Land and caves and bats oh my!...

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Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby ESNR » Feb 14, 2016 4:03 am

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Just joined this forum. Guess my #1 reason to join at this point is to lurk and learn. (Lurk is good when one's a rookie, methinks... or, better yet, and aspiring rookie... :big grin: )

#2 reason: I own land (Randolph County, WV,) and there are at least two caves there, one of them being Gooseberry Cave, the other one I believe goes by the name of Blue Monday Cave (but I could be wrong) and I am looking forward to collect as much information as possible on those caves (for starters, I need to locate them! Anyone, please feel free to post or PM me if you have any info, coordinates, etc. --- and many thanks in advance.)

Gooseberry Cave is the most important one, and a know hibernacula for the endangered Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis,) and so I have been searching the internet for info for a while, but not much shows up...

I have found very few references to Gooseberry Cave:

- http://www.caverbob.com/state.htm

- http://www.cavediggers.com/ has a link to a short video on Youtube, but no other information, and my attempts to contact the person who posted the video have not been successful so far.



I hope to be able to locate those caves, maybe find others, survey them, etc.

I have also emailed WVACS to try to find out how WVACS decides on what caves to study/survey, etc.

Anyway, sorry if this feels disjointed, but as said, I am a rookie and this is the start of a journey.

That's all for now!
ESNR
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Re: Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby tncaver » Feb 14, 2016 11:52 am

ESNR, congratulations owning caves in the great caving state of West Virginia. I hope you will receive replies to your inquiries soon.
You did not say what town you are close to so here is a list of grottoes in WV. There are a lot. If you contact one nearby, they can probably help you out a LOT. Good luck with caving. I hope you will contact the local grotto. They can be very supportive with training,
knowledge and physical help surveying and other karst related projects. You are truly blessed to own that property.
John Hutchison

Germany Valley Grotto
942 Callen Lane
Upper Tract, WV, 26866-9714
Publication: No Publication
More Info

Greater Randolph (GROSS)
960 Broad Run
Sinks Grove, WV, 24976
Publication: WV Caver
More Info

Greenbrier Grotto
7552 Carroll Hill Road
Frankford, WV, 24938
Publication: WV Caver
More Info

Monongahela Grotto
624 Astor Ave.
Morgantown, WV, 26501
Publication: The West Virginia Caver
More Info

Monroe County Cavers
705 Hedrick Road
Sinks Grove, WV, 24976
Publication: Monroe County Mudslide
More Info

Mountain State Grotto
RT2 Box457
Elkins, WV, 26241
More Info

Parkersburg Area Grotto
101 Snodgrass Lane
Williamstown, WV, 26187
Publication: Subterranean Flyer
More Info

TRA Grotto
415 Persimmon Pear Ln
Harpers Ferry, WV, 25425
More Info

Tri-State Grotto
464 Huckleberry Dr
Gerrardstown, WV, 25420-4322
Publication: Dead Dog Dispatch
More Info

West Virginia Univ. Student Grotto
P.O. Box 6044
Morgantown, WV, 26506-6044
Publication: The West Virginia Caver
More Info
tncaver
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Re: Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby ohiocaver » Feb 14, 2016 4:57 pm

Gooseberry is a well documented cave in the Union Limestone on Mill Ridge. It has been surveyed (over a mile of passage). There also is a nearby Gooseberry Ridge Cave that is much smaller. Look at West Virginia Speleological Survey Bulletin #13.
Blue Monday is a much smaller cave - 800 feet of wet crawls.
If you want to PM me, I can send you a scan of the data.
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ohiocaver
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Re: Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby ESNR » Feb 15, 2016 1:11 am

tncaver, thanks for the input! I am in the Mill Creek (that's where the property/Gooseberry Cave is) Elkins area. I did find the contacts of the Mountain State Grotto, in Elkins, yesterday after joining and posting here, and emailed. Got a prompt reply! I will be showing up for one of the upcoming meetings.

Yeah I love the fact I have those caves on my property... look forward to find them and go explore... with company. I am betting caving is probably a bit like scuba-diving: you are always safer in good company!

And the MSG did say first thing "We welcome new members!"

:bananabat:

John
ESNR
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Re: Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby ESNR » Feb 15, 2016 1:13 am

Thanks ohiocaver! I will PM you. Much appreciated!
John
ESNR
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Joined: Feb 14, 2016 3:15 am
  

Re: Land and caves and bats oh my!...

Postby ohiocaver » Feb 15, 2016 10:41 am

I will be down in your area in early April. We (several members of the Cleveland Grotto) woul'd be happy to help you check out all three of your caves...and even see if there are any more.
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ohiocaver
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Name: curt harler
NSS #: 22735RCLFe
Primary Grotto Affiliation: Cleveland Grotto MAKC
  


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