April 18

---

---

Getting Serious … Day 5

April 18th, 2001
The team set out again today for another day of exploration. Team 1 consisted of George, Andy, and Renee, headed upstream to check out some leads they spotted yesterday. The team found some promising passage and headed in to see what lay ahead. In reduced visibility caused by the halocline the lead diver, Renee, led the team through a beautiful low lying area off of Angela’s Halo room while playing out new line from the reel. White limestone covered the passageway and a stunning halocline surrounded them as they journeyed into the inky blackness. After laying several hundred feet of new line, a circuit was completed back onto the main line. Other areas of interest were marked for another day’s exploration. The team returned safely to the cenote after a 107 minute dive.

Team 2, Mark and Terrence, ventured downstream today in hopes of laying and surveying line. They began a 2 stage cylinder push to investigate leads noted from the September 2000 expedition. They had nearly reached the furthest point achieved by last year’s team when Mark, while switching to his final cylinder, noticed that a key component of his system, the second stage, had vanished! He immediately signaled his buddy Terrence, who after quickly assessing the situation called the dive. The team made it back to their second stage cylinder after 800 feet of highly motivated swimming. The remainder of the exit occurred without incident and in an extreme stroke of luck, Mark was able to find the missing components for his damaged regulator. They then took the time to reassemble the regulator and finished a relaxing exit followed by 40 minutes of decompression for a total of 140 minutes in the water.

This and all of the Foundation’s exploratory activities are made much simpler because of the team’s lighting systems by Sartek Industries. They are especially suited to exploration due to the fact that the incredible illumination enables the dive team to see leads that other lighting systems simply miss! A big thank you to Sartek and all of our other sponsors who have made our lives safer and easier here in Sistema Camilo!

We were fortunate today to cross paths with Don Camilo, for whom the cenote is named. We met him while he was out herding his livestock this morning. The goats seemed unaffected by the giant equipaje (equipment) truck and they continued to graze on the road to Sistema Camilo. Don Camilo, after posing for the camera, gathered his goats and away they went about their day.

Dive Team:
George McCulley, Mark Corkery, Andy Peterson, Renee Power, Terrence Tysall

---

Send questions or comments to the Trilobite.

Questions and Comments To the Trilobite

Hey Renee- Looks like you are working out the details with the sidemount gear fine. Let me know if you learn any good pointers. In fact, you are looking pretty good doing the model thing…afraid of the colorful loaner, eh? I admit, it’s pretty rough and looks a bit like a bumble bee. Lay a reel for me and get some good practice in so we can tear it up beneath the Ozarks.
Tami

Tami, Yes I am trying to work out the details with the sidemount rig. Yesterday I tried 4 cylinders for the first time. I felt as if I were a Rhinoceros in a china closet! No damage done though, thank goodness. Good pointers? I have found it’s best to secure the tanks in the sidemount tank retaining straps before proceeding into a small passage! See ya soon, Renee

Brother I wish I was there with you. I am there is spirit. Get me good tie in data! Survey Calivera and try to find an underwater connection between our cenote and mud. Enjoy it brother, it is something very few get to experience. They will not be this easy in the future. But, most important, take a moment in the cave each day to look and remember how special that moment is in your life. Cherish it! So, very few get to see what you have and will see. Worse yet, so many who do never pay attention.
Send my thoughts to all and I will be sending you good energy. Surprise me with what you find. Dive safely.
Grant Graves

Hey Grant,
A quick hello from all of us. Thanks for keeping the team in your thoughts. You are certainly missed. We will make sure and get you lots of usable data!

Dear Terry,
I have been reading about the expedition and it sounds exciting and I hope someday that I will be able to join you and the others. By the way I have been diving in Florida with my family and I made two 90′ dives in my new doubles (Paradise Springs). They were heavy but I can still carry them and I didn’t even make a mistake. Thank you for the parachute, it arrived in the mail today, I think that it is very neat and I know that I will enjoy it very much. Well have a good time and I hope to see you and Allison soon.
Regards,
Zachary St. Germain
P.S. Please check on the email from my dad.

Hey Zack,
Hopefully it won’t be to long before you are able to join us on the expeditions. Congratulations on your doubles dive, keep up the good work! Please say hi to your Mom and Sister for me. Keep logging in and checking things out!
Terrence