WKPP – Wakulla Springs – December 29-30

Significant rain in North Florida over the Christmas Holiday coupled with reports from Wakulla Park staff that the spring was beginning to clear after more than 7 months of poor conditions triggered the decision to make one final push into the Wakulla Cave system to wrap up the most productive year in the history of the WKPP. Turner was also considered but there was a sense of urgency to inspect the western side of the O-Tunnel bypass where clear water was confirmed on September 30. While conditions in Wakulla had improved it was only a matter of days before the runoff from the recent storms would make its way into the sinkholes to the northwest and eventually to Wakulla Springs. The WKPP had been witness to this process for more than 15 years and it was time to move quickly before the window closed for the season and perhaps for several years. Fortunately everyone was ready to go and determined to make the most of what was left of the holiday break and return home for New Years.

Saturday – December 30

(Messersmith, Miller, Rose) Objective – Deliver scooters and drives to 3,500ft. Continue out A-Tunnel to 4,000ft and re-route the primary line over the “Mountain”. Re-routing would create a shallower, safer and more direct path as the setup and exploration traversed the rise to 170ft on their way to the primary staging depot at 6,500ft. K-Tunnel had been the standard route for several years but the wear and tear from following the guideline nearly 2,000ft along a sinuous and deeper tunnel was wearing on the dive teams and increasing bottom time. The direct route would save time and energy; however, given all the equipment carried, the steep rise from 280f to 170ft and back down to 280ft would need to be managed carefully and safely. The setup team delivered the goods to 3,500ft for pickup and motored towards the “Mountain”. A new guideline was spliced into the main line and routed along the right wall close to the floor and eventually tied back into the main line on the opposite side. John Rose handled line placement while Mark Messersmith assisted with placement while Jim Miller hovered and kept track of location in the reduced visibility. The team successfully completed the task and motored 500ft further to the junction with M-Tunnel. At that point the team entered M-Tunnel which is normally a clear groundwater or “spring” tunnel but the team was unable to locate clear water. Darker water from A/O Tunnels appeared to be holding back the clear water to a much greater degree than previously observed. After several hundred feet the team decided to call it a day and begin the 40 minute return trip to the entrance. All objectives accomplished.

From Mark Messersmith’s personal report:

Rose, Miller and Messersmith left the beach at 0820 with 4 dpvs and 5 bottles each. The initial part of the mission was to drop dpvs and drive bottles at 3500’ for Casey and Jarrod. Subsequent to dropping this gear they continued in A-tunnel intent on improving the line placement over the “mountain.” Currently, at the beginning of this section of tunnel the line is close to the bottom at a depth of 280’. The line follows the side wall before ending up on the ceiling at a depth of 170’. The goal of this dive was to lower the line in the tunnel to reduce the three atmosphere depth change while traveling over the mountain.

Thirty six minutes after leaving the 190’ bottle drop and after depositing the dpvs and drive bottles for Jarrod and Casey, the team arrived at the mountain. Miller established a position on the line while Rose tied into the existing line and ran a new line closer to the floor of the tunnel. Messersmith followed behind securing placements along the wall. After passing the crest of the mountain and proceeding to the new downhill termination site of the line, Casey and Jarrod appeared overhead and signaled as they passed toward their objective at 7200’. Shortly thereafter, Rose and Messersmith established a new intersection with the previous line, tied the line off to a conspicuous and rigid outcropping and signaled for Miller to join them. Having completed their work in 15 minutes and effectively lowering the line by nearly 30’, the team continued on into the cave to seek always clear water of the M- tunnel. The team traveled along this conduit for another 10 minutes before conceding that the always clear water of M-tunnel was not going to provide improved visibility today. Having completed all their work and with limited visibility ahead, the team turned and headed for the door. Their bottom time was 100 minutes at 280ft; this trip coupled with a modest deco got them out of the water just before 6:00pm, just in time for dinner.

(Jablonski, McKinlay) Objective – Travel to O-Tunnel bypass and explore the western wall for possible tunnels heading towards Leon Sinks. We made a brief stop at 3,500ft to pickup the equipment delivered by the setup team and we were off and running again. As we approached the “Mountain” at 4,000ft it became obvious that work was underway; the thick silt pilled up the mountain was easily disturbed even when divers moved carefully. We passed the setup team working on the line placement, going high and left. A quick ok and we dropped down the back side and on our way to 6,500ft. Visibility was decent at 40-50ft and the time to 6,500ft was approximately 45 minutes. We completed a quick switch to a fresh drive and scooter and headed out the western O-Tunnel bypass. Visibility remained good at approximately 50ft as I took the left side and Jarrod took the right wall. After spending several minutes inspecting a large vertical crack we continued on to the section where I had placed an arrow on the previous dive to mark a possible lead. The lead looked promising and upon closer inspection there was a very old line cutting across a large silt pile and down the back side. Jarrod and George had explored this tunnel previously but decided it was not a priority given its small size; it did not seem like a possible lead to Leon Sinks. As we entered tunnel it became smaller and more tubular in shape; however, there were signs of flow with the floor swept clean in several areas. After several hundred feet the line ended at a very low restriction. This was promising and we were both excited to see evidence of notable flow in the tunnel; pockets of blue water seemed likely coming south from Leon Sinks. It was difficult to hold position at the restriction as the flow continued to push us backwards. We decided to drop a full drive and extra scooter and push through the restriction with minimal gear to see if in fact it was going to open up. We pushed through into small passage and it continued to twist and turn for several hundred feet before opening up large enough to scooter side by side. The tunnel continued to change in size; large then small and single file before opening again, repeating this for approximately 2,500ft. Each time it opened back up it was slightly larger in size and began to take on a different look and the flow remained constant. Riding through the small restrictions created additional silt, which we expected to clear before we got back; however, we were conscious that our exit would be slow given the slow progress through small tunnel. Exploring the tunnel was notable slower as the passage would wind and then pinch, requiring Jarrod to stop and swim through repeated sections; given the silt and windy passage it was also necessary to secure numerous anchor points to ensure the line could be easily followed in low visibility. I spent a good deal of time securing wraps and extracting the guideline from my scooter latches as we pushed on. We finished off 1 ½ reels before gas supply required we return. The return to the tie-in point was not difficult but required single file for most of the trip. We picked up fresh drives and scooters and headed out for 6,500ft stopping only to leave two large arrows at the T for the next trip west.

We approached the “Mountain” and began the ascent eager to see if the guys had squared it away after all these years. It was no surprise to see this team had done an outstanding job re-routing the line, allowing us to keep the hammer down as we descended down the back side and towards the spring entrance. Bottom time was 240 minutes; right on schedule (for a change). The significance of our discovery was beginning to set in as we made our way up the sand slope. It was strange to be moving up the hill so quickly but then again, 240 minutes was about half the average of the 2007 season bottom times. The support team descended to meet us around 120ft as we passed off spent equipment, a note to the surface team and most notably 1 ½ empty reels. Empty reels were always a cause for celebration on the surface and with a note indicating the way west may have been confirmed after more than 16 years would certainly make everyone’s new year.



Support

Huge thanks to the support team who took time away from family during the holidays to help us close out 2006 with a big win.

From Todd Leonard’s personal report:

Planning support for three concurrent gas teams is always interesting. We begin with estimates of their start and bottom times, and from there can project where the teams are likely to be in the water column as the day and night continue. When two of the gas teams are near each other, a single support team can often work with both of them simultaneously, which is very helpful in managing use of the support resources: the more efficient we can be, the better we’re able to distribute the work and avoid overtaxing any individual diver.

As the dives unfold, we begin to see whether our estimates were accurate. Late starts, and even small changes in bottom times can alter the structure of the support schedule significantly. This is why the surface manager eagerly awaits first contact with each returning gas team, when a note will be relayed indicating bottom time and time of day at a known position in the water column: that data allows the SM to rewrite the schedule as needed, and quickly reveals how support shifts will have to change from the original plans.

Our closing dives for 2006 were a high point in this coordination. Bognar/Canty took the first support shift of the day, meeting Rose/Miller/Messersmith around 130, relieving them of gear, and relaying status notes to the surface. When the initial flurry of gear-related activity subsided, the support team settled into a standard safety diver mode, monitoring the decompressing divers as they worked their way up through the water column.

Doolette/Marshall entered the water later that morning to relieve the first support team, assisting teams out of their rebreathers and into deco harnesses, and then later into the habitats. The support team brought the spent rebreathers to the surface and confirmed expected decompression time to the surface before retiring for the afternoon.

Meanwhile, Mudry/Werner entered the water to meet the second gas team Jablonski/McKinlay. They retrieved gear, relayed status notes, monitored the gas team in the water column, and periodically checked on the other gas team decompressing in the habitat. Toward the end of their shifts, they assisted McKinlay and Jablonski out of their rebreathers and into the troughs.

Rue/Tittle and Bailey/Milz entered the water a little before the first gas team was due out of the habitat. After checking them and confirming how much habitat time remained, the support divers turned their attention to clearing a corridor through the jungle of hydrilla that obstructed the route from the basin to the beach. A clear path helps encourages the gas divers to maintain a gradual final ascent, which has proven to be extremely important to effective decompression on these long dives. When the route was clear, they returned to the habitat, assisted the exiting and ascending gas team, and removed the last of their gear from the water.

Foss/Graser relieved Mudry/Werner, and continued monitoring Jablonski/McKinlay through the troughs and into the habitats.

Bognar/Canty entered the water a little before Jablonski/McKinlay were due to exit the habitats. They monitored them for a short period, then assisted them back into their deco harnesses and monitored them during the final ascent to the surface. Once the gas divers surfaced, the support team returned to the habitats for a final gear sweep, ensuring nothing was left behind.

Just like clockwork… a great end to 2006, thanks in no small part to the hard work of a phenomenal support crew.

Summary

The 2006 season was finally wrapped up but there were a number of unanswered questions:

1. Would Leon Sinks downstream of Turner Sink continue its SE trend our turn south towards Spring Creek?
2. Would Q-Tunnel eventually intersect Leon Sinks further south?
3. Was this western tunnel at 7,500ft the real deal and headed for a direct or indirect connection to Leon Sinks?
4. Would the recent rains wash out the cave systems and suspend operations?

At this point in time, I can only be sure of Question #4.
Yet, there are indications 2007 may hold promise for another good season of diving; time will tell.
My thanks to the entire team – you guys are the best.