The 2022 Horsethief season wrapped up strong. This year brought the project to a new level of maturity: 61 volunteers participated, clocking 1,580.75 hours in the cave (3,602.75 hours total for the project since its start). The team completed 5,120.77 feet of survey—bringing the cumulative total to 11,945.76 feet (2.26 miles)—and reached deeper areas of the cave by pushing through challenging passages. The grotto now has 285 side passage leads marked, and nearly all earlier leads are logged in the database (missing only 4). Major milestones this year: completing the E line, hitting the mile 2 mark, and validating the digital sketch process. Budget came in lean at $707.82 for expenses. Brian Gindling called it the most well-planned survey project he’s had the pleasure of working on, and the crew’s focus on training new surveyors—even when it meant slower trips—is building the stable, experienced team the project will need for years to come.
