Weaver\Lady Cave

[Cavingbrat]

Hey there everyone!! I was hoping that anyone that has any information (especially a survey) on Weaver and\or Lady cave please PM. I have been caving for a couple of years now and a NSS\SCCI member. These caves are only 37 miles from my house, so they are great to go muck about in when I don't feel like driving a couple of hours. My only problem is I know that I am missing a passage because I can only find about several hundred feet of main passage but I know these caves are a couple\few miles long. Today I became aware of another interesting (yet very happy) issue of LOTS of bats which have just shown up in the cave system in the last couple of weeks. Before now, I have only seen a grand total of 2 in the last 4 months. Please excuse my ignorance on this, bat conservation is very important to me but I am afraid that I am just not very knowledgable (yet). I am guessing that these guys are about to ?hibernate? which would explain their sudden appearance. This is kindof a local hangout cave so I am thrilled to see the bats appear but at the same time worry. Of course, as soon as we realized that there was a huge population that showed up, we backed out quickly not wanting to disturb them but I doubt seriously the locals will do the same. The first time I went into the cave, I noticed that there was 4 dead bats that had been spray painted!!!! I would hate to see that happen again.....Any suggestions or information would be greatly appreciated.

[tncaver]

Cavingbrat,
You did not say where you live so how can anyone tell you
more about those caves? We don't know what state and area you
are referring to.
That is awful about those poor bats. I suggest you contact a local
grotto in your area to inform them about the situation with the bats.
Bats are very helpful animals that eat lots of mosquitoes. Mosquitoes
that can cause West Nile Virus and other deadly diseases.
Bats are also kind of cute like furry flying mice. Many are also
endangered and protected by Federal law. The spray painters could
be in serious trouble if caught harming those defenseless little bats.
Please give more information and I suggest you also contact the
closest grotto in your area. You can find the nearest grotto on the
NSS website by going to the ORGANIZATIONS link and click on it.
Then you can click on the state you are in and find a grotto near you.
I'm sure they will be very interested in what you have to say about
those bats and if you visit their grotto and get to know them you will
likely get lots of cave information for your area. Heck, you might
even provide them with some new info too.

[mgmills]

Cavingbrat,
You did not say where you live so how can anyone tell you
more about those caves? We don't know what state and area you
are referring to.

They are Alabama caves in the vicinity of Anniston AL. I visited both in the mid-90's

Weaver has a large almost roadside entrance. Lady cave at the time was not as easily accessible but I don't know how much the area has "built up" in the years since my visit. The two caves are actually connected by a belly crawl passage that I remember as being around 100 feet long. It was too tight for a couple of members of our group to fit through and they had to exit Weaver and walk over ground to meet us in Lady cave.

Both caves had seen their share of abuse and are well know to the locals. I remember at the time there was a girl caving with Birmingham grotto who was in the army stationed at Anniston. She could not go on the trip to Weaver and Lady Caves because the army had declared them "off limits" due to worry about "encounters with the wrong kind of people" in the cave.

Gadsden Grotto would be the closest grotto to that area.

Since I now live in Tennessee I'm not close enough to know the current status of the caves.

[tncaver]

MMills wrote:
Weaver and Lady Caves because the army had declared them "off limits" due to worry about "encounters with the wrong kind of people" in the cave.

Geeze, what kind of people does the army think goes into caves? Strange
to say the least. I bet the army just wanted to make sure their soldiers
didn't get hurt in a cave so that they would be available to pull that trigger
in Iraq or elsewhere. I was in the military and I know how "different"
the military can be. They are very protective of their recruits and
sometimes to the point of being obnoxious. But at least they do care
about their soldiers well being.

[mgmills]

MMills wrote:
Weaver and Lady Caves because the army had declared them "off limits" due to worry about "encounters with the wrong kind of people" in the cave.

Geeze, what kind of people does the army think goes into caves? Strange
to say the least. I bet the army just wanted to make sure their soldiers
didn't get hurt in a cave so that they would be available to pull that trigger
in Iraq or elsewhere. I was in the military and I know how "different"
the military can be. They are very protective of their recruits and
sometimes to the point of being obnoxious. But at least they do care
about their soldiers well being.

The army didn't care if she went caving . . . she went on lots of trips. Just Weaver and Lady Caves were forbidden. Apparently there had been "problems" of some sort at the cave in the past.

I recall the caves as being fairly easy with nothing technically difficult in either cave.

[Cavingbrat]

I apologize for not being more specific for the location. Thank you mgmills for helping me out. These caves do have a very bad reputation for wild teens and crackheads. Although, it seems to me that the activity in the caves have calmed down. The only people I have ever run into down there was a local guy that was riding his bike and a family of 5. Its not nearer as trashed as I would suspect either being so close to the city limits like Whiteriver. I have already found the crawl that you are referring to mgmills, it is abit tight....you don't by any chance have a map do you

Thank you for all your information,
Kristine

[mgmills]

I have already found the crawl that you are referring to mgmills, it is abit tight....you don't by any chance have a map do you

Thank you for all your information,
Kristine

I have one somewhere . . . . recently moved and not all caving stuff is unpacked. If I can find it I will PM you.

[Solo]

I was in this cave during 1991. I entered after parking near a small creek which flowed from the cave entrance, entered the cave and proceeded through until I reached a rockfall which had left an opening to the surface, where I climbed out at the top of a hill over the point at which I had entered. I circled around a bit and found another entrance in a sunken area which led into a large room with a low ceiling. At the end of this room I found an opening through which I was able to climb back down into the original passage I had entered and exit. I then went back up the hill and found the point at which the stream flowing through the cave went underground. At the time the stream was flooded . I then e-entered the cave at the large room and went the opposite way further back into the cave, This eventually led me lower until I was in a narrow gully carved into the cave floor by water. I could hear running water so I followed this gully to ward the sound and eventually wound up crawling over a mud bar with very low ceiling clearance until the sound of rushing water, which I believe was at the point where the stream entered the cave which I had found earlier, seemed very close but was unable to continue because I ran out of space because of the mud buildup. I backtracked along the gully the way I had come and noted that the gully continued on downward after the point which I had entered it. I was never able to continue my exploration of this part of the cave because I left the area soon afterward. I also remember another roof opening which had no rockfall under it but did have a drop of about 15-20 feet. I think there was a grate over this opening. When talking to a local later I was told that a teen couple had jumped through that hole some years before as a suicide pact because their parents wouldn't allow them to marry. The cave was very clean when I was in it and what little mud I got on me I was easily washed off in the stream. I have seen pictures of the cave posted on the internet showing trash and graffiti but I recall none being there at the time. I wish I had taken pictures, because I really enjoyed the experience! I also saw some mention on the internet of the area being turned into a park, which I hope happens and that adventurous people are allowed to be guided through the cave as an experience in caving.