Thursday, April 20, 2017

Boar Hole, WV

Nick Jarvis in the large junction room by the culvert entrance, April 2015.

Note: A major flood in July 2016 seriously changed the nature of this cave, especially Boaring Boulveard which had a couple feet of mud in it as of August 2016.

           Boar Hole was every cavers' dream: big virgin cave, and lots of it.  Using radio location a culvert was sunk into one of the largest areas of the cave providing easy access.  A dig-enlarged passage later connected with the nearby Portal, thus making the Boar Hole-Portal (Boartal) System.

          From the culvert entrance an awkward and muddy downclimb leads to pleseant walking passage which ends abruptly with a large junction room.  Several domes are in the ceiling and one often has water in it.  In the spring this waterfall, over 100ft, can be heard from the culvert.  Another dome has a six rebelay rope series up it - please dont try it.

Will Boekel in the large junction room as seen from the culvert entrance passage - January 2016.
           From the culvert passage, turning right in the junction leads to more cave, left leads to Baring Boulevard.  The Boulevard is several hundred feet long and floored in cobbles.  The ceiling is flat and the meandering borehole maintains a profile of 30ft wide and 10ft tall.

Andrew Mengele in Boaring Boulevard, April 2015.
          At the end of Boaring Boulevard are some gypsum flowers, and some amazing anastomoses.  Further, a final large junction at the stream leads into upper large borehole trunk.  There are several miles of cave I have not been through.

Mara Reed with gypsum flowers and anastomoses in Boaring Boulevard, January 2016.
Myself (close) and Emily Dillon (far) at the junction at the end of Boaring Boulevard,
more large cave continues behind her.  April 2015.

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