CRYSTAL CATHEDRALS: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (6)

January 19, 2016 by Rolling Harbour

CRYSTAL CATHEDRALS: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (6)

The photos you see in this post were all taken by Hitoshi Miho during an amazing 3 days of diving with Brian Kakuk deep in the pine forests of South Abaco. It’s not the first time they have explored together the wonders that lie beneath those hundreds of acres of pines and scrub; I’m sure it won’t be the last.

Abaco's Underground Caves (Hitoshi Miho, with Brian Kakuk)

The most spectacular cave systems are the adjacent Ralph’s and Dan’s Caves. These systems are believed to be linked, and I know Brian has been trying to find where they meet – a difficult and dangerous task carried out underwater many metres below the forest floor, and requiring sophisticated diving equipment and great expertise.

Abaco's Underground Caves (Hitoshi Miho, with Brian Kakuk)

The latest 3-day exploration involved 12 dives and nearly 30 hours underwater in Ralph’s Cave. Narrow passages open out into massive caverns filled with wonderful and complex crystal stalagtites and stalagmites formed over eons. I hope you enjoy examples from the ‘Rooms’ and passages, many with exotic names (Glass Factory, Ninja Passage, Erabor); some more prosaic (Fred’s Room). Then try to imagine that you are actually swimming there.

Abaco's Underground Caves (Hitoshi Miho, with Brian Kakuk)

I shall be posting some more photos in due course showing some of the details of the cave formations – intricate patterns, delicate tracery, irridescent colouring, pencil-thin rods, ‘rock’ folds that look like the finest linen. As always I am immensely grateful to both intrepid divers for use permission. I won’t pretend that these thrilling caves are easily accessible – this is emphatically not an adventure to try unguided with a snorkel and flippers. But as you drive along the highway past miles of forest, it’s worth reflecting that far below you are some of the most magnificent cave systems anywhere in the world – right there, on your very own island…

Abaco's Underground Caves (Hitoshi Miho, with Brian Kakuk)

As it happens, the Delphi Club is very close to these caves, which lie within the boundaries of the newly created ‘South Abaco Blue Holes Conservation Area (see map). This is one of several such conservation areas on Abaco and in the wider Bahamas that are designed to protect the natural resources of the islands from development and exploitation. The second map shows how tantalisingly close Dan’s and Ralph’s caves are… and suggests that further exploration may lead to the missing link.

abaco-caves-map-jpg Abaco Caves Ralph & Dan jpg

Finally, here is a 4-minute video of one small part of the exploration, which gives a very good idea of what is entailed in investigating the narrow passages and huge cathedral-like caverns. Welcome to the Fangon Forest…

Hitoshi Miho, Ralph's Cave, Abaco

PAN’S LABYRINTH, DAN’S CAVE: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND WORLD (5)

July 29, 2015 by Rolling Harbour

PAN’S LABYRINTH, DAN’S CAVE ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND WORLD (5)

June brought news of a wonderful exploration of a near-inaccessible part of the Dan’s Cave complex in South Abaco, deep under the acres of pine forest. The expedition involved Brian Kakuk, Steve Bogaerts, Hp Hartmann, and a ‘Razor’ sidemount camera. As Steve later wrote, “…I had the privilege to film probably the most beautiful caves in the world and to take my camera to places where nobody else has filmed before. Special thanks to Brian Kakuk to make this video happen”.

Brian’s account of his first exploration of Pan’s Labyrinth in 2010 (link below, scroll down the page you reach) is extraordinary. The difficulties faced in negotiating the narrowest of passages while carrying essential equipment makes for tense reading…

The cave systems of South Abaco within the proposed protected area

RELATED MATERIAL

ABACO CAVES POST 1, POST 2, POST 3, POST 4

BAHAMAS CAVES RESEARCH FOUNDATION (Brian’s account of exploring Pan’s Labyrinth)

BAHAMAS CAVES RESEARCH FOUNDATION (Facebook page)

BRIAN KAKUK (Facebook page)

GO SIDEMOUNT (Steve’s amazing website)

STEVE BOGAERTS (Steve’s youtube channel)

Credits: Thanks to Brian for his kind use permission for Abaco caving material; and also to Steve for making his astonishing videos publicly available

Helictites, Fanghorn Forest, Dan's Cave, Abaco

LIMESTONE CAVES ON ABACO: WELL WORTH LOOKING INTO…

July 8, 2015 by Rolling Harbour

LIMESTONE CAVES ON ABACO: WELL WORTH LOOKING INTO…

I have written several posts in the last few months featuring Brian Kakuk’s amazing photos of the underwater caves of Abaco. These caves, mostly beneath Abaco’s pine forests, are fabulous treasures of rock and crystal. A recent post example can be seen HERE. I have also featured some of the famous Blues Holes of Abaco from time to time, for example HERE. So now it’s time to turn attention to ‘land caves’, the dry(ish) limestone holes and caverns that are dotted around Abaco, especially in the South, and bear witness to aeons of geological development through erosion.

The coppice and extensive pine forests are pitted with holes of widely varying sizes. I’m way out of my depth here, geology-wise (polite corrections invited), but this sort of landscape is I believe known as KARST. This term presumably includes Abaco’s ‘dry’ holes, the blue holes and the substantial network of underwater caverns. Small examples can readily be found in easily accessible places such as non-dense coppice. We were very surprised when we pushed our into the coppice bordering the Delphi Club guest drive and took a closer look at a hole. Although the weather was hot and dry at the time, you will see that the hole has some form of micro-climate, with damp walls and interior and wet-climate plants like small ferns and forms of what I take to be moss and algae.

ONE OF MANY LIMESTONE HOLES BESIDE THE DRIVES AT DELPHI

A HOLE NEAR HOLE-IN-THE -WALL – LARGER INSIDE THAN IT LOOKS

THE CAVE-DWELLERS OF ABACO: THE FABULOUS PARROTS

Among the best-known special residents of Abaco are the ground-nesting parrots, gorgeous birds that I have often featured in the past – see the parrot page HERE. Not so long ago, their numbers had reduced to an unsustainable population – fewer than 1000 – that faced extinction. The creation of the National Park covering the pine forests where they breed, coupled with a vigilant and intensive conservation program, have reversed the trend. There is now a sustainable breeding population again, exceeding 3000 birds.

The only other breeding Cuban parrot population in the Bahamas is found on Inagua, where they nest conventionally in trees. There is a very small non-breeding population on New Providence. Abaco’s cave-dwelling subspecies of the cuban parrot is unique. Here’s an insight into how they live, deep in the pine forest, during the summer breeding season, with many thanks to Caroline Stahala, the scientist who spent some 10 years researching and protecting the parrots.

PARROT NEST HOLES: VULNERABLE TO PREDATORS, PROTECTED FROM FOREST FIRES

PARROTS MAY NEST DEEP – OR SHALLOW.

THE BREEDING SEASON: NEST, EGGS, HATCHLINGS, FLEDGELINGS…

HOW BIG DO THE ‘DRY’ HOLES GET?

TBH my personal experience is somewhat limited. I believe there are large, sea-scoured caves along rocky parts of the south coast, but those are rather different from the eroded ground holes discussed here. As so often I rely on Mrs RH – far more intrepid than me – and her exploring skills. The cave shown below is right down at the far south of Abaco, at Hole-in-the-Wall, hidden in the coppice along the ‘Soldier Road’ from the T-junction (we are talking rough tracks here – very – not proper roads) towards the lighthouse.

The rock is far more colourful than you might expect

Credits: Caroline “The Parrot Lady” Stahala; Mrs RH for investigating the last cave and taking the camera with her; RH the rest; Woody Bracey for our great day of birding at Hole-in-the-Wall and his local knowledge of the area…

‘RALPH’S OLD BAT’: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (5)

June 1, 2015 by Rolling Harbour

‘RALPH’S OLD BAT’: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (5)

It’s time to revisit the wonderful caves that lie below the landmass of Abaco. Unknown to many, there are parts of the island where below your feet are huge networks of caves and tunnels packed with beautiful crystal and mystery. I lack any of the necessary qualifications to explore these for myself (some serious equipment including camera, ability to swim properly, and courage) but thanks to diving exert Brian Kakuk, my own deficiencies are irrelevant…

Two caves in particular, Ralph’s and Dan’s, are rich in exotic crystals, stalactites and stalagmites. They can be found close to each other on South Abaco, deep in the pine forest. All images here are from Ralph’s cave, one of several cave / blue hole complexes that are soon to form part of the South Abaco Blue Holes Conservation Area (boundaries shown in fig. 1). Rolling Harbour (where the Delphi Club is situated) is the curved bay to the bottom right corner, under the acronym GEBCO

Apart from the amazing sight of the cave chambers themselves, the details of the crystal formations – often geometric -are remarkable close-to. Here are 3 examples that demonstrate how they range from strong-looking structures formed over millennia to the most delicate forms such as in the third image that appear to be made from fine fabric.

And if you wondering about the title of this post, this is the reason: Brian discovered a bat, believed to be at least 13,000 years old, entombed in crystal – not so much a fossilised bat as a crystallised bat… In other caves (at the Sawmill Sink blue hole for example), fossilised bones have been found, including of a prehistoric species of crocodile that must have lived on the island many thousands of years ago. This is the first crystallised creature I have ever seen… I am checking with Brian whether he has seen anything else quite like it during his explorations.

Credits: all images by Brian Kakuk, with thanks as ever for use permission; all crystal by magic; preserved bat by gradual accretion

DIVERS VIEWS: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (4)

November 28, 2014 by Rolling Harbour

DIVERS VIEWS: ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (4)

The birds have had a very fair share of posts for the month so I am returning to some of Brian Kakuk’s astonishing images from his dives of the underground cave systems of Abaco.

Here, he explores Dan’s Cave, one of several huge caves beneath the pine forests of the west side of South Abaco. This complex cave system is within the proposed South Abaco Blue Holes Conservation Area, one of four designated Protected Areas that I wrote about recently HERE SABHCA.

You get a good idea of the massive size of this column in comparison with the divers

‘Rooms’ are connected by narrow tunnels or passages

Individual caves have memorable names. This is the ‘Fanghorn Forest’ full of Helictites Helictites, Fanghorn Forest, Dan's Cave, Abaco

Stalagmites or stalagtites? ‘Tites’ hang tight to the ceiling so they don’t fall off…

ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (2)

June 4, 2014 by Rolling Harbour

ABACO’S ASTOUNDING UNDERGROUND CAVES (2)

This is the second of a series of photos taken by diver Hitoshi Miho in the underground cave systems of Abaco in conjunction with the Bahamas Caves Research Foundation. This series forms part of a wider project for the blog in due course. With Hitoshi’s kind permission, here are a few more examples of his wonderful images of the silent and mysterious world that lies beneath Abaco. I’ve recently been lightly involved with marine pollution and the environmental effects of ill-considered development. One dreads to imagine the adverse effects on these caves and the blues holes that might result from a massive dredging project of the sort currently being contentiously and litigiously carried out in the pristine waters of Bimini. Thousands of years of crystal development could be lost in a comparative blink of an eye.

To see the first post in this series CLICK HERE