Inhalin Bat/Jewel Box Cave

Inhalin Bat Cave is known and printed up. It is not a very large cave but it does blow air. Jerell Killian and Mark Moore found a spot blowing like mad not too far away from Inhalin Bat and they began a concentrated dig. Many hours of labor opened up a spectatularly decorated room. But that was all, except for the blowing air at one side of the room. So...more digging.

A shaft was dug down about 14 feet through rubble, rock, and breakdown. A miserable little crawl was discovered. A 250 foot miserable crawl no less. But the crawl eventually, and with some help, opened up into a large breakdown room at the back of Inhalin Bat Cave.

So we planned a survey and through trip. The Saturdays of July 31and August 7th saw Jerell Killian and Rosie Hawkins, Steve and Rosemarie MacDonell, Greg King, and myself converging at Inhalin Bat Cave to survey a through trip from the entrance of Inhalin Bat to the entrance of the recently discovered Jewel Box Cave. We spent about 2 hours making a ladder to assist in the climb-down into Inhaling Bat. The ladder was not designed to last and may not survive the winter. We began our survey from a point just outside the entrance and then we all descended into the cave. The entrance room is a 40' wide breakdown room with a low (approx 4') ceiling. The main passage continues through loose rocks to a pit and a climb-up. The climb-up is steep, muddy, and requires a hand line. There is a very large breakdown room at the top of the climb-up that has some decorations. The estimated height of the breakdown room is 40 feet. There is a lot of slimy, sticky mud coating the surface of almost everything in this room. We took measurements across this room and took a few photographs and called it a day. The following Saturday we made our way back to the breakdown room and crossed it to the connection that leads to the 256 foot crawl-way into Jewel Box. The squeeze into the connection is pretty tight. We had to remove our packs and I had to remove my camera/canteen belt to push through. We took survey measurements throughout this area which complicated things considerably. I was point man so I was leading the crawl, dragging along my pack, a lit carbide lamp for marking survey points, and the measurement tape. Plus I was trying to get photos of the survey. Whew!

We pushed through the connection and then we entered the crawl into Jewel Box. The crawl has a nice, smooth limestone ceiling (except for the occasional helectite and stalagtite clusters). The height varies from about 15 inches to about 30 inches throughout and the floor varies between hard packed clay and wet, gooey mud with standing water in it. We did get some good, long survey shots in there though, one over 70' long. We also got considerably slimed in the mud. The mud was so bad that we had to rub it off of the measuring tape just to see the numbers for each measurement. We reached the end of the crawl-way and the beginning of the climb-up into Jewel Box after a little over 4 hours in the cave. Jerell could barely keep us on task for the last 4 survey points through Jewel Box. We were tired, muddy, and gawking at the decorations. But we did complete the survey for a total of 821 feet from entrance to entrance. Thanks go to Jerell Killian for leading by example. This is the way to do it. Find it, dig it, and map it. As the saying goes-Don't scoop what you can't map.

The group gathered around the entrance to Inhalin Bat Cave. Jerell is standing next to the ladder we spent all morning building out of a tree and some scrap wood laying around.

From Left: Jerell Killian, Rosie Hawkins, Steve MacDonnell, Greg King, Rosemarie MacDonnell.

Greg taking a survey measurement where the main passage leaves the entrance room of Inhalin Bat.

A pretty cool photo of Jerell and Steve. Steve is taking a tape measurement.

A very nice formation in the breakdown room of Inhalin Bat.

Rosemarie in the breakdown room providing a spot for a survey reading.

Some formations atop the breakdown.

More formations in the breakdown room.

Rosemarie handing her pack down through the tight spot in the connection. That's Rosie Hawkins already in the hole..

That's me about to squirm through the little squeeze. "Stupid is as stupid does..."

I'm inside the hole looking back out at Greg. He is handing his pack down to me.

This photo provides a sense of perspective. Kinda tight, huh?

Rosemarie smiling for the camera as I drag her measuring tape through the mud.

Rosemarie emerges into passage large enough to sit on your knees bent over...and this felt big to us at the time! Notice the carbide lamp in the foreground.

This photo is taken looking straight down the shaft that Jerell, Steve, and Mark dug out to connect with the crawlway into Inhalin Bat Cave. Rosemarie MacDonnell emerges from the crawl and begins her ascent.

Jerell Killian among the decorations inside the Jewel Box Entrance to Inhalin Bat Cave.

Rosie Hawkins passing through Jewel Box.

Some of the profuse decorations in Jewel Box.

The ceiling in Jewel Box.

Some curved stalactites. Presumably the blowing air passing by curved the formations.

Steve MacDonnell and his nuclear helmet light. He is pointing out a natural split in the formation. Notice that Steve's light is significantly brighter than the camera's flash...

Jerell checking out a lead in Inhalin Bat/Jewel Box. All that air's gotta come from somewhere.

Jerell down in the hole.

Jay negotiating some rope for a hand-line.

Jay at the bottom of a pit collecting rope to see if there is enough to check out the next lead...