2009 Big Island Survey
On Tuesday Feb. 17 while hiking back to the subdivision we passed yet another puka. This one was very near the road and filled with remnants of a long gone marijuana growing operation. Don Coons remarkably had not noticed this particular opening before. Others had assumed it was already been investigated...not so....
The survey commenced, and sure enough, passage ran down the mountain.
An interesting splatter...
A sequence of photos showing what was a floating slab of semi-molten lava which was lifted to the ceiling. Stalactites where impailed on the soft rock and broken off. The slab receded with the lava flow and left peices sitting loose like so many chess pieces!
Pieces were carefully replaced after this photo...
A display of forces existing during the flow which formed the tube.
Day two of survey at Pothole cave started with a check of leads going mauka...(up the mountain) which did not quite admit passage.
More cave went makai (down the mountain towards the sea)
More pukas followed...
And more very nice passage.
Chris checks a high lead...
Over a quarter mile of cave ended up existing below the original pot growers puka.
Beautiful mineral deposits....
The lowest puka in the cave is very photogenic....
We lingered here for several minutes at the end of our second day of survey. A sort third day was required to finish this cave, with some passage beyond the point where Emily is photographed below. The mapping of this cave is complete, but another previously undocumented cave was nearby... Double Bridge Cave became the newest object in the seemingly endless survey of an ever expanding system.
