ShowCaveBlog

James Cameron is world famous, with Titanic the director made the best selling film of all times. Now he has launched Avatar, which has smashed his own record. And the next movie is already in the queue: Sanctum. However, director is this time Alister Grierson, not Cameron.
It is a story about cave diving. A team of cave divers exploring an Australian underwater cave is in deadly danger by the collapse of the entrance. Actually this type of story always ends pretty fast with the death of the divers, as the air runs out. But it seems this time the divers have to stay several days in the cave and finally make it back to the surface. Such an unlikely story actually happened, the movie is based on the experiences of the Australian Andrew Wight. He co-produced Cameron’s underwater documentaries.
James Cameron’s Sanctum filmed in Australia | Herald Sun

The Philippine government has released PHP 5 million (some €75,000, $100,000) for the development of the Sohoton Cave on Samar island, Eastern Visayas. The cave was already part of a National Park and guided, with a boat ride to the cave and a walk through the cave with men holding lamps. Now it will be improved with electric light and paths.
It seems the Phillipines learned what most first world countries already know: one reason for a show cave is the cave protection. If people are guided and must stay on a trail with handrail, they are not able to touch and destroy anything.

BusinessWorld Weekender: Samar to have country’s first ‘show cave’

We do not know why they wrote it was the first show cave of the country. Showcaves.com has liste numerous show caves. Probably it’s a matter of how one defines the term show cave.

An article on NPR catched our attention: Texting Underground Can Save Lives and Caves. It tells about an 16 year old boy named Alexander Kendrick, who invented an underground texting device. With this invention he won the 2009 International Science Fair and received a new computer, a trip to Switzerland and US$12,000 in checks.
While we are impressed by his work, we suggest he should visit Felix Ziegler of Cave-Link when he is in Switzerland. He invented the same device several years ago, but his device does not text through 1,000 feet of solid rock, it actually send through 1,200 metres of solid rock. It also sends the data of data loggers, is small and robust, does not need a huge and fragile antenna, and does not omit the h of happy. The work of Kendrick is definitely great, but actually it is not new. Diana Northup should have known that.

We read weird news from a cave in Nepal. Three foreign tourists, one Indian and two Korean, entered the sacred Gupteswor Mahadev Gufa on Wendsday 27-JAN-2010. Until Thursday 28-JAN-2010 they have not returned, so they presumably got lost in the cave.
The cave is said to be some three kilometres long. Actually this is a length given to most caves in this area, so we believe, it is another term for unbelievably long. However, the cave is in a semi wild state, there are narrow and low passages. It is much recommended to take an experienced guide along, but actually it is not necessary. Beginning Thursday morning, a rescue team of police plus local volunteers started to search the cave and surroundings.

Tourists go missing after entering cave in Pokhara