Here's an itinerary - simply sites listed in probable order of exploration and some description of sites so you have a feel for what we're getting into. Pretty difficult to put firm dates on each site since I want to retain a fair bit of flexibility, but the sites are ordered below in the most sensible order in terms of mileage and drive times, and we probably won't deviate much from this. I suspect this agenda will easily fill the alloted time. FYI, this same file and map (and likely any subsequent relevant material generated prior to trip) can be found on WWW at http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~deanhend/march97/
Please feel free to question or comment. I've provided phone numbers of local contacts as possible if you want to leave this with anyone so you might be reached in emergencies. Map to follow by end of week with any luck. I'll also soon get something to you soon regarding my ideas about vehicles and finances for all of this.
As for dates, I'm hoping folks can make it to Austin (welcome to stay at my house) on the 5th of March (Wednesday), and we can drive to the border on 6th, possibly crossing that day, or getting across early the next. Some might want to go directly to McAllen to meet the rest of us coming from Austin. I'm flexible regarding that and can provide hotel info so we can hook up in McAllen at a hotel. If you come to Austin, AAA here is convenient for advance purchase of vehicle insurance and all papers for vehicle importation, but you can also do that at border too (though I'd like to have it all out of the way before we leave to facilitate quick border crossing). We might be meeting those coming from D.F. in Monterrey or Cd. Victoria or later in Monterrey (Héctor - favor de avisar). The first two sites are within easy one-day driving distance on very good roads from Reynosa, our border-crossing location. We'll plan to leave México on or before 26th (Wednesday) at Cd. Acuña (=Del Rio, TX).
Having this large group and multiple vehicles will be nice, since as you will see, there will be a number of places where a couple of different things could be going on at once.
1. El Nacimiento del Río Frio (near Gomez Farias, Tamaulipas (between Cd. Victoria and Cd. Mante) - access via "La Florida" to Poza Azul) - Large spring issuing to Poza Azul through boulder field. After my explorations, which revealed no access for divers among the boulders, I learned of a cave a short distance above the springs (I must have been very close) which has a vertical drop to water (Russell, W.H. and Raines, T.W. Caves of the Inter-American highway, Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas to Tamazunchale, San Luis Potosi, Austin, Texas:Bulletin 1, Association for Mexican Cave Studies, 1967.pp. 1-126.). As far as I can determine, this site has never been dove. When I explored, I had to walk about a km from La Florida, but there's a dam at Poza Azul and canals from it, so I presume there's a way to get there with vehicles, though I saw no evidence that anyone had driven there recently. The primary reason for putting this site first is to determine access, and if we encounter permission or access problems, we can move to second site while those details are worked out.
There's another big spring N of here (Nacimiento del Rio Sabinas) that has been dove a number of times (Exley, S. [exclamdown]Nacimientos! Diving the big springs of the Sierra Madre. Assoc.Mexican Cave Stud.Bulletin 10:23-31, 1979 - also discusses other springs in the area), but it descends rapidly from a surface river and is full of surface fishes. Mike Lang and Steve Gerrard dove it on our trip a couple years ago. I'd be surprised to find blindcats here, and so have blown it off, but continue to look for other sites in this area.
2. El Nacimiento de San Rafael de los Castro - this is where Tom Morris collected the only known specimen of Prietella lundbergi. Mike Lang and Steve Gerrard dove this site a couple years ago for me, and came up empty handed (fish-wise, but some new snails and isopods). Locals are extremely helpful. We'll likely camp here for at least a couple days while diving the spring and exploring a sotano on the steep mountainside immediately above the spring. Locals say gringo cavers have explored the sotano and took some invertebrate samples, and told them it goes down to water, but I have yet to find out who did those explorations. The Sotano appears to have several entrances off its steep walls, but I've not explored it. Also near here I'm told a local once knocked a hole in a shallow subterranean stream and irrigated corn from it. It's now apparently been abandoned and his hole covered up. Hopefully locals will be able to take us to it this time, but we failed to find it last time I was there. It interested me because it was relatively far from surface waters, and thus surface fishes. I'm pretty sure the blindcats will be unlikely to be found together with other fishes except perhaps when displaced into sympatry with them by floods. Surface fishes enter the spring here for some distance. Locals have also told me of a couple other springs in the vicinity that we'll probably scope out. I'm also continuing to pursue a lead from a caver in Ciudad Valles who says he's seen blind catfish and blind frogs in a cave somewhere between Cd. Mante and Cd. Valles. I hope to have more info soon. The general area from Rio Frio and south is important, since only 1 specimen exists to date, and it's clearly differentiated and geographically far from other populations (note next one is far north, and I have no leads in between, though there are many caves, and most have been pretty well explored). A friend recently told me about an easily accessible cave from which irrigation water is being drawn not far south of Mante. We'll go check it out too. The big spring at Mante, only a few km S of San Rafael de los Castro, has had many, many dives, with no reports of blindcats, so we'll not do it.
San Rafael lacks all utilities and there is thus no phone where we could be reached.
I also lack phone numbers for people at the places listed in #1. In case of emergency, police in Cd. Mante could easily find us knowing we were to be at these places (any in 1 and 2).
Now, a pretty long drive up through Monterrey to central Coahuila (unfortunately no leads in between)....
3. Cueva La Zumbadora upstream from La Madrid (not far E of Cuatro Ciénegas). This cave has a waterfall not far inside that gave it the name "humming cave". It became accessible just a few years ago when a large deposit at its mouth which reached essentially to the ceiling was dug out. Discharge has been fairly high both times I've been there, through a deep, narrow, serpentine channel. It's an easy swim with occasional walks over short riffles to a sump upstream only 100 m or so from the waterfall. Other than this short reach between waterfall and upstream sump that I've swum a couple times, the system's never been explored. I saw no fish when I was there. A diversion structure has recently been constructed above the waterfall, but was immediately abandoned when the first attempt at diversion revealed that this water proceeds underground to La Madrid. Exploring down the waterfall looks unlikely unless discharge is way below what I've see. It roars down through a tight corkscrew that at least I wouldn't be anxious to jump into. On the other hand, the diversion could be activated and the falls dried. This would stop flow at La Madrid's municipal spring, so we'd have to ask about this in advance, but I suspect they'd let us do this for a couple hours or so. To get here, we can drive up the arroyo a couple km from La Madrid, where we'll hook up with local pack animals to carry gear the rest of the way (maybe a few km). A rumor of a blindcat taken by locals somewhere in the vicinity of the town has been recently going around, and I place some credence in it, though I can't run down the source or locality. I had been pessimistic about them being up here a ways into the sierra, but who knows. Until the recent rumor I was planning to blow this site off and leave it until last if we had time, but now think we'll give it a shot, even though it will take at least a couple days. Backpacks will be needed, and we'll walk up the arroyo (pretty easy hike) with camping gear, but heavy gear will go on animals.
In La Madrid, we could be reached through the Presidencia Municipal at 011 52 869 41932 - ask for any of Benito Santiana Rodriguez, Kuko Vásquez or José Armendariz Esquivel.
While we're in this area, we will shoot over to Cuatro Ciénegas. I know that basin pretty well, and have looked all over for cave springs without success (there's an old rumor of German divers taking a couple blindcats there once, but nothing ever appeared in literature and nobody knows who they were), but recently learned of a cave from which issues a small stream at El Venado on a far SE side of the basin where I've not explored. I'll check it out in February. There's also Mojarral West, the rumored blindcat locality. Warm water (just below body temp) comes up here and quickly goes back down through a tight cave that might be diveable. I'll at least let divers look at it. Water temp seems too high for blindcats, but a within 100 meters of here, a large flow of cool water surfaces to form Mojarral East. It comes up at the base of a travertine ledge, and I can't see any openings large enough for a diver, but again, you can look at it.
I'm still working on getting someone to show me a supposedly very deep sotano in a remote part of Valle de Menchaca, between La Madrid and Cuatro Ciénegas. If I can nail it down, and it sounds easy to get to (unlikely) we might try it.
Cuatro Ciénegas phones are that of the Presidencia ([011] (52) 86 9 60650) where at least Pepe Dávila will know where we are, or Susana Moncada (home phone - [011] (52) 86 9 60443).
4. Múzquiz - El Potrero just outside of town is the type locality for Prietella phreatophila. Two specimens were collected here just after Christmas this year by locals, the first in about 20 years (but nobody's really been trying until I came along). I had set him up with traps 8 months earlier, and the fish came and went over the space of about 8 days. A mining company has submersible pumps here that run continually, but we're optimistic that they'll let us turn them off for a dive. The letter is in the works now, and the guy in charge has been cooperative before. I'm virtually certain that this site has never seen divers before. Water level has varied a fair bit over my visits. Last week (Jan 17) it was as high as I've seen (at base of short ladder from entry), but a few months before it was about 4-5 m below that, and in between it came up several more meters to actually flow out from below the steel door that now covers it. The site is the natural opening of a crack at the base of the sierra, but is now covered by steel doors and highly modified by pump installation. The crack appears to narrow quickly as it descends near vertically - almost certain to be a deep dive and possibly too restrictive for divers, but who knows? If water is way down, a bit of minor rope work might be necessary here, otherwise, water is very easily reached. There are some vertical shafts in abandoned portions of the mine within easy walking distance of this site which drop to water, but at least the one I looked at looks dangerous, with a number of fallen timbers perched precariously in the shaft.
The owner of the nearby mine would be a logical contact in emergencies - Hugo Martinez at [011] (52) 861-61714 (ofice - he speaks good English).
A short distance west of here is what is now the town's domestic water supply issuing from flooded mine tunnels at "El Socavón". Municipality has offered to open this up for us, but despite collection of a few blindcats here over the years (from the "spring house"), I haven't really pursued it since currents in the tunnels which descend at high gradient from the sierra are very strong and accessible areas do not appear to be blindcat habitat. Local officials indicated they would be happy to open up the spring house (at the bottom end of the tunnels), or uncover upstream ventilation shafts for us, if we want to try it.
Since there's not much here in Múzquiz for the vertical assistance team (unless we decide to try shafts in the mine at El Potrero), they might wish to explore a depression feature which shows up on topo a ways N of Múzquiz, and for which I have obtained ranch administrator's permission to explore. I'm sure it's never been explored before, but looks like something that might be of interest (albeit at somewhat higher elevation than other blindcat sites). Adminstrator said he'd have a road into there by now - previously very remote.
5. Nacimiento Kikapu - we're still working on access here. There's an old, hand-dug well perched on a hillside inside a cattle pen above this traditional Indian village. This used to be a free-flowing spring, judging from old travertine deposits, but now has a windmill and water in a crack about 10 m below the surface. Vehicles could drive right to it. Crack looks wide enough to negotiate, but I've not dropped into it (though it would be very easy with a cable ladder). I'm told by reliable sources that blindcats used to be found here. The tribe is not generally open to explorations by outsiders, but again, we're working on it. I've heard of a sotano near here, but it's said to be dry, and a spring on a ranch not far away that we might look into if we feel like we've been making good time, but seems unlikely. No phone for this site at the moment.
6. "Ojo del Yermo" on Rancho El Mulato - this is the site I mentioned in an earlier e-mail/FAX. A known blindcat locality, a deep dive situation starting at the bottom of a 45 m vertical pit. Jim Bowden has dove it. Working on permission to access it. I'll include the info from yesterday's note for sake of completeness of this file:
I visited today with Mark Minton in his office (Chemisty, WEL 5.150, phone 512 471-5955, Minton@mail.utexas.edu). We looked over maps and he pointed out "Ojo del Yermo" on the 1:50,000 La Comunidad map (H14C72 - CETENAL - no date). I calculate the coordinates of the feature to be approximately 28 24'57"N; 101 37'40"W. It shows as a tiny depression about 5.25 km due W of Rancho El Mulato. Easiest access appears to be by turning E from the Múzquiz - Boquillas de Carmen highway N of La Rosita and about 1.25 km N of the crossing of Arroyo El Comandante, just before the highway takes a 45 turn to head NW (see H14C71 - El Comandante). This road likely would be marked "La Comunidad", and in Mark's recollection has a locked steel gate. Upon arriving at La Comunidad, one would head N along the airstrip shown on map to El Mulato and left (actually SW) there to go generally East around N end of a low hill, continuing to the sotano. All these roads are on the map. The sotano is shown as about 400 m from the road, but Mark says it can easily be driven (but watch out for punctured sidewalls from brush). Mark confirmed this to be the locality of TNHC 12100. This specimen was collected by Mark and others on 15 March 1986. He's uncertain exactly who went on that specific trip (but our old hand-written catalog says "Mark Minton, Steve Gutting, Bill Steele and Nancy Weaver"). Jim Bowden and Brian Steele (512 444-0873 or at REI 343-5550) are others I've run across who've also been there with him, and Mark confirmed. He's wanted to return, but said he always relied on Steve Gutting for access permission, and Steve has always fallen through on that (as I experienced a couple years ago - above). The feature is unnamed as far as he knows, and they concocted the name "Ojo del Yermo" (says Yermo means desert - though I've never heard it used). He gave me a little sketch map of the cave, done from memory. It's about a 45 m vertical drop down a shaft near one edge of the cone to the horizontal stream channel. The approach to the shaft sounded easy. He estimates one would need perhaps 70 m of rope to tie off to boulders a ways back from the shaft. Once at the channel, one direction was blocked by debris. They dug through and explored to a sump. The other direction leads to a large "lake" sump. Jim Bowden dove this to 150 feet and said he could not see the walls or bottom despite great visibility - it apparenly opens up into an huge and very deep chamber. He said every time he was there, catfish were extremely abundant in this lake. Bowden told me same. He points out that they saw many different water levels on their several visits. When Bowden almost got carried away by current, the water was partially up the 45 m shaft, and he was surprised by cross-current in the channel at bottom. Luckily he had stayed on rope for the descent. In other words, if you hear a splash when throwing rocks down shaft, think twice about diving, but it sounds like normal situation is a dry channel at bottom of drop. When Bowden dove, the water in the shaft was clear, but there was a current raging through the channel it intersects. Water levels sound highly variable. On first time Minton went, they easily entered the "lake" and swam across to a "lead" on other side (but sounds like they didn't explore that). On a subsequent visit with lower water, they needed additional rope to get to the surface of "lake" and were not able to get up the other side to the lead. He's not sure where one might tie off for this second descent if needed. They never saw catfish in the other smaller sump at other end of the system (he's not sure if it's upstream or downstream), but said at lowest water levels it would become swimmable without need to dive to explore its other side. Cave has evidence of massive flooding he says.
Ranch administrator in Múzquiz is Sr. Contador Raúl de los Santos Montemayor in Múzquiz. Office telephone/FAX is [011] (52) 861 6-10-79. I'm pretty sure he speaks English.
7. Rancho San Miguel - given its location, this place almost certainly has blindcats. It's an apparently deep opening in the bottom of a surface arroyo. The pool always has water, but water does not always flow out into the arroyo. A variety of surface fishes and turtles live here. Never before explored, but we have owner's permission and with his key can get vehicles very close and walk easily right into the water. A dive-only situation. The surrounding area could stand to be explored for entrances to the aquifer more distant from surface fishes.
Ranch administrator is Lic. Miguel Valdéz Villareal in Zaragoza - 011 52 862 6-04-45.
8. Rancho El Consuelo - Another old hand dug well. No specimens, but no doubt that blindcats were once abundant here. Owner has had the place since 1952, and described the fish perfectly. Reported them coming up regularly in well buckets and once dying en masse after they threw lime in the well when a goat (or chicken according to owner's father) fell in and died. A pump was installed on this about 20 years ago, and they have not seen fish since (not surprising since if sucked into pump they might get mascerated on their way to the irrigation system and go un-noticed, and they are no longer dipping well water for the house). I left a trap some months ago, but it seems it was never used. It sounds like divers might fit in crack intersected by the shaft. A simple drop to water (10 m?), where there's an obvious light current. Owner says it's never dried (and it's a big pump sitting on it). A drive up situation and cable ladder descent probably.
Ranch owner is Julio Albert Medina in Morelos, telephone [011] (52) 862 4-05-25.
9. La Tembladora - another hand dug well (actually a pair of them). No doubt that blindcats are here, but no specimens. Owner has had a trap for some time, but recently released two specimens (long story). Well drops to what appears to be a narrow crack. Huge springs nearby that we might try to get access too, but no obvious cave entrance there. Will also continue search for more wells in the area. Not far from here is an old flooded mine. Juan is currently researching and if he gets permission, we might do a quick check.
No phone here.
10. Sotano de Amezcua - I've had specimens from here for some time. ATM coordinates are estimated at E:260650 N:3245550. A 70 m vertical drop from the bottom of a collapse structure easily reached by vehicles. Requires a fair bit of rope since I don't think there are good tie off points at top of shaft (at least we tied off to vehicle at rim). Loose talus in cone descending to shaft requires rope. One sump within about 30 m of end of rope, and a similar downstream one a difficult (at least with dive gear - sometimes flooded though) crawl over cobbles and down a snaking channel. Photos and notes at
http://www.utexas.edu/depts/tnhc/.www/fish/tnhc/geograph/mex/coa/caves/cavehab.html
Neither sump has seen divers. Turbidity guaranteed to soar as soon as anybody gets in water, but seems likely to be large areas to explore beyond the sumps. Obviously floods dramatically, but hopefully we'll hit low water. When I was there, channel between the sumps was almost entirely dry, but others have found it completely flooded or with only a couple inches of air space. I have a basic map of the cave.
I've recently tied down locations of a couple wells in same general area that we'll also visit pending landowner permission (likely and letters are on their way). Fairly reliable reports of blindcats at both - one in well buckets, other that they get blown out in floods. Also a cave near one merits a look. I haven't found any information on this cave, other than from ranch owner who says it's unexplored (but I haven't really looked yet either).
Don Homero Amezcua, ranch owner, lives in Cd. Acuña, but mail address is P.O. Box 1482, Del Rio, TX 78835. I don't have his phone, but information in Cd. Acuña would surely have it.
That's it for now. I suspect this will pretty well fill our trip, but it's really hard to tell, since so many sites are previously unexplored and some access arrangements are still up in the air. I also expect that we'll discover or hear of some additional sites as we go. Should we end up with extra time, however, we might try some places I've not explored that hit the San Felipe Spring aquifer outside of Del Rio, TX. The city of Del Rio does not sound interested in letting us into San Felipe Spring again, unfortunately.