BHS Cave Club mapping out Glacier Park caverns

The Bigfork High School Cave Club spent the last two months of 2008 establishing resource monitoring in newly discovered caves in Glacier National Park.

The club, which was started last year, and is one of only two in the country, is advised by BHS science teacher Hans Bodenhamer. When the club was looking for a new challenge this year he recommended that they volunteer to help out with the caves that had recently been discovered in the park.

“Everything about caves is amazing; how they’re formed and what you have to do to get around inside of them,” said BHS junior Ernie Cottle, who has been a member of cave club since last spring. “I like the sense of danger that comes with caving.”

Cottle said that one such trip required the students to repel 140 feet down, climb 13 feet over a rock hill, rappel another 90 feet and free climb on a rock wall.

However, Cottle said the risk is well worth the reward.

“I like the satisfaction of being in a cave and being able to do something most people don’t get to do,” Cottle said. “We’re being safe in a risky environment. Taking risks and getting amazing benefits back.

“Being in a cave you can just get away from everything and let everything go and focus on what you’re doing. It takes you away from everyday problems.”

In early October the students ventured to Glacier National Park to establish monitoring in two new caves. However, on their way to the first cave they encountered a large black bear, and opted to skip the first cave and move on to the second. To help park mangers conserve fragile features within the cave, club members established visitor impact point mapping, photo monitoring and temperature monitoring. The visitor impact point mapping required the students to mark the location of mineral and biological resources on a map and record the nature, extent, and condition of the resources. To complete the photo monitoring, the cave club took pictures of indicator resources and recorded photo point locations and direction on a map of the cave. The temperature monitoring required recording the floor temperatures on a map of the cave.

“Doing the monitoring is fun and challenging,” said BHS junior Jade Bosic, who joined the club last spring. “We put it all together at the end in a book and that’s exciting. It’s cool to have it all in a book and know we accomplished that. We work as a team so it’s not too bad.”

In late November the cave club embarked on a similar mission. This time they headed to a cave that was much larger, 2,604 feet versus the 731-foot cave from the previous month. This cave had stream passages and many waterfalls. It was also more widely known and had endured some vandalism.

While in the caves, the club also works to restore damages and inventory and protect resources in well-preserved caves. Since its inception, the club has removed about 100 pounds of trash from two caves and graffiti from about 300 square feet of surfaces in three caves.

“As a teacher I am constantly amazed at their attitudes and comments,” Bodenhamer said. “From their monitoring work they are keen at observing details and very conscientious of their potential impacts.”

Last year Cave Club members participated in weekly vertical rope sessions and became proficient at rigging ropes, changing direction and crossing knots. They also learned basic cave mapping skills and conservation practices during recreation trips to several nearby caves. The students have learned how to read instruments, sketch cave observations and map locations and descriptions of fungus, sticks, stalactites and other cave discoveries.

“I think it’s a great program for Bigfork because it’s different,” Bosic said. “It’s a different kind of club for kids that aren’t good at sports or aren’t interested in sports and you get to be a part of preserving caves. It’s how different it is that attracted me to the club. It is adventurous and unlike any other club because you are outside.

“I like the adrenaline rush. You don’t want to do it, but once you do you’re really proud that you did. It’s cool to say that you rappelled 200 feet in a cave.”

The club is hoping to embark on a large-scale restoration project for a heavily vandalized cave on forest service lands in the near future, but they are having trouble funding the trip. Last year all of the trips were funded by the school, but budget cutbacks are causing the group to look for other sponsorship. They are also looking for funding for photography equipment to improve monitoring and photographs.

Bodenhamer and his students have been applying for several grants to help maintain the club. They have also received support from several organizations over the last couple of years. The Charlotte Martin Foundation provided them with a grant to purchase rope, specialized climbing gear, helmets, headlamps and graffiti removal supplies. The Glacier National Park Fund has helped the club pay for some of their travel supplies and expenses. Swan Lake Ranger District of the Flathead National Forest loaned the club backpack water sprayers to help in graffiti removal.

“They’ve done some really good work,” said Glacier National Park’s Chief of the Division of Science and Resource Management Jack Potter. “With the experience Hans has, he’s able to know when he’s having the kids do something that’s beyond their ability so he’s not putting them at risk. It gets them involved in caving, as well as in practicing scientific methods and other skills.”

It seems as though Cave Club is a win-win situation for everyone involved.

“The students of Cave Club have been a bright spot in my tenure at the Bigfork High School,” Bodenhamer said. “Sharing my interest in caves has been an incredible experience for me. It has also been an incredible experience for my students. Imagine at 16 years of age being one of the first 10 people to explore a newly discovered cave and on top of that develop maps and reports that will be used by the park service to manage and protect the contents of that cave. It goes far beyond ‘real world’ applications typical at the high school level.”