by Caving Guru » Oct 16, 2014 6:18 pm
This is the description of Deaheart Cave (Gepheart Cave) in "The Caves and Karst of Grant County West Virginia (West Virginia Speleological Survey Bulletin #17) by George Dasher":
"Deaheart Cave slopes steeply downward, generally as a walking and stooping-height passage. The floor is clay and muddy in spots. There is evidence of saltpeter mining-trenches, excavations, and a rotting pile of torches. There were also, in May of 1990, about 75 Virginia big-eared bats (an apparent maternity colony) in one 15-foot-high dome. The cave "ends" a few hundred feet past this dome, where the ceiling lowers and the clay fill nearly chokes the passage. There is some old graffiti on the wall: "NSS 46" and "AAS."
The cave is 757 feet long and 238 feet deep. Four leads remain: a kind of fissure in the ceiling near the entrance; a climbing lead, going west, near an 8-foot climb; and a dome near the bat roost with a possible lead at the top. These climbs are not long, just a bit muddy and awkward. The lead near the 18-foot-high dome might require bolting.
The last and best lead is the pinch at the back of the cave. This could be easily dug, moves a bit of air, and had bats flying through it."