Author: sfbcadministrator

Dear Members,
The July SFBC Members’ Meeting will take place in the San Carlos Public Library on Tuesday July 24 at 7:30 PM. There is a parking lot in front of the library and plenty of street parking in the area.
*PRESENTATION:*
This month’s presentation, beginning at 7:45, will be:
*Cave Arachnids of California *
California Academy of Sciences arachnologist, *Darrell Ubick*, will give us a special version of his presentation on Cave Arachnids of California. Come learn from one of our very own experts about some of the fauna you might see while exploring California caves. In addition to learning about those spiders, the presentation will cover cave ecology, the modifications that cave-specific species have to navigate their environment, and other cave fauna.
*LOCATION/DIRECTIONS:*
This is the address for the June meeting:
San Carlos Library,
610 Elm St, San Carlos, CA 94070
This link will help you find it on google maps:
*Google Maps <goo.gl/maps/Rryvp1ERZkL2>*
*Google Maps*

This month’s pre-member’s meeting dinner and executive committee meeting will be held at Broiler Express, which is located at 895 Laurel St, San Carlos, CA 94070. This is the link for it on google maps: goo.gl/maps/bxHypZeiDsQ2.
For those who are interested in attending, the after-meeting caver happy hour will be held at St. James Gate, 1410 Old County Road, Belmont, CA 94002.
I hope you can all make it this coming Tuesday (i.e. next week)!

Rafael

sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/video/category/spoken-word-kpixtv/3895339-thai-cave-rescue-crews-race-against-time/

Howdy!
You know what’s coming this Wednesday, don’t you? Barbecue, beer, not doing much, watching fireworks. Yes, it does sounds like fun, but you can prepare for all that lack of action by getting on rope, hone your vertical skills and hang out with some of your favorite people. So, join us tomorrow, Tuesday, 3 July, for our monthly vertical practice!
Our kind hosts will be Peri and Bill Frantz. You can arrive anytime after 6:30 pm, we will have some dinner and immediately after we will have some fun on rope.
Dinner is “modified potluck style,” where you bring your own main dish and also bring a small appetizer, side dish or dessert to share. We will have a grill for your food, in case you need one.
Please bring a helmet and a headlamp, and a jacket, since we will be practicing outdoors if weather permits. If you don’t have yet a helmet or headlamp, we will have a couple of extras. Bring your vertical gear if you have it, and if not, we will also have a couple of extras for you.
The address is:
16345 Englewood Ave Los Gatos, CA 95032 goo.gl/maps/rKNoy
See y’all soon!
– Fofo

All cavers are always welcome. Annual BBQ will be at California Caverns ( www.yelp.com/biz/california-cavern-state-historic-landmark-mountain-ranch) in Mountain Ranch on August 11-12.
Most cavers do a quick half day trip on Saturday & then join the BBQ. Sunday trips are also an option. There’s usually a slide show by Dave Bunnell for the evening & we often rig vertical ‘play areas’ in the trees.

Based on the survey we’re going to have the mid-year trip planning meeting on June 12 at Rafael’s in Menlo Park.
Calendar Link: calendar.google.com/event?action=TEMPLATE&tmeid=NnI0c21rM2F2NTVlZjQwaDZidWxuNXE3ODggc2ZiYXljYXZpbmcub3JnX2dxaTV2MTlscDRlOGN0dWRibzkxamxybW0wQGc&tmsrc=sfbaycaving.org_gqi5v19lp4e8ctudbo91jlrmm0%40gr…
Given the balance between those who can attend Tuesday and Saturday (canceled), I’m hoping the (3) that cannot make it, can still participate through email. Feel free to reach out to either myself or Rafael (Rafael Langer-Osuna <rafael@sfbaycaving.org>) on what sort of cave trips you’d like to do between now and the end of the year.
For everyone else – As a courtesy, please email Rafael to let him know you’ll be attending. Rafael Langer-Osuna <rafael@sfbaycaving.org>
Note we’ll have an evening activity starting at 11PM. Please bring dark clothing you would not mind getting dirty. There is also a chance of ankle deep water so potential for wet shoes.
If you’re a new member who has questions like “what other caves are there in CA?” or “what are these caves like?”, I highly recommend checking out our wiki (wiki.sfbaycaving.org), as well as our newsletter search engine ( www.sfbaycaving.org/members-2/873-2/). These are great resources to learn more about caves in CA and with time, appreciate your own contribution.

Alan

Howdy!
Now that the weekend is almost over, and you are back at home, reminiscing of the fun things that happened this weekend, and thinking of the upcoming plans for the rest of the year, think of this, have you been itching to get on rope? Do you have any upcoming amazing caving trips and you want your technique to be flawless when crossing rebelays and climbing on rope? Or do you happen to be in town and you have a chance to visit some caving friends and catch up?
Well, then, in that case, you are in luck! Because we will be holding our monthly vertical practice this coming Tuesday, 1 May. I know, I know, it’s the international labor day, which is traditionally celebrated by not doing any labor, but hey, we are cavers, that’s how we roll!
PLEASE NOTE A CHANGE IN LOCATION FOR THIS PRACTICE ONLY! Our kind hosts will be Marguerite and Jock Williams. You can arrive anytime after 6:30 pm, we will have some dinner and immediately after we will have some fun on rope.
Dinner is “modified potluck style,” where you bring your own main dish and also bring a small appetizer, side dish or dessert to share. We will have a grill ready for your heat-processing you food, if needed.
Please bring a helmet and a headlamp, and a jacket, since we will be practicing outdoors. If you don’t have yet a helmet or headlamp, we will have a couple of extras. Bring your vertical gear if you have it, and if not, we will also have a couple of extras for you.
The address is:
2350 Perich Court Mountain View, CA 94040 goo.gl/maps/xv6cPLHuYvn
See y’all soon!
– Fofo

Presentation: Krubera: An Expedition into the World’s Deepest Cave.
The April SFBC Members’ Meeting will take place in the San Carlos Public Library on Tuesday April 24 at 7:30 PM. There is a parking lot in front of the library and plenty of street parking in the area.
*PRESENTATION:*
This month’s presentation, beginning at 7:45, will be:
*Krubera: An Expedition into the World’s Deepest Cave.*
* Krubera Cave in the Western Caucasus Mountains is the stuff of caver legend. Come hear what it is like to be part of an expedition exploring a cave 7,000 feet deep. Join us the 4th Tuesday of every month for a lecture/ slideshow presentation by Ryan Baker member of the San Francisco Bay Chapter of the National Speleological Society to explore the world of caving. Ryan has participated in deep cave expeditions in China, India, Belize, Spain, France, Mexico, and Georgia/ Abkhazia.*
*By Ryan Baker*
*LOCATION/DIRECTIONS:*
This is the address for the April meeting: San Carlos Library, 610 Elm St, San Carlos, CA 94070
This link will help you find it on google maps: *Google Maps <goo.gl/maps/Rryvp1ERZkL2>*
Google Maps <goo.gl/maps/Rryvp1ERZkL2>
This month’s pre-member’s meeting dinner and executive committee meeting will be held at Broiler Express, which is located at 895 Laurel St, San Carlos, CA 94070. This is the link for it on google maps: goo.gl/maps/bxHypZeiDsQ2.
For those who are interested in attending, the after-meeting caver happy hour will be held at St. James Gate, 1410 Old County Road, Belmont, CA 94002.
I look forward to seeing you all this coming Tuesday!
Rafael

Attached is NSS’ request for all cavers to contact their three representatives to U.S. Congress regarding blanket cave closures. It’s a cinch to do so:

· Senators – www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/ senators_cfm.cfm (Use the state pull-down menu.)
· Representative – www.house.gov/representatives/find-your- representative (Use the zip code lookup.)

Happy New Year everyone!
I hope everyone had a pleasant break and enjoyed the holidays as much as I did. Let’s start the New Year with our annual Trip Planning meeting at the Beach Residence starting at 6 PM on Tuesday (1/16).

Everyone is welcome. Bring along your trip ideas, big or small or just come along ready to be inspired for caving. This year we will have sandwiches and some wine and beer will also be provided. You’re welcome to bring something to contribute if you like.

When Tue Jan 16, 6pm – 8:30pm (trip planning from 7pm)
Where Residence of Gale and Ray Beach

A bit of homework for the folks!
1) Please list all the caves you are interested in going to in California (or abroad!). This is your chance to speak up on caves you wish to explore, conserve, map, survey, sleep in, you name it! – Write on paper and bring to meeting.

2) Let us know at the meeting whether or not you’re willing to lead trips along with which trip/cave you’d like to lead. We’re in need of some cavers to lead awesome cave trips! Don’t know if you’re sufficiently experienced? No problem, we’ll work with you on that.

Thanks and I look forward to having a fun and productive meeting!

Sincerely your Chair,

Rafael Langer-Osuna