2014:	75-years of DC-area organized caving.
	Monthly meetings continue to be on the 2nd Thursday.

  Some recent pics are on our Facebook group. Click on the 'f'.
  Others are listed here: Event Photos
  Recent (Dec.2013) video: Battle For Bats: Surviving White Nose
  Mar 15, 2014: NSS BOG voted to add the New River Cave Preserve

Caving Calendar

To prevent web robots from harvesting contact info, some of the below links may prompt for a username and password.   If so, enter username: calend & password: gocave.

Area-wide Calendar -- lists scheduled caving activities (meetings, trips, and other events) in the DC and Baltimore area.   Some events may also have a PDF flyer.

Some Upcoming Highlights:

July 31 (Thu), 6:15p: EC meeting, at Scott Zagrodny's place, in DC.

Aug 14 (Thu): Informal meeting at Hard Times Cafe in Bethesda, MD. Arrive around 6:15p to allow time to order, eat, and socialize, before the main focus of the 7:30p meeting.   See: details & directions.

Aug 16 (Sat): Cave trip into Culverson Creek, Greenbrier Co., WV. Limited to 12 participants. Contact: Scott Zagrodny. Details forthcoming.

Aug 25 (Mon), 8:00p: PSC meeting, at the Walter Reed Community Center in Arlington.   See Map/Directions.   See the PSC Website.  

Aug 28 - Sep 1: OTR (Old-Timers' Reunion), Dailey, WV (10mi. S. of Elkins).   For this year's theme and activities details, also see the 3rd 2014 News Letter.

Oct 10 - 12:   Fall MAR field Meet, at Rupert Cave Preserve, McVeytown, PA (Mifflin County).   Links to details and registration are HERE.

July 13 - 17, 2015:   NSS   2015 Convention in Waynesville, Pulaski Co., MO.
  Also on Twitter at: #NSS2015

July, 2016:   NSS   2016 Convention in Ely, NV.   ( NSS 75th Anniversary )

Event Photos

• Jan 25, 2014 Donaldson Cave trip [Fb], posted by Keely Owens (on Facebook)
• Jan 11, 2014 Jones Quarry Cave trip, posted by Eric Berge
• Nov 30, 2013 "P"-Caves Trip, posted by Eric Berge
• Nov 2, 2013 PSC wkend, posted by Eric Berge
• Sept 28, 2013 Eric Porters cave trip, posted by Eric Berge
• Sept 27, 2013 Sinnett-Thorn Mtn., posted by Eric Berge
• July 30-31, 2011 Paxton & Porter Caves, by Doug Lake
• June 10-12, 2011 SERA   Pictures and Trip Report, by Adam Lake
• May 15, 2011 Whiting's Neck group photo, by Keely Owens
• Apr 30, 2011 Poor Farm Cave (VAR weekend) by Doug Lake
• Mar 12, 2011 Paxton's Cave by John Armstrong
• Feb 12, 2011 Paxton's Cave by Doug Lake
• Dec 4, 2010 DC Grotto Banquet by Brian Freyling
• Nov 7, 2010 Great Falls vertical practice by Brian Freyling
• Jul 24, 2010 North Fork Mountain vertical trip by John Armstrong

Bat Die-off Crisis

Something is causing the death of huge numbers of bats, seemingly associated with White Nose Syndrome, starting in the Northeast, and having spread into PA, WV, and VA.   With the possibility of human cave visitation assisting this spread, precautions include cave closures (check the VAR Closed Cave List prior to any trip), and de-contamination of all cave gear before and after visiting any open cave.  For lots more information, visit any of these links:

• Bob Hoke's: Primary Sources Time-line
• NSS: WNS-Liaison | NSS Policy: 2010 | 2009 (PDF)
• Recent (Dec.2013) video: Battle For Bats: Surviving White Nose
• WhiteNoseSyndrome.org - North America's response to the devastating bat disease, with (as of June 25, 2012) decontamination procedures: HERE.

• USGS: Bat-opsy Ctr. | Ft.Collins Sci.Ctr. (good overview)
• WV-DNR: 2/23/09 WNS Confirmation
• VA-DCR: Karst & Bats | VA Cave Board | VA-DGIF
• IN-DNR: Bat Disease | Closing IN Caves (5/1/09 News Release)
• Bat Conservation & Management, Inc.: WNS-Page
• Northeast Cave Conservancy: Main-Page

Trout Rock Bat Counts

Click here to see the results of the annual bat counts in Trout, Hamilton, and New Trout caves in Pendleton County, W.V.

T-shirts: Although the 31-Jan-2010 deadline for ordering has passed, info about the 70-years of DC-area organized caving commemorative T-shirt is still Here.