Caving - an adventure sport gaining popularity

We humans really like to test new things, and do things out of the ordinary to gain a lot of new experiences. Caves are believed to be scary places where dangerous animals live.

But, now people have realised the natural value, and the pleasure in exploring the thousands of caves all over the world. It has now turned out to become a very exciting sport. This may not be a very popular sport in our country, but small groups make it a point to go hiking and do some caving as well.

In fact the fascinating activity of caving is becoming a trend in our country. As many unknown territories within the country are explored, many fascinating discoveries too are made. It is said that some caves in Sri Lanka date back to about 500 million years.

Therefore, exploring in such caves in Sri Lanka would virtually be a journey in to prehistoric times. The best caves include the Waulpane Cave, Batadombalena Cave, and the Irilena Cave.

You may also be able to have lots of fun once you are old enough to explore a few caves. But, make sure that you take all the necessary precautions.

This type of adventure sport which is simply about exploring caves could be dangerous.

For your information, the study of caves and cave environment is known as Speleology. Although the objective is really simple, the experience may vary depending on the cave being visited. Generally this is done purely for enjoyment or exercise.

If we look at the origination of the sport, we can say that it has been there since humans evolved and started looking for shelter. However, now there are many societies and movements to promote caving.

People who explore caves are called 'cavers'. But, the word 'spelunker' also refers to a caver in US English. However, there have been arguments regarding the superiority of these words, and it became a conception that the term 'spelunker' refers to a less experienced 'caver'.

There is a category of caving known as 'potholing' too. This is generally related to exploring potholes, which are vertical caves. This version of caving can be quite challenging.

****

Reducing danger in caving?

Caving is normally done by a few individuals without precautionary measures for any emergency. To make things more complicated, they risk their lives, going into a region where they are totally cut off from the rest of the community.

There can be unfortunate incidents inside the cave such as hypothermia, falling, flooding, and physical exhaustion. If something bad happens, it would be a really difficult thing to bring rescue teams in to the caves. Therefore, the cavers themselves must take many security measures to be on the safe side as follows:

* Wearing protective helmets and relevant clothing. Thick, fluffy suits can be worn if the cave is too cold, and wet suits if it turns out wet. Boots are the recommended type of footwear and it is important to use knee pads and elbow pads.

* Small first aid kits, emergency equipment, food and drinking water should be close at hand.

* Usage of lights mounted on the helmets with extra batteries. Electric lights are most common, with halogen lamps being standard and white LEDs as the new competing technology.

* Going in as a team, consisting of at least four members.

* Be ready with a method to track your way inside the caves such as placing marks in junctions of the cave to avoid being lost.

* Notifying the people at home of the intended time of return and letting them know where exactly you are going, so that if you get very late to come due to any problem, rescue teams can reach you quickly.

Checking that there is no danger of flooding during the exploration. Rainwater that has gone underground can flood a cave very quickly, trapping people in cut-off passages and drowning them.

Aravinda Dassanayake

***