Hello all,
I know a bit about the gate in question and will try to address some of the questions.
There is a cave on State Forest land that until recently was considered an insignificant “nerd hole” with maybe 100’ of tiny passage and a very discouraging entrance. Cavers, following a nice flow of air, pushed through an area of breakdown and onto the ledge of a 30’ not free-climable drop. Returning with rope, cable ladder, and survey gear, the nerd hole opened up to a really nice lower level of paralleling fissure passages. The lowest portion of the cave makes an aquifer connection with some - as of yet- unidentified and uncollected trogs observed in the pools. The almost fully articulated skeleton of a bobcat and other mammals are exposed in the lower level’s clayey floors. The cave was extended to a length of 798 feet and almost makes a connection to the other nearby cave with the “bat gate” on it that was the subject at start of this topic.
Realizing the significance of the find, employees of the Division of Forestry were desirous to protect the resource from vandals, and flashlighters from hurting themselves (a very real possibility at the pit). Wishing to do the “right thing” for their caves they hired the “premier cave gater” in the country to build the first box style gate. Upon discovery of this second cave they contacted the builder of the first gate to construct this one as well. Unavailable to do the work, their protégé was suggested and contacted to do the work. A number of assembly dates were postponed and now the protégé has vanished much like Dan Straley to this thread. The Division of Forestry was going to supply the materials; the Tampa Bay Area Grotto was going to pay for the gater’s fees. I think Dan’s beef was whether there was a need for such a large box style bat gate at a cave that has never had a significant bat population, but that was the suggestion of the “pros”.
A gate is still going to be put on the cave, but it will be a much lower profile, and hopefully bat friendly gate. The gate is going to be built by TBAG using the DOF’s materials. The grotto saves some money and gets brownie points, the DOF gets a downsized gate, and everybody, well most everybody, is happy. There will be those that believe a cave on public land shouldn’t be gated, and I wish that could be true, but the reality is that any cave here in central Fl. will be stripped of anything of interest as soon as its location becomes known. Another topic here on the Conservation Forum illustrates the problem we deal with. Caves 30,000 Years Gone in a Snap.
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=5468 Thank you for your interest tncaver and others. Hope to see some of y’all at Convention.
Tom Turner