Ted the Caver- Have you heard?

Just read this whole thread after reading the story. I must say it was one of the most riveting piece of fiction I've ever read. It was so incredibly believable and at the same time had me on the age of my seat sending chills up and down my body throughout the entire read. It was dissapointing to see it's just a story, but wow, never read antying like that before that had me feeling that way and like another poster said, it had the cliffhanger of all cliffhangers.

Why does everyone keep saying he didn't finish the story? WTF? It's finished. It is 100% finished. It's ends that way on purpose. Think of the events happening in the whole story. Now think of the end. They go back into the cave. A mysterious force seemed to keep driving them back and in the end it led them to their death. The story can't end because it's played off as a journal. A dead man can't write. And it would be lame if all the sudden the them of a journal ended and said they were never seen again. If they keep the journal theme it either doesn't end due to death, or it ends super cheesy and lame.

reply to post by ApathyIsAnEpidemic


This was really fun to come across this discussion of that cave story - especially since I found myself mentioned in it - I'm Bud, the owner of a bed and breakfast mentioned. Unfortunately, I was not the author nor do I know who was the author. I have been in Freeway Cave aka Interstate Cave several times and the description does sound very much like that cave. The dog sounds like a good friend's dog that does go caving. I too shuddered and shivered when I read the story some years ago. Whoever wrote it did a great job.

I had forgotten about this story when I stumbled over it today. I loved this story back when I first found it several years ago on the internet. If you have never read it check it out. It is a really cool story.

the thing that makes me think this story is real is the picture of the dog - it looks genuinely freaked! i noticed that right off the bat when i saw that picture. the thing i noticed about the story first-hand though was that it's written in past-tense, not present-tense as you would for a journal. oh wait, perhaps he wrote it right after the excavations and decided to write it that way. just meandering. helluva good story. scared the # out of me at some points. my instincts tell me to believe it.

i'm seeing people on another forum "confirming" (somehow) that it is a creative writing exercise... but why would he have mediocre grammar and not a fluent grasp of sentence structure... he had more of a fluent grasp of caving equipment.

k i found it

web.archive.org...

reply to post by idiocyinbubbles



Thanks for posting! It seems that someone took the original short story as posted above and modified it to the form which is basically going around as an urban legend on the web on various sites like Ted's caving page.

Strangely, I found the modified version more compelling than the original short story written by Thomas Lera and published in 1987 (from what I gathered from google). The original short story is titled:
THE FEAR OF DARKNES

Sorry to dig up this old thread, but it was linked in a current thread. Found this blog from 2004 when the actual author steps in to defend allegations of plagiarism.

He claims the dig took place, but all the spooky stuff was fabricated ...

grahamjw.wordpress.com...

Funny you should bump this. I found ATS by searching for the authenticity of Ted the Caver and ran into this thread on google. Didn't sign up til about a year later but I've been here every day since then. Thanks for the memories

Read..... TEDS CAVE THE FINAL STORY, you will find it if you google search, it's a continuation after they came out and stayed at home for a fiew months. It might be something like Ted's Cave, the final story, blog. I'v read it several months ago, and it has the location and the fact fo what the sounds inside were.

I havent seen this answered for sure. So here goes. Here is a link to the real Ted with some facts and evidence to back up it is his story. I havent got through the whole response but it is there for all to read. His reply starts shortly down the page. Thanks for this post as i havent seen this in awhile.

grahamjw.wordpress.com...

Interesting story but time for [HOAX] tags...

Aaaahahaha and now the rest of the story....mber 6, 2010
Ted's Mystery Cave final story
Well I guess enough time has passed since back when I brought this story to you, it's time for some closure. After three months of barely going out in public, I began to feel the draw of the cave pulling me back. I was thinking about the video camera that I had left when I had the incident with my skull and the roof of the passage, I had to get the video camera and see what if anything was on it. I remember, or at least think, that it was running when I hit my head, but remembering only seeing stars at the time, I might have automatically shut if off and set it down or likely dropped it on the floor. Weather it was on, I really don't remember, I was more freaked by my bloodied head, the sounds around me, and the ones I had heard from the place that the round bolder lay. And the smell, the smell seemed to come from nowhere, and I dont actually remember if it was during that event or only when I was returning through floyds tounb, as I was feeling sick and panic by the smell. Still I knew the video camera was still there and if anything was on it, I'd first have to get it. These three months, more like four months had had an affect on more than my mind, I still wanted the lights on when I was alone, and I had lost about fifteen pounds as well. I haven't seen Joe much since we all met back around May, he seems to still need closure, the same as B and I.
From May through to Late October B and I had akwardly avoided takling about the cave. I will try to tell it now as it unfolded. I was wondering about something almost supernatural,looking for creatures or something to account for the noises and the incident with the rope at the enterance. My title barely does it justice. During this time, B did something strange. It seemed that overnight he had almost completly changed his wardrobe, as though he were hiding, at least that was the vibe. He talked quieter, but less than ever. He was different like being in a fever, going in and out somehow. I don't think I could ever really explain it, that.. and what I was feeling. I had been unnerved by this too. By now we were again being overcome with curiosity. I had to go back, there's alot of fear inside a tunnel the size of floyds tomb. Staying cool is difficult, it's practiced. We'v decided not to bring the dog this time.
It's now November 11 2001 and the cold has me doing little. I have been to the library in town though, and on a hunch or mabe just to prove to myself that I wasn't crazy or loosing it, I was looking for anything, legends, Indian stories, petrogliphs, unusual geographic disturbanced, anything that could answer the questions, explain the cave, the mark on the overhang and possably why I was feeling so lost. It's been some months since May and my hearing things, shadows have gone, and I'm able to sleep now, and I'v been able to finally quit the medication.

B and I met breifly today and something completly strange happened again. It seems we spent the first bit together, quiet, sort of waiting for the other to start the conversation. I'm feeling distant from B, but in the same sense, I feel like we are on the same mental plane and words are unnessessary. It was B that started, by telling me he thought we ALL had to go back back in the cave. That meant B, Joe and I, and I hadn't seen much of Joe. He seemed to go to great lengths to avoid me, it was just as I got a call from my Sister, that she said she had seen Joe, he had stopped by, and had told her he wanted to see me again and it needed to be soon. She expressed concern that I was possably going to meet up with Joe again, since there were times that I would only let her come over while I was recovering from the last exploration, she feared Joe might cause a relapse of my depression and paranoia, and start every thing up again.

I called the only number I had for Joe and it had been disconected, all I got was a operator number 30-something. I only knew of one way to get ahold of him. B had known Joe since junior high school but had not been close friends, and didn't really hang out togather, still he had done some things once or twice with Joe and his close friends the Twins. If I could get ahold of the twins, or B, I might have a source. I called B and asked if he knew where either of the twins were, and he said he had seen Donny, one of the two, Donny and Derik, and that Donny was working at the real estate office surveying lots for one of the land speculators. Donny wasn't hard to get ahold of as it turned out, and while he really didn't remember me, B, was a vague memory..... untill I brought up caving. Danny seemed agitated or nervious at the mention, and began to tell me about the changes he had seen in Joe, and that he had known later about Joes night epesodes. He told me that while it had been a long time, Joe had made progress returning to normal and was sometimes even joking Donny, about feeling like a sissie over the whole thing.

I was able to find out where Joe was. It seems he had a relative living in Anchorage Alaska and he had been there July through mid September. After that he had went Las Vegas for a month and was working doing construction with a guy he had worked with breifly in Anchorage. He was actually harder to get ahold of than I expected, but I found him working in Henderson for a second phase of a housing tract. Joe seemed to already know when I pulled up what I was there for, He was setting on a pallet of scrap wood when I walked up, and just looked at me as though no time had passed since we had seen each other last. His first words were, "We have to go back, theres something more we have to find". He said it with his eyes closed as though that made it easier to say. I just stood there. After a fiew seconds, I said I know.... I told Joe, B and I were going back, B couldn't make it through the passage, but that He and I could. Thanksgiving was only two days away, and the day after, he would have time. Joe seems ok, yet something from the cave has left him more cautious, more reserved, the dry humor he had seems completly gone, which makes for alot of quiet akward moments in conversation.
With Thanksgiving over we now have time for one or two days to cave again. B needs to contact Joe, we need a fiew things more if were going to go in deeper, and thats what we're planning. Im almost looking forward to going in again, this time with better lighting, but I don't know what were looking for, And it still gives me the creeps
December 26 2001 B and I met Joe at the south end of town at the Sporting goods. The shop carries climbing equiptment. We got a new coil of rope and some more lighting consisting of glowsticks and a D cell maglight, also some bulk batteries, if indeed. We would be able to explore further past the rise and right hand turn that my maglight had exposed previously. With replacements of the rope and harness's we lost fron the last time, and somewhat better lighting we left. B had brought his Van this time and figured it would afford us better protection from the elements if we needed to stay for an extended time.
It was overcast to the east of us, but the sun was shining brightly over us in the warmest part of the day. The desert doesn't affort too warm of weather this time of year and at this altitude. I hoped we wouldn't need the Van for that. We carried everything to the entrance and harnessed up, and lowered our rope. It was for a brief moment that a chill ran through me, here I was. Was I crazy? The last time I was here we couldnt get out fast enough. We sat there for what seemed like a half an hour, just looking into the blackness. Then B stood up and hooked his caribeiner to the ropes, turned, and backed down into the darkness. His helmet light flashed down inside and back up as he decended, watching for any new changes to the cave. About half way, He called up to Joe and I, that everything was ok. Next down was Joe, then finally I decended. Everything was quiet except for an occasional bit of voices as Joe and B talked. I reached the bottom and B was holding the harness that we had lost the last time, but there was no trace of the rope that pulled into the cave last time. Nothing except some fuzzlike stuff at the entrance of the hole we had broke through. It almost looked like the rope had been pulled past this hole and the rubbing had left some particles chaffed off of the rope. There was no breeze or air coming up from the passage, all was still, there was however, the smell of water. That smell you get when you are near. It seemed as though there was more humidity in the cave compared to last time, and it was coming from deeper inside the passageway. Joe wanted to go first, and I don't know if I felt relieved or more nervious. B seemed ready for anything and was composed, arangeing the packs to set and lay on while waiting for us which might be a lengthy time. I waited as Joe dissapeared into the opening, We could hear the crunch of rocks and chips as Joe scooted himself in farther and farther into floyds tomb. After about five minuates Joe had made it through floyds tomb and was in the small chamber where it started uphill. He called out and said everything was ok, he would wait for me. A sudden aprehention came over me, I was here, there was no backing out now. I made my way to the enterance and assumed the position I had used both times before, only this time as I scooted further and further in, I was less restricted and squeezed. The fifteen pounds I had lost since had helped. I was able to go through without exhaling all my breath, instead it seemed roomy, it felt much less constricting. As I scooted with my toes, I was aware of only three things, the sound of gravely rock chips gringing along and Joe and I's breathing. As it was opening out of floyds toumb, I was able to increase my crawl speed untill I could put my arms and hands under me and push along into the chamber at it's end. He was there with the light held to his chin, illuminating his face like some goul. I didn't think it was funny, but I did feel safer here in this chamber with him. B was calling to us, asking if we made it in completly as he couldnt hear us now. I called back through that we were fine. Somehow he sounded like he was three or four times the distance away rather than the 70-80 some odd feet that the actual distance was. Joe was holding my Video recorder and handed it to me. The batteries were dead and the extras We had brought were with B. Joe and I spoke, not much above a wisper, in these confines we really didn't need to. He wasn't quite as daring on the next streach of passageway. I took off my climbing boot to remove some rock chips that had got packed down around my ankle While putting my boot back on and lacing it up, a faint breeze started to rise and come through the chamber, just percieveable, but a change since intering the chamber. This air had to be coming from further in, how far neither of us knew. I decided to go first this streach, and squeezing around Joe, I made my way up the slight incline. About fifteen foot ahead it turned slightly to the right and opened up to ten or twelve feet to the ceiling, but was slightly less wide. It began to be shaped like a fisure on the floor, and became more v shaped. I had to use my hands to support my weight through a streach of about twenty feet, mostly with feet slipping, then it gave way to a widening ledge on the left side of this thin chasm. I could feel rising air from here and ahead it again turned but this time, hard to the right. Were we going in a spiral around the main chamber? I felt like we were somehow going in a circle. Joe had advanced up to where I was and the additional light was welcome. We had been down here for close to an 40 or 50 minuates by this time. I continued with Joe close behind, ever forward in this, what seemed like a fissure until it abruptly stopped. I could still feel air coming from an unknown source. I used my D cell maglight now and shone it above our resting spot at this dead-end. Was this all there was? A dead end? The air flow was coming from above, but the chasm only went up mabe ten or twelve feet and appeared to veer off to the left, obscured by a bulge in it's face. Joe took off his harness and squeezed up the chasm wall, pushing his butt on one side and holding presure with his legs on the other side. One leg ahead, one leg and butt behind, up the wall, he worked his way up foot by foot until reached the bulge in the wall face. Speaking to me, he said that what was in front of him was a gradually leveling flat opening, a rather wide opening, but that the steepness was to much to overcome before he could reach a spot where it was flat enough of an incine to get a grip. He said I had to come up, he had a plan, but it would take both of us. I followed suit and scooted up the chasm till I came within a couple feet under him, and he pointed with the light where the rock opened up into a sort of space. Since Joe was lighter I proceded to wedge myself with my legs and butt against the rock faces, I boosted him up an additional two or three foot. From there he did a sort of worm crawl for about three or four foot until he could get this hands under him and use his shoe toes for traction. Slowly scooting and lifting with his arms, his palms and fingers pointed down he made it and stood up. His light dissapeared as he turned and it shone ahead of him. "OH My god", what,? what,? I said to him? I think theres a cavern here was his responce. We'll need ropes though, he said. My heart sort of sunk. I knew all along we would need ropes and harness's, and now it seemed foolish to have left them. He said, I have an idea... But we will eventually need ropes. I said that I would go back after them, but he said 'no', lets see how far we can go. We had plenty of time left on the flashlights plus six glow sticks between us both. Making my way up until it leveled off, what appeared in front of us was increadable, it was a cavern, complete with stalaglite and stalagmites and what appeared to be, some faint source of light. We both turned off our lights and sat there in darknes interupted only by the faint light which seemed to flutter like a reflection, And infact we would soon learn that it was a reflection. Another thing I had noticed was that it was warmer here in this cavern. We would shortly learn the source of he fluttering light. It was a pool of water, a thin pool mabe an inch or two deepwhich extended in a sort of pear shape from the vertical wall, the faint light source, was still unknown. Neither Joe or could see anywhere that it could be coming from. Never the less it was there and the slight undulations of the water were making a wavy reflection on the wall. It was like the light from radium on watch faces, and did seem to fade.To the left opened up a cavern, who's height and width seemed to increase like a pyramid on its side. By now B must have been getting pretty concerned and had moved from setting on the packs to the chissled opening and began calling for us. We never heard him, he had to be several hundred feet away, with turns and different levels. Having found this cavern, we decided the next course of action was to explore it, but that would have to wait for ropes. I suggested that we make our way back to the entrance chamber where B was, and attempt another exploration with a fiew other items we would need, since the task of bringing them throuth Floyds tomb was sure to be difficult, we'd have to put everything in a duffle and tie a rope to it and pull it through behind us. Both making it back through all the ground we'd covered, we slithered back through the tounb and out the hole and into the chamber. I was first, Joe second. Once there we decided that we needed to come back soon, and having the right equiptment we could consider exploring the cavern area. We left our ropes and harnesses and climbed out into an overcast late afternoon a bit relieved. Still what was the smell and noises that we experianced on our first passage through the tomb? No evidence of either of them today.
My sister would tell us were crazy to go in a cave like we described , the pictures I took didnt impress her. Instead she harped about the danger, there was no real rescue ETM's close or for that matter experianced cavers. If we had a problem, help would come, but we wern't dealing with a regular cave
November 21 2001 B's excited about going back into the cave, this time looking very forward to it.. Joe hasn't spoke much, instead I think there must be alot of internal dialogue going on, he's been much too quiet for someone as excited about a return as he says. I too, feel like its an exploration, the feelings of fear vanished, and for a caver, sometimes thats not a good thing. It makes you sloppy and prone to take risks. But here we are, and this time we are better prepared. We brought petons to tie to for the ascent up the face of the overhang. And We'v brought a coleman propane lantern with twenty five hours worth of canisters and two sets of mantels just in case.. along with our regular lighting. One thing remains in the back of my mind, and thats the rope that was seemingly pulled back into the cave after our exiting in fear the first time. Fear might be a bit extreme, but at the time seemed apt. Again we'v brought B's Van, this time we'v also brought the landphone and new line for it, brand new wire line. This way B will have some idea if theres any trouble. Joe and I had an uneventfull passage back here to the ledge. This time I have a nice scrape on my cheek and forehead for my troubles. Joe decided to be the first up once again and I will have to follow to give him a boost the last fiew inches, where he can get traction, and ease up the face. This time it went relativly easy getting to the landing space at the opening. The coleman lantern came through along with a fiew other items in the duffel and seems unscathed. Lighting was easy enough after a couple trys and the difference in illumination is night and day. Before, our light beams died into nothingness as we shone them ahead. This time we have a much brigter source of light. The first thing to do is secure a rope to anything that will hold if we choose to decend the bulge. I purposly brought a shorter piece of rope for just such a acent, or the sure to come decent after we'v explored for a while. The thing we did this time was unroll a line this time as we crawled through the tomb area and now are able to pull the line along behind us for the land phone. I spent a minuate connecting the wires and we have comunication with B. As I was saying earlier the interior looks considerably different with better lighting, the pool being much more defined. It is about eight feet from the wall and travels along the wall dissapearing into an underwater fissure that seems to open up as it goes deeper This must have been the source of the water smell I mentioned before. We have ropes, flashlights and batteries along with petons and a rock hammer. From the illumination of the lantern, held overhead, we can see that this cavern has the shape I spoke of earlier, like a pyramid on its side, widening and raising above our heads higher as we go further out into the cavern. The floor is irregular and in places the only way forward is to jump from rock to rock, boulder to boulder. The sounds I originally heard like a grinding of rock against rock is evident, but very faint and intermitant. At first we traveled out towards the center of this vast cavern, but found that water was dripping in places from the roof and stalagmites, and decided it might be drier to skirt the sides. There are formations of crystals all along the higher side opposite us, and the distance between, and using the lantern makes viewing them closeup something we will do later. Were on the downhill side at this point and it seems to be the reverse of the entrance that is, its a mirror immage of the pyramid only backwards. Traveling around the perimeter has brought us to a cleft in the wall and shining our lights up into the void, it appears shaped like a gallery, like in a theater. I'm still aware of the grinding sound even if it is faint. I just cant discern where its coming from, the direction is indistinct. This cavern is about half the size of a football field in length, and about twentyfive feet high, tapering down to the ledge we came in at. Here at the cleft we're faced with going back or trying to ascend up and explore. John decided to try placing some petons and ascending the rock face. It seemed the only place that a peton could be driven, was in a crack or fisure, but it somewhat veered to the right and did not appear to let us climb to the gallery area. Joe went first. The first ten or so feet he was able to pound in the petons rather easily, and I suspected that they were iffy as far as holding, luckly they held. Joe had pulled himself along a crack that ran almost horozontally then rose at a thirty degree angle from there. It would take us to within five or six feet of a rock outcrop at the edge of the gallery. Joe made good time and found much better cracks to pound into, and in about twenty minuates we were at the edge of the outcrop. I was again to find myself boosting Joe up to a handhold and pulling himself up onto enough of a ledge to stand safely. Now with only flashlights, the coleman illuminating from the floor below, Joe inched along the ledge and reported that there appeared to be an opening into a small chamber. You could sence his excitement, but would this be just another dead end? Joe had one rope with him across his sholder like a bandoleer and he was preparing to unwind it and drop one end to the floor and tie off on a sort of natural archway above. It was small and a fiew feet out of reach, but looked to be easy throwing distance with the end of the rope. On his third attempt the rope flew up and over the archway, but the loose end failed to come down enough to reach. With a little finesse, he whiped small circles untill the rope fell on through the archway and fell to where he could reach it. He tied off and dropped the single line down to the floor. I made my way back down to the floor while he waited and once on the bottom, I tied the lantern to the rope and he hauled it up to where he was. Now with enough illumination he was able to see that a passage trailed off from the other side of the archway, and could be reached by climbing up the rope just a little further. He made his way up and entered the small archway and found it to be about three foot in diamiter. By now we had been hiking and climbing for nearly an hour and a half, and I knew B would be getting nervious waiting for comunication. Joe and I decided that I should make my way back to the first ledge and contact B with the land phone. It was a bit tougher getting back across with only flashlights for lighting, so progress was slower. I did find what seemed a shortcut along the bolders and rocks that lined the floor. Among these were stalagtites here and there, and in the shadows just empty voids, some wet, others not. I made it back to the land phone and buzzed for B. Immediatly he answered, and I told him everything was fine. I told him that we intended to explore a passageway we had found inside the caverns wall, and that he should make himself comfortable in the cave and get some sleep if he wanted. He said he couldn't sleep, and would get the rest of the equiptment we had brought, sleeping bags and a coleman heater. He didn't sound as though he was nervious, but rather that he was just antsy waiting so long for comunication from us. With comunication, I was free to return to where Joe had prepared a means of ascent up to the arch. I reached it after about a ten minuates and rested from the leaping and climbing nessessary to navigate the rocks and boulders. Shortly I was ascending up the rope to the ledge below the arch where Joe was. We decided to enter the passage and see where it went. As we proceeded, it seemed to narrow much like the tomb crawlspace untill we only had inches to spare. Joe called back to me and said that it was opening up into a larger passage, and that it looked tall and wide enough to walk upright in. Within about fifty feet, it did infact open up and the ability to stand was welcomed. My previous back injury was starting to make its pressence known, and I suppose leaping and traversing the cavern floor hadn't been the best thing for it. So for now I would favor it and go easy. I would guess we had traveled about a quarter miles distance all told. As we crawled then stood and walked down this passage the air became noticeably better and seemed fresher. Still, even with artifical light, we knew we were deep in this cave. B had brought sleeping bags and heating enough, for a not too unpleasant stay in the main chamber. As Joe and I made it down this passage it decended slowly then at a steeper pace untill it opened into another cavern. This one was different, there was an absence of stalagmites and stalagtites, instead were crystal formations, and the walls were shaped much different, it was like a bowl, and the sides sloped up to a relativly flat roof. though tilted down at our end. Where would this lybrinth take us? and should we explore further? Up untill now we were just looking for passage, but now... we were starting to appreciate our surroundings, taking time to examine the geology the crystals. Here both Joe and I heard grumbeling sounds, sounds that seemed to pass along above us, but no distinct dirrection or source. Along with these were the grinding-like noises. Only if you were setting on or had your hands on the boulders, you could also feel it.
I wanted to go on, and I wanted to leave, there was something about this cavern that made me feel weak. Joe was setting half on and half off of the boulder next to me and were it not for our lighting, I would only have known he was there by his breathing. the darkness was absolute and thick.
Why were we here, what did we hope to find? There was no reason except the original challenge, getting through floyds tomb and the mystery of the sounds, beyond that, it had been almost terifying. I had paniced down there, and the ascent. And what could have pulled the rope. B has been very mute about our November epesodes here, and seems to get agitated when mentioned. We are best friends but it seems to be a cold friendship right now. Joe was listening now and I didn't know what for, I could hear nothing either close or distant. There.. now there was something, it was like a sound, but I couldn't hear it but instead feel it through my palms on this rock like a precurser to an earthquake or something. If my hand was off of the rock, it was gone, if I pushed my palm ont the rock, it was there. He asked if I felt it, I noded, he looked lost in concentration. Still it came and went. I suggested that this was an increadable cavern find, but they weren't really so rare in this part of the state, but look who had found these. B, gets credit, but Joe and myself finding the cavern, we had discovered them, we had been the first to see the insides. What else was here? We could explore any time we wanted, we could take our time. Because only the most experianced cavers would ever see these caverns, only someone thin enough and able to stand the tight push through floyds tomb. We had nothing to do, just explore. The mystery has been replaced with awe, three perfectly sane guys absorbed in this cave. What can we hope to find? It depends where we look. Right now, I just want to leave, I dont want to think about the rope, and I think you know which one. Thats all there is If we choose to come back, it will be a ways off in the future, then too theres the video camera, what is on it, I havn't seen.
On a post script, Once out of the cave, you might wonder the layout or mapping of the cave and caverns, thinking that everything should be just feet from the surface of the bowl cavern. As far as I can discern, its my guess that the last bowl shaped cavern might have 75-100 feet of overburden if a cross section 3D was available, mabe less, and it goes to reason that there must be at least a couple cracks or fissures on the small outcroppings or gullies here that allow the source of the breeze and dripping we felt at times. So this hill behind the opening, and then flattness of the terain above ground could well contain all this underground lybrinth of passages, chasims and caverns. Since we all feel the cave safe now, we feel that we can disclose a bit more about the area. Above and to the north of the cave entrance there is a four lane highway, and further past, a cliff face with a sort of small plateau that gradually slopes uphill to a foothill of a bench area against the mountains. We feel this accounts for the vibrations and sounds that come and go, as truckers pass above. B and I have now been at my house for three days trying to access the info on the video camera, and at were unsucessful. We used new batteries, but the canera would nor turn on fully. It would go into startup mode, the record light come on and flash several times and the whole thing would shut down. This week I have taken the camera to the camera shop in town and asked them to have a look at it to see if they could get it functioning again. After a couple calls, the woman at the shop said that she had found the problem and had gotten the camera operational. I called B and around four in the afternoon we went to go pick it up before it became dark. We had to get it done before sunset because B had been experiancing problems with his van. The battery and charging system had been on the fritz, and driving for any length of time would drain the battery. For that reason, we carried a charged spare battery, along with cables. Since we were in town, we decided to go over to my sisters, but since she was having guests I hardly knew, and B knew nothing of, we decided to go back to B's place. There in the living room we tried to see what was on the video camera, The first try, it seemed to have the same exact problem we took it in for, the camera would go into start mode, the record light flash, then it would shut back off. After several tries, we got it to come on fully and since I knew the control of the buttons, and B was unframilliar with it, I tried and was able to acess the images. Imediatly there was a jumbly image as though the camera was being rolled around and faint light intermittantly, then a very long pause of just blackness. The date seemed to still be in the top right of the screen, so we asumed it was still recording, but all that was there was blackness, and a scratchy noise on the audio. A little further into the video, there was the light of a glowstick clearly vissable and a sudden woosh sound. This went on in blackness for the remaining 12 minuates before the batteries obviously died. All B and I can surmise out of this is, that the woosh sound must have been the rope wizzing past the camera and that since we found the camera pointing towards the sides of the chamber instead of towards the way out, the green glow surely had to be the glow stick B had droped when we hauled butt out of the cave up to the entrance, and the woosh, the rope sailing past on its way deep into the passage. We'v still yet to find evidence of the rope though. So we are no closer to finding out what if anything is down there in the cave with us. One question puzzels me though. Since I'm sure the glow stick went down the hole with the round boulder, it should have vanished, yet if the glowstick and B's rope were sucked into the cave and through floyds tomb, into the chamber and out to who knows where, why is the green glow in the picture? It lasted for several minuates, only once did it dissapear then reapear moments later? We have no answers, The best we can come up with is that the first glowstick somehow resurfaced out of the round boulder hole and lit the interior.. But how? And it seems the second glowstick must have been swept in with the rope.

For the time being B, Joe and I are content to leave this cave alone. Next time if there is a next time We want to explore the caverns and see if they hold any secrets. The more I think of returning, the less I am enclined to do so. The nerviousness has surfaced somewhat, though Joe and B seem for the most part unaffected. I have no practical reason to return, except curiosity. B, Joe and I don't know if we will maintain the secrecy of the cave, even my sister knows only of the exploration, and nothing of the location other than the aproximate area, so we feel our discovery is safe for now, but have decided not to even drive to the entrance again as the tire prints may lead sombody out exploring on dirt bikes or four wheelers to the location, and if they follow our footprints, might learn the location. We have used busted off branches of juniper to broom and erase our prints, but that might be only partly sucessful as the tree has rope burns on it and evidence of being tied to. So this may be the last report on the mystery cave, we feel that our secret is secure for now. We all need time to unwind from all of this and sort everything out. We have decided to wait untill spring to renew any exploration and get our affairs in order. ***Ted, B & Joe*** www.nps...