Page 122 - AGC-Journal-2016

AGC JOURNAL 2016

Hugh Penney on the left and Lisette de Graauw on the right just beyond the snake in Krem Pawpun

Earthquake Damage The evenings were spent writing up the Endnote
surveys and looking at potential areas
The following two days had two survey to investigate on the map of the area we After all, it was sitting in a corrugated
teams working through until the cave were creating. In the absence of detailed shack drinking sweet Indian tea and
ended in a boulder pile after 1.8 km maps, Thomas had printed large basic eating omelettes that one of the survey
of passage. The boulders had been images from Google and added the roads teams had met Benetto. And hence, we
recently further broken down by the from the tracks in the GPS units we used to had found ourselves following the young
big earthquakes which had shaken the mark cave entrances as we drove around. lad to show him the further beauties of the
region only a month before. The effect Village names from Google were corrected
of earthquakes was a theme we saw and an understanding of the geology from
throughout the region and remained a our professional geologist focused our
nagging doubt whilst underground. search.

Into a Rhythm The Tea Shop

The expedition settled down into its As ever it is by talking to people that the
rhythm of being dropped by the side of best results are provided. Unfortunately,
the road by Marissa and heading into the Krem Shar (Tea Cave) turned out to
jungle to continue surveying a known provide only a fraction of the total cave
cave or beating through the undergrowth discovered. Through the dark night I
looking for new entrances. The flora of the followed a local man who had mimed
jungle was not always friendly and teams that he knew of another cave only 100
came back with madly itching rashes metres from the tea shop. I was shown a
where some of the poisonous plants had slot in the plateau that looked like it led
scraped across their backs as they ducked down into an underground river. Excited,
into gullies and streams. The team medic I returned the following day with a full
dished out the creams to sooth the itching survey team and a ladder to find that,
and we continued on. even by firing the laser survey tools from
the furthest corner, whilst lying flat out we
could only find 25 metres of cave. It was
time to return to the tea shop.

122

*2016 J Layout.indd 122 10/01/2017 15:42