2017 Luminary Series – Dale Pate

For more than 20 years, Dale Pate enjoyed explo- ring and surveying in Sis- tema Purificación, and in many of the other fascina- ting caves of the Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas region of Mexico. Dale Pate became the Cave Specialist for Carlsbad Caverns National Park in 1991. In this role, Pate provided coordination and oversight for all of the survey, research, and inventory activities in the park’s caves. In 2012, Pate was hired full-time as the National Cave and Karst Program Coordinator for the entire National Park Service. His many concomitant activities include preparing inventories of karst resources in the germane park units, making recommendations for important research that should be conducted, and providing education and outreach opportunities at the national level. An expert explorer, Dale Pate is also an advocate of high-quality survey and inventory work in caves. He is skilled with the camera and many American cavers have been enthralled with his captivating photographs of the underground wilderness.