The Wisconsin Speleologist

The Wisconsin
Speleologist
The Science of Caves
The Wisconsin Speleologist
June 2008Page 1
Wisconsin Speleological Society
WSS Executive Officers:
Chairman: Kasey Fiske
Vice Chairman:
David Sheffer
Treasurer/Secretary:
Scott Moll
Board of Directors:
Madison Chapter Board
Members:
Bob Bultman
Larry Buchholz
Dave Gramling
Allan Schema
Gary Emerson
Jennifer Schehr
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Published by:
Scott Moll
8031 S. Forest Meadows Dr.
Franklin, WI 53132
[email protected]
The Hollow Earth News is the official monthly newsletter of
the Wisconsin Speleological Society, a grotto of the National
Speleological Society. Exchanges and inquiries, as well as
articles for publication, should be sent to the editor’s address
listed above.
WSS web page: http//www.caves.org/grotto/wss
Annual membership in the WSS is $12.00 per individual and
$15.00 per family. The WSS Membership Year begins on the
1st of June and ends on May 31st of the following year.
Please prorate and pay accordingly so that your membership
ends in May: Individual $1 per month, Family Membership
$1.25 per month. Include your NSS number and any information that you want in the WSS database and printed in the
annual Membership List.
Send remittance and changes of address to
Table of Contents
No Crevice too Narrow; No Tunnel Too Deep
Written by John H. Broihahn
2
Geologic History of New Hope Cave,
Manitowoc County Wisconsin
Written by John Luczaj and Ronald Stieglitz
7
Profiles in Maribel New Hope Cave
Photos by: Letha Welch
18
Model Cave Protection Act
Written by Henry L. Welch
21
Front Cover:
Henry Welch and JD Skattebo in Maribel New Hope Cave
Photo by Letha Welch
Back Cover:
Photos and Text by Letha Welch
The WSS usually meets at 11:00 a.m. on the 3rd Saturday of
every month at the Ledge View Nature Center at W 2348
Short Road Chilton, Wisconsin, 53014. This schedule sometimes changes and WSS meetings are held at other locations.
Please refer to the latest issue of The Hollow Earth News for
updated information. The Madison Chapter of the WSS normally meets on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m.
at the Middleton Public Library in Middleton, Wisconsin
unless otherwise noted. Visitors and guest are welcome to
attend. The WSS strongly advocates safe caving and caving
related activities. However, neither the WSS nor its members
can guarantee the safety of anyone participating in these activities and are not responsible for injuries, illnesses, deaths or
financial losses during to such participation. The WSS and its
members do not necessarily endorse or agree with the opinions
and articles in The Hollow Earth News and the Wisconsin
Speleologist, or with opinion and articles presented in any
other WSS publications and cannot guarantee the accuracy or
validity of them.
WSS
c/o Scott Moll
8031 S. Forest Meadows Dr.
Franklin WI 53132
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 2
No Crevice too Narrow; No Tunnel Too Deep
John H. Broihahn ( [email protected] )
State Archeologist
816 State St.
Madison, WI 53706-1482
Archaeologists as well as cavers and historians have long known about the importance
of caves, especially “dark zone” caves, in North American history. Archaeological investigations have been carried out in caves since the 1960s, but they have been limited in
their nature and extent. As all of you know, caves are, or certainly can be, challenging
places to explore and to carry out recording and mapping. In 1996, archaeologists from
the University of Tennessee formed the Cave Archaeology Research Team (CART) to identify and document evidence of human use in a large numbers of caves, particularly “darkzone “ caves. What they have discovered is that no crevice seems too narrow, nor tunnel
too deep to have gone unexplored by someone hundreds, and often thousands, of years
ago.
CART explorations have revealed that American Indians ventured into caves to make
rock art, perform rituals, mine and quarry chert and minerals, live, explore, and bury their
dead. By-and-large these evidences of use have been identified in dry caves, i.e., caves
where water erosion is no longer active.
Perhaps the most dramatic and thought provoking evidence of human presence are the
myriad of images carved and painted by the American Indian explorers. The images you
see illustrated in the accompanying panels are a representative sample of the type of art
you may have encountered in Wisconsin rock shelters and caves. Rock art has been identified most frequently on sandstone, but we suspect you may also see the art on limestone. In the caves of the Appalachians, images have even been seen that were carved
into the clay adhering to the ceilings, walls, and floors of caves. Mud glyphs have not yet
been identified in Wisconsin.
Both carved and painted images have been recorded on rock in Wisconsin. The carving
(petroglyphs) was done with bone, stone, wood, and antler tools. Pigments for the paintings (pictographs) were derived from galena, charcoal, hematite/limonite, limestone, clay,
and other materials. These pigments may have been mixed with a binder, to help it stick
to the rock, or in other cases, may have been applied directly to the stone. They were applied with bone or antler “brushes,” twigs, or fingers. Both types of rock art can be easily
damaged; simply brushing or rubbing against a panel can remove the art. Mud glyphs are
even more fragile.
American Indians in Wisconsin began making rock art at least three thousand years ago
to communicate with the spirit world, with each other, and with other groups. Interpreting rock art is still a “new science.” Some of the shapes and images are obvious. We can
identify deer, bows-and-arrows, and people or spirit beings. But what stories they tell,
what meaning, or meanings, they covey and why they were painted and carved remain a
mystery.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 3
In addition to rock art, you may come across evidence of earlier exploration in the
form of torches, smudging, wall scarring, and tracks. Birch bark torches, and in one
case a moccasin, have been recovered from dark zone caves in Wisconsin. The
torches may be preserved along the edges of caves near where the walls and floor
join. Smudging could be present on the ceilings or walls. Scratches and scrape
marks may be present in tight spots.
American Indians used flint or chert, galena, hematite, and other minerals for thousands of years in Wisconsin. Some of these materials were simply collected after
they were loosened and exposed by natural processes. In other cases, however,
American Indians actively mined and quarried for the materials they wanted. Chert
was the most widely used tool stone in Wisconsin. Sandstone was used for grinding
tools and abrading other materials. In places where the sandstone contains much
greater amounts of silica and is extremely hard (it is classified as a quartzite), it was
quarried and used to make a variety of stone tools. The quartzite and chert occur in
lenses in the bedrock and as nodules. Evidence of quarrying should appear as hammer and pounding marks, as battering, and possibly as scraping on the walls and
floors of caves. Evidence of quarrying may also be seen in the form of broken nodules and chips and smaller broken pieces of stone. These chips may occur in tight
clusters and piles.
People do not seem to have lived, or spent extended periods of time, in deep caves.
You may still find hearths, charcoal, burned wood, burned and broken rocks, or
some evidence of camping, but it seems people more often lived in the entrances to
caves. In some cases, the crevice cave may seem too small for camping, but careful
examination may reveal pieces of pottery, stone tools, chips, and food debris.
Human burials do occur in rock shelters and caves in Wisconsin. They have most
frequently been exposed by archaeological excavations, but they have also been exposed through erosion or rodent digging. They may also occur on the surface. If
you encounter human remains, leave them in place and notify the local authorities
(police or sheriff). They can take the lead in deciding if it is a forensic case, or if they
need to call the Wisconsin Historical Society at 1-800-342-7834.
As you might guess, rock art sites, quarry sites, campsites, and burials in caves are
extremely rare and fragile. Wisconsin currently has 152 recorded rock art sites,
most in southwest Wisconsin, an area with many exposed bedrock outcroppings.
The rock art sites and campsites have been identified most frequently in rock shelters. Sites located deeper in caves are extremely unusual and warrant special consideration.
Protecting these non-renewable resources starts with identification. One of the
things you can do to ensure the long-term preservation of these types is to report
them. We have included a form in the newsletter. In addition to the locational information, a sketch map pinpointing the location of the site in the cave is important.
The verbal description and the map should be sufficient to enable someone else to
return to the site location. And of course, pictures of the site are invaluable.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 4
Including something for scale in the images is always helpful.
In order to protect these sites, we do restrict access to the information, so the reporting of a site in a special cave or passage way will not become widely known. In a limited
number of instances, access to caves and shelters has been limited as a protective measure. We have used this approach cautiously, however, recognizing the effect this can
have on recreational activities.
Thunderbird
Deer
Diamond and Dot
Buffalo
X Form
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 5
Lines
Turkey Track
Chevron
Human
Roche a Cri
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 6
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 7
Page 7
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
PagePage
8 8
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 9
Page 9
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 10 Page 10
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 11
Page 11
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 12
Page 12
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 13
Page 13
The
The
Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 14
Page 14
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 15
Page 15
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 16
Page 16
The Wisconsin
The Wisconsin
Speleologist
Speleologist
Page 17
Page 17
Profiles in Maribel New Hope Cave
Photos by: Letha Welch
SE Profile #2
~ 9/19/06 ~
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 18
SE Profile #3 ~
9/24/06 ~
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 19
SE Profile #4
~ 10/08/06 ~
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 20
Model Cave Protection Act
Written by Henry L. Welch
Background
This model cave protection act was prepared as part of a law review article published in the January 2008 Environmental Law Reporter. That article discusses
existing federal and state laws protecting caves and provides detailed justifications and explanations for the various elements of the cave protection act included below. A full reprinting of that article is inappropriate in this forum for
reasons of both length and audience (the article was written for attorneys and
legal scholars).
This statute relies heavily on the cave protection statutes already in place. Currently caves are protected, to some extent, by federal law and laws in 29 states,
including Wisconsin which only protects rock art. (For a mostly complete listing
of existing cave protection laws see the NSS list at
http://www.caves.org/committee/conservation/www/a_law/laws.htm) The cave
protection law included below differs significantly from most of the existing
laws in that it is generally more detailed and reflects the often complicated issues surrounding cave activities (e.g. one shouldn’t burn things in caves, but
carbide lamps should be permitted).
Under most cave protection laws, the land owner of the ground above the cave
has nearly unlimited discretion on what to do with the cave (unless stopped by
some other environmental laws protecting endangered species, ground water,
etc.). The proposed cave protection act addresses this issue by classifying activities that affect caves into two categories: Minor Impacts – that are consistent
with responsible visitation and Major Impacts – that result in significant alteration to the cave and should require oversight by someone in addition to the
land owner.
My goal in developing this cave protection act and the affiliated law review article was to raise awareness of the unique risks to which caves are subject and to
develop a more mature framework for providing legal protection. Hopefully others will take up the call and begin lobbying their state legislature to update
their existing state laws to provide better protection for caves.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 21
The Model Cave Protection Act
Caves.1. Short Title
This Act shall be known and cited as the Cave Protection Act.
Caves.2. Declared Purpose for this Act
The Legislature values the following findings. Caves are uncommon geologic phenomena, and the minerals deposited therein may be rare and occur in unique forms
of great beauty that are irreplaceable if destroyed. Also irreplaceable are the cultural
resources in caves, which are of great scientific and historic value. Further, the organisms that live in caves are unusual and of limited numbers, and many are rare and
endangered species, and caves are a natural conduit for groundwater flow and are
highly subject to water pollution, thus having far-reaching effects transcending manmade property boundaries. It is therefore declared to be the policy of the state of
_____ and the intent of this Act to protect these unique natural and cultural resources.
Caves.3. Definitions
The following words and phrases when used in this Act shall have the definitions provided to them in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning:
"Board" means the Cave Board.
"Cave" means any naturally occurring void, cavity, recess, or system of interconnecting passages beneath the surface of the earth or within a cliff or ledge including
natural subsurface water and drainage systems, but not including any mine, tunnel,
aqueduct, or other manmade excavation, which is large enough to permit a person to
enter. The word "cave" includes or is synonymous with cavern, sinkhole, natural pit,
grotto, and rock shelter.
"Cave life" means any animal, plant, or other life form which normally occurs in, uses,
visits, or inhabits any cave or subterranean water system.
"Commercial cave" means any cave utilized by the owner for the purposes of exhibition to the general public as a profit or nonprofit enterprise, wherein a fee is collected for entry.
"Cultural resource" means all or any part of any archaeological, paleontological, biological, or historical item including, but not limited to, any petroglyph, pictograph,
basketry, human remains, tool, beads, pottery, projectile point, remains of historical
mining activity, or any other occupation found in any cave.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 22
“Department” means the Department of Natural Resources, Department of Historical
Conservation, or both as is consistent within the context in which the term is used.
“Educational purpose” means activities undertaken by museums, nature centers,
and similar persons with the intent to prepare displays and exhibits for education
of the general public.
"Gate" means any structure or device located to limit or prohibit access or entry to
any cave.
“Hazard” means a risk of serious physical harm to persons or property.
“Major impact” means any significant impact to a cave that is generally done with a
reckless or willful purpose. This includes, but is not limited to: converting a cave
passage or room for commercial use and excavating more than a few cubic feet of
material.
“Minor impact” means any incidental impact made to a cave that is consistent with
responsible visitation and exploration. This includes, but is not limited to: the leaving of foot prints, disturbing loose materials as a result of passage, smoothing of
non-speleothem rock surfaces caused by passage, introducing survey marks, placing climbing bolts for safety, installing cave gates, disturbing for scientific or educational purposes, and excavating a few cubic feet of material to make a passage
passable.
"Owner" means a person who owns title to land where a cave is located, including a
person who is a lessee of such land, and including the State and any of its agencies,
departments, boards, bureaus, commissions, or authorities, as well as counties,
municipalities, and other political subdivisions of the State.
"Person" means any individual, partnership, firm, association, trust, or corporation
or other legal entity.
“Rescue personnel” means any police officer, fire fighter, paramedic, or recognized
volunteer who is acting in response to an emergency or believed emergency.
“Scientific purposes” means research, or exploration, or both, conducted by persons
affiliated with recognized scientific organizations with the intent to advance knowledge and to publish the results of exploration or research in an appropriate medium.
"Sinkhole" means a closed topographic depression or basin, generally draining underground, including, but not restricted to, a doline, uvala, blind valley, or sink.
"Speleogen" means an erosional feature of the cave boundary and includes or is
synonymous with anastomoses, scallops, rills, flutes, spongework, and pendants.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 23
"Speleothem" means a natural mineral formation or deposit occurring in a cave. This
includes or is synonymous with stalagmite, stalactite, helectite, shield, anthodite, gypsum flower and needle, angel's hair, soda straw, drapery, bacon, cave pearl, popcorn
(cave coral), rimstone dam, column, palette, flowstone, et cetera. Speleothems are
commonly composed of calcite, epsomite, gypsum, aragonite, celestite, and other
similar minerals.
Caves.4. Vandalism
It shall be unlawful for any person to intentionally, willfully, or recklessly:
(1) Break, break off, crack, carve upon, write, burn, or otherwise mark upon, remove,
or in any manner destroy, disturb, deface, mar, or harm the surfaces of any cave or
any natural material which may be found there, whether attached or broken, including
speleothems, speleogens, sedimentary deposits, and cultural resources.
(2) The provisions of this section shall not apply to minor impacts for which express
permission has been received in advance from the cave owner.
(3) The collection of samples for scientific or educational purposes requires that a permit be obtained from the Department or other agency as required by any other chapter
in these statutes or by the United States Code.
Break, force, tamper with, or otherwise disturb a lock, gate, door, or other obstruction
designed to control or prevent access to any cave, even though entrance thereto may
not be gained unless express permission has been received in advance from the cave
owner.
Remove, deface, or tamper with a sign stating that a cave is posted or citing provisions
of this Act unless express permission has been received in advance from the cave
owner.
Excavate, remove, destroy, injure, deface, or in any manner disturb any cultural resource unless express permission has been received in advance from the cave owner
and a permit has been obtained from the Department.
Make a major impact to a cave unless express permission has been received in advance from the cave owner and a permit has been obtained from the Department.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to the removal of unavoidable hazards
provided they are mitigated with minimal impact to the cave.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to rescue personnel in response to an
emergency, believed emergency, or other rescue.
Any violation of this section shall be punished as a felony.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 24
Caves.5. Disturbance of Cave Life
It shall be unlawful for any person to intentionally, willfully, or recklessly:
Remove, kill, harm, or otherwise disturb any naturally occurring organisms within
any cave unless it is a minor impact consistent with responsible visitation of the
cave.
The provisions of this section shall not be interpreted so as to lessen the restrictions on protections for cave life that may exist as a result of any other chapter in
these statutes or by the United States Code. This includes any requirement for a
collection permit.
Any violation of this section shall be punished as a felony.
Caves.6. Sale of Speleothems and Cultural Resources
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
Sell, offer to sell, or trade in this State, import into this State, or export for sale or
trade outside of this State any speleothems.
Sell, offer to sell, or trade in this State, import into this State, or export for sale or
trade outside of this State any cultural resources found in caves.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to speleothems and cultural resources collected consistent with the scientific and educational purposes described in §Caves.4(a) of this Act.
The provisions of this section shall not be interpreted so as to lessen the restrictions on the sale, trading, import, and exporting of cultural resources that may
exist as a result of any other chapter in these statutes or by the United States
Code.
Any violation of this section shall be punished as a felony.
Caves.7. Pollution
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
Burn within a cave or sinkhole any material that produces any smoke or gas which
is harmful to cave life or may cause damage to speleogens and speleothems.
Store, dump, litter, dispose of, or otherwise place any refuse, garbage, dead animals, sewage, or toxic substances harmful to cave life or humans, in any cave or
sinkhole.
The provisions of this section shall not prohibit the operation within a cave of any
source of flame capable of being carried in the hand or attached to a person, provided that the light source is used consistent with a minor impact on the cave.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 25
Any violation of this section shall be punished as a felony.
Caves.8. Gates
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
Install, alter, or maintain a cave gate or other obstruction at a cave entrance or within
a cave that alters the ability of cave life, water, and air to pass through the obstruction that is inconsistent with a minimal impact on the cave. This means that any gate
or obstruction should neither appreciably increase nor decrease the ability of cave
life, water, and air to pass through the obstruction prior to recent alteration of the
area so gated by persons.
Gates or obstructions which significantly alter the ability of cave life, water, and air to
pass through the obstruction are considered to be major impacts and are subject to
§Caves.4(e) of this Act.
Any violation of this section shall be punished as a felony.
Caves.9. State Cave Board
The Cave Board shall be constituted within the Department of Natural Resources and
shall consist of the Director of the Department of Natural Resources, the Director of
the Department of Historical Conservation, and ten citizens of the State appointed by
the Governor for four-year terms. Appointments shall be made on the basis of activity
and knowledge in the conservation, exploration, study, and management of cave and
should include members who can represent the interests of the State, scientists, historians, cave owners, commercial cave owners, and cavers.
The Cave Board shall meet at least three times a year.
The Cave Board may perform all tasks necessary to carry out the purposes of this
Act, including, but not limited to, the following:
Accept any gift, money, security, or other source of funding and expend such funds
to effectuate the purposes of this chapter.
Provide cave management expertise to requesting public agencies and cave owners.
Provide cave data for use by state and other governmental agencies.
Publish or assist in publishing articles, pamphlets, brochures, or books on caves and
cave-related concerns.
Facilitate data gathering and research efforts on caves.
Inform the public about cave resources and the importance of preserving them for
the citizens of the State.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 26
Develop regulations necessary to advance the purposes of this Act including:
Further clarify the difference between minor and major impacts.
Develop rules and procedures for applying for and obtaining permits required under
§§Caves.4(a)(3), Caves.4(d), Caves.4(e), Caves.5(b), and Caves.8(b) of this Act.
Any data collected by the Cave Board or included in the minutes or transcripts of
its meeting will not be subject to freedom of information requests.
Caves.10. Liability of Owners and Agents Limited; Sovereign Immunity of the State
not Waived
Neither the owner of a cave nor his authorized agents acting within the scope of
their authority are liable for injuries sustained by any person using the cave for recreational or scientific purposes if no charge has been made for the use of the cave,
notwithstanding that an inquiry as to the experience or expertise of the individual
seeking consent may have been made.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to constitute a waiver of the sovereign
immunity of the State or any of its boards, departments, bureaus, or agencies.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 27
Preserving The Science of Caves
JD Skattebo using a trowel to smooth the face of a
finished profile cut so that we can more readily observe and analyze the layers and contents of that
cut. 9/9/07
Dr. John Luczaj and his student, measures and
takes samples to analyze back at UW Greenbay.
The Wisconsin Speleologist
Page 28