Karl and Renee prepare for the dive
Karl assists Andy with his gear
Renee enters the cave
Andy collects a water sample from within the cave
One of the divers discovers a tiny isopod
Renee takes a closer look
To obtain the water samples required by the science team, Andrew Pitkin, Renee Power and Karl Shreeves fought their way upstream into Rock Springs. Andrew gathered the first set of samples just inside the cave, then after ferrying them to the surface team, the divers went to the second collection site, approximately 100 feet into the cave. Karl collected these samples, assisted by Renee who provided bright but brief lighting with her camera’s flash.
Two sample sites remained, both in the farthest and tightest reaches of Rock. Fighting the high flow, it took the team more than 45 minutes to reach the Hammer T, including a brief stop to pick up a reel Renee left in the cave last September for purely scientific purposes. The team gathered water samples off both branches, including from beyond the tight restriction (not quite so tight now that Karl’s been through) in the main flow. The trio then headed out, looking for biological specimens (cave critters) as they exited, surfacing after a successful 98 minute dive.
After wrapping up topside activities, the dive team headed for Seminole Scuba, a PADI Dive Center in Lake Mary that is graciously contributing air fills to the project. Thank you, Bill and Laura Blackburn and everyone at Seminole Scuba!
The surface crew later joined Amy for a presentation on aquatic biology at Piedmont Lakes Middle School in Apopka. Thank you Nature Club!!
Team Members:
Rima Franklin
Amy Giannotti
Betsy Hackley
Andrew Pitkin
Renee Power
Kris Shannon
Karl Shreeves