Girl Scouts of Kentucky's Wilderness Road Council
CAVER
Cadette and Senior Caving Interest Project Patch
Complete Eight Requirements, including the four starred.
Do activities 1, 2, and 3, before you do activity 4.
Take a look at the other Awards from Our Council
Caving Try-It
Caving Badge
Caving Interest Project
Along the Wilderness Road Try-It
Along the Wilderness Road Badge
Along the Wilderness Road Interest Project
Giddy Up and Go Try-It
*I. Clothing and Equipment (Complete all three parts.)
- The average temperature in caves in our area is around 55 degrees Fahrenheit.
With this in mind, make a list of appropriate clothing needed for comfort and safety. Remember that different levels of caves may necessitate crawling or wading through water.
- Learn about at least five types of light sources and how many of them you must carry with you. Know which light sources are permissible to use as per GSUSA. Explain why a helmet-mounted light is the best source to use as your primary source. Demonstrate that you know how to use and maintain your light sources. Know how to properly dispose of your spent light source equipment.
- Learn about what other items you must pack into the cave with you, how you will carry them, and how you will manage them in the cave.
*2. Cave Formations and Cave Conservation
Find out what types of caves are in your area and how they were formed. Know what a "Speleothem" is and be able to recognize at least five examples such as stalagmites, stalactites, soda straws, gypsum flowers, rimstone dams, flowstone, helectite, etc. Choose one formation and explain how it formed and from what materials it was formed. Practice good cave conservation manners such as not defacing walls in any way and not touching cave formations. Be able to explain why these are good practices.
*3. Cave Safety (Complete all four parts.)
A. Discuss the reasoning behind these cave safety rules:1. Never cave alone.2. Tell someone where you are going and when you think that you will be back.3. Always carry three forms of light.4. Conserve energy at all times.B. Keeping in mind that prevention is the best cure, what should you know to prepare yourself for a caving experience? Find out the basic first aid required for treating hypothermia and falls. Discuss what action you could take in the event that you or a fellow caver becomes scared, stuck, or lost in a cave.C. The minimum and maximum number of people recommended for a caving group will differ according to the cave. Discuss what will determine the size of the group.
D. Find out what organizations are available for cave emergencies and cave rescues. What careers are connected with cave rescue?
*4. Wild Caving (Do both parts.)
A. Know how to correctly and safely move through a cave. Explain the "three points of contact" rule. Demonstrate that you can comfortably move in the following ways: walking, bear-walking, crawling, belly-crawling, squeezing, duck-walking, crouching, shimmying, traversing, and scrambling. Show that you can balance yourself in both wet and dry environments.
B. Apply the skills that you have learned by participating in a wild cave trip of at least one hour or 1 mile duration with an established, experienced caving group. Make sure that you obtain the proper permissions (parents and landowners) before you leave.
5. Cave conservation is a big issue for today's cavers. Besides the basic conservation practices that you have already learned, what other things can be done to help preserve the fragile cave environment? Learn about things that can be done to restore caves to a "semi-original" state and participate in a cave clean-up project.
6. Learn how to read a cave map. Be able to explain the symbols. Learn about how a cave is surveyed to make a map.
OR
Go with a group of experienced caverns and help them survey and map a cave.
7. Read about and report on a famous cave or caver. If you choose a cave, be able to tell how this cave is similar to or different from caves in your area.
8. Visit a commercial cave and take one of its guided tours. Listen to your guide to learn about the significance of this cave. Find out why this cave became commercial and why it is better for the cave to remain commercial. Make mental notes on how this type of cave tour differs from a wild cave tour. What types of people can go on this kind of tour that might not be able to go on a wild cave tour? Find out if there are any tours available for the physically disadvantaged.
9. Learn about the following caving or caving related organizations: National Speleological Society (along with local grottos), American Cave Conservation Association, Bat Conservation International. Find out if there are any chapters near you. Attend one meeting of one of these groups.
10. Study bats. Learn what types of bats are found in our area and which ones are endangered. Know what measures are being taken to preserve bats in our area. Understand how a bat lives, sleeps, eats, breeds, and flies. Be able to explain why most bat myths are false. Help educate people about bats by creating and distributing a flyer, talking to your troop, performing a play or puppet show for younger girls, or some idea of your own.
11. Learn about the other types of animals found in caves (besides bats) and any plants that live there. Know what parts of the cave in which different species live. Choose one to study and make a poster, diorama, or other educational item about it. Share this item with others.
12. Many caves have an interesting history that involves people. Sometimes the only way a cave's history is known about is through archeology. Find out about cave archeology by talking to a person who has worked on a cave excavation or visit a cave excavation site with a knowledgeable person.
13. Many careers can be associated with caves. Some of these include wildlife biologists, geologists, hydrologists, park rangers, tour guides, naturalists, recreation managers, and historians. Interview someone whose job is associated with caves. Ask if he/she needed higher education, what his/her major field of study was and how he/she learned to apply it to the cave environment.
14. Find out what karst is and where there are karst regions in Kentucky. Find out about how different above ground activities directly affects both caves and our water systems.
15. Math and science play an important role in modern caving. Read about different scientific devices that are currently used in cave study. Some examples are cave radios, devices used to electronically measure depth, devices for bat echolocation, and instruments to find fault lines and other geologic features.
16. Specialized forms of caving provide a variation on the caving experience. Vertical caving, cave diving, and some ice caving require specialized training and unique abilities. Learn about a specialized form of caving and what kinds of equipment are required. If you choose vertical caving, you may be able to take a training course and try a beginners cave under BOTH an experienced vertical caver and a Girl Scout adult who fully knows Safety-Wise rules for caving and rappelling/rock climbing. (Do not attempt any specialized caving-even with experienced cavers- without the approval of the Girl Scout Council.)
17. Many caving events are held in our state each year. Find out about such events as the "Crawlathon" and "Speleofest" and make arrangements to attend one.
or
Using your caving knowledge and experience, put on a caving event for younger girls. Be sure and consult Safety-wise. Do not lead any tours by yourself. Make sure that you have qualified, experienced cavers as trip guides. Consider the proper number of adult to girl ratio for the age level you choose. Remember to prepare for emergencies and how to deal with someone who gets in a cave and becomes frightened or upset. Also you may consider using the requirements for "Our Own Council's" Caving Try-It and Badge.
