Cave reveled after Georgia flood, should I....

There was record rainfall here in Georgia, I took these pictures after the water breached the dam at our lake and created a huge path in the Earth. I noticed what looked like a cave that was uncovered, my curiosity is to go there and investigate.

BTW, I didn't know what forum to post my thread in....

The Lake....



The Breach....



The Path....



THE CAVE!



Now remember this was atleast 20 feet under the Earth

That's pretty slick looking
Would you have a estimated size of the opening?
can you see in with a flashlight how far it goes?
If I were in my younger years I would probably check it out

Will the water level go down so you could see in there...lest you step into a big hole and vanish forever.
If you dare---have someone with you.
And I guess a sturdy rope attached to you and whoever may go along.
And others staying outside and in communication..
etc.
You can't be too careful.
Maybe better to have professionals do it.

Very cool ! I tend to agree , check it out with a flashlight first and see just how far it goes .

... or maybe the 'cave' was an intentional means to divert water flow away from the dam so it could built?

Those are some great pictures. I would wait a few days, as the ground is most likely unstable, or make sure you have plan and contacts. That's fantastic, nature's own little time capsule, wonder how for how long it was submerged.

Most of the water didn't go through the cave, the cave seemed to be "substantial " because there was a steady uninterrupted entrance flow.

I will go there, the water will be gone and it will be easy to investigate.

Now, they have the whole area roped off, that will not stop me

I am an old Caver.

FIrst NEVER Cave alone, the usual party is three or four. Always tell someone when you expect to be out. Take three sources of light. One should be a head lamp. A key for not getting lost is to look back frequently. Passages look a lot different on the way out. Piling up rocks at turns is ok for marking the way. NEVER touch a formation.

Georgia has pit caves so be very careful to watch for deep drops. I almost stepped off a 400 foot drop when the walls continued but the floor did not.

You might want to contact the National Speleological Society.

Good luck and I wish I could go with you. Darn the arthritis

first glance, no expert but that looks like sedimontery rock upheaved by something like earthquake. could be a crazy cave or an underground river wait a long time until the entrance is dry. you dont want to be in there if a storm comes along

I'd just like to add that the water had to have somewhere to go in that cave. You could find yourself following it down, so please be ultra careful. If I were you I'd contact a group of cavers who will have the proper eqpt. and would be willing to take you with them. They may even have the new laser gear for mapping new cave systems. Tell them you know where a previouslyyy unknown cave is and they'll come from miles away.

awh luuckkky! i love going into unknown areas! i would say go for it, look for anything out of the ordinary. i have no idea on the history of the area, but it could have been above water before, a long long time ago and housed some Neanderthals! That would be amazing, so many possibilities, dont turn this opportunity down!

I thought there were restrictions on people going into caves in the US?

[edit on 24-9-2009 by VitalOverdose]

Pretty cool. So is this cave on your property, or is it private property or maybe a park?

You should look for gold and diamonds. Better yet, keep an eye out for the arc of the covenant. It must be around somewhere. Why not Georgia?

BTW, I hope you and yours didn't have any damage from all the rain.

Yeah... but that was mainly for caves with bats. A new cave probably doesn't have any bats. Either way, like the previous posters have indicated, get ahold of a speleological group. They will be up on the applicable restrictions.

[edit on 24-9-2009 by RoofMonkey]

It looks like the water is moving pretty quick there still. I would so love to go and check out that cave and would have been there in a heart beat. But be carefull, its not worth drowning over. I personaly wouldnt waste time calling some group of pro cavers, i think it would be much more fun if it was just with a few close freinds, unless there was some crazy vertical drops and stuff like that. Common sence should play a big role in deciding how far you go. Be safe and have fun, i know I would. Cant wait to here if you find anything cool in there!!!

Oh i forgot to add, that picture of the water falls that formed in the woods is awsome. I cant believe how much rain you guys must have got to get it to start flowing like that, great pictures and good luck with that cave!!!

Any terrain that lends itself to cave formation is by nature, unstable. Using Google Maps or Google Earth, or whatever your favoriite software is... (NASA Worldwind).. check out 30°27'0.56"N 85°40'54.69"W. That's about 14 miles North of Panama City Florida. Every single lake you see there was formed by a sinkhole when the underlying cavern collapsed. You really sure you want to be inside one of those when the ground shifts? The accepted idea behind the formation of these features was that the water table receded and the overlying ground was just too heavy for the structure to support it without some sort of hydraulic pressure to keep it up.

And wet ground... well, that's quite heavy. Assume that you have one cubic yard of water. Thats 3 ft x 3 ft x 3ft = 27 cu ft. At 61 lb per cubic ft, that's a bit over 1657 lbs of weight. Now imagine that amount of water (or close to it) in the saturated soil overlying your cave.

Stable and safe? Not hardly.

Don't let us read about your untimely death in the paper. Use your head and be safe.




The Darwin Awards are not something to strive for.



[edit on 24-9-2009 by RoofMonkey]

reply to post by crimvelvet

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To add to that, take a good quality camera. You never know if you run into those pesky gnomes or find the lost gold of the templars

I would love to explore that cave with you. Hope you play it safe and find out all you can about the cave. I recall a few folks went to explore a cave in my area and two ended up dying due to poisonous gases.

Keep us informed of what you discover.

As a rockhound, I would have to go in search of quartz, Amethyst, Citrine, Ruby and garnet, all found in Georgia. Fun, fun, fun. Review photos of how they appear in raw form, or you could miss them!

But please do be careful. It's beautiful and exciting but treacherous.

Edit to add: Beautiful area. Oh, and I'm so sorry for all that flooding you guys had. Hope it's over, and eveyone is okay.

[edit on 9/24/0909 by ladyinwaiting]