices known as joints.

Within the rock the water travels horizontally along weaknesses known as bedding planes. The shape of an underground tunnel is usually a function of its movement in either of those two fissures and also other factors such as the gradient of flow and its situation either above or below the water table.

What is unusual about this tunnel is that it is in dolostone. Large passages rarely form in dolostone as the water passes through this rock much as it would a sponge. The rock is porus and the water is rarely concentrated in fissures. Solution of the rock and tunnel development is most likely where the water is pooled or running in crevices.

As you can see by the position of my feet, it was not a picture that was easily taken. I had to prop my head on the floor in the stream, press my body against the roof and photograph upside down.