A Guide by Stephen Gladieux
Pushing Down Stream in Ta’c Wees
It’s a Good place. Literally, T’ac Wees is a Nimipu (Nez Perce) word meaning good place. It has been very good to us in the past few years.
The story goes that the spectacular waterfalls disappearing into a cave had been known in the caving community for a long time, but that entrance had rebuked several dive attempts. On a trip in 2000, someone walked a few meters away for a bathroom break and felt cold air on their ankles – and thus the entrance was found with no real effort in proximity to great effort and dangerous attempts.
The survey of T’ac Wees was never finished. It hadn’t been pushed in many years, but in the past few seasons a new group has taken up the task. We’ve doubled the total length, found an additional stream and some of the most beautiful parts of the cave. There is a lot of water, and it is cold. Raging 2°C waterfalls make it hard to hear disto readings. We were always tantalized by the bottom of the two main streamways.
The old notes said one ended and the other got grim. The one that ended was easy enough to access – it doesn’t end, it just gets grim. We reasoned that the grim one, might only get unpleasant. We whetted our appetites and piled our wetsuits by the door.
The first push down stream one was to cover the last 80m originally surveyed past the end of the nice parts. We got into it, resurveying as we went, and shortly hit a split. Here the water flowed down a -30° tube that was half full of water and half of a water-air mix. It was the sort of passage in which it’s hard to breathe, unless you drink at the same time. At the bottom it sumped and we each floated in the water feeling ahead with our toes. Perhaps the flow was higher than when it was surveyed? We were too cold to attack the dry side lead.
Effort begets discovery and our wet adventure unearthed a major error in the draft map – there was a botched tie in! The way on wasn’t down the watery suit-slicer, it was the side lead! We swore to return, but winter stood in our way. We wouldn’t be stopped.
It was a 5.5km (3.9 mi) ski or snowshoe with 450m (1500’) of gain and 260m (860’) loss. The final section went down a steep hill 240m (800’) to the cave and provided some fun turns as well as guaranteed warmth after exiting the cave. Snow travel adds another element, another needed skill set and gear, and a greater need for endurance and efficient movement. We had to dig the cave open.
This time we took the correct route and rejoined the water beyond the sump in a horizontal section. I’m not even sure it counted as unpleasant, and certainly not grim. Soon the passage tipped downward and started to open up. We never figured out when we blew past the limits of the old survey. We scrambled down cascades. We perched in dry leads. We sat on glistening cobbles. The cave roared downward.
We exited the cave in twilight reflecting off snow, and showing shadows of moss hanging from fir and yew. Wetsuits, cave suits, boots, and harnesses had to be packed up the steep hill. The mountain and the winter demanded more effort before dinner and a warm sleeping bag in the cars.
When we ended the survey, the cave was still going down, still comfortable, still eating away at the 270m (900’) of additional depth potential. It tugs at our minds every day. We’ll be back.
Gear Tips
Alpine caving in the winter is serious business, especially if the approach is long! Like mountaineering, the descent is often when things go wrong: the weather window closes, it gets dark, people are tired, clothing is damp, packs are heavier (mud and water). It is important to avoid excess weight since speed and a reserve of energy are important to safety – it is also important to have enough warmth security. That is particularly true for feet and hands.
For the approach/ascent:
- Long underwear (the pair you will wear caving, but a second pair for the descent)
- Softshell pants – you will sweat!
- Light gloves, and heavier gloves – you’ll sweat a pair out, and likely get them wet digging the cave open
- Use totally separate clothing for snow travel vs. caving.
- Skis and skins are much better than snowshoes
Changing:
- You will have to get nearly naked, it can’t be avoided
- A small foam pad to stand on is nice, otherwise use your pack
- Leave your upper body layers on until immediately before you pull up caving layers, conserve your heat!
- Do everything with gloves on! This is one of the most essential skills in winter travel.
Caving:
- In really wet, cold caves, no glove beats the G1 5mm neoprene with aramid palm from Waterproof
- In less swimming caves, use gauntlet style gloves (Marigolds are best) with thin fleece liners
- For survey, or drier sections, use insulated stretch gloves like these (which work well with heat packs) or 2mm neoprene
- Whether you cave in coated Cordura suit or PVC, whether it is fleece or a wetsuit underneath, you won’t be able to use it on the surface. Don’t attempt a long walk to the car in deep snow and soaking caving clothes!
- Use Xtra Tuffs or canyoneering boots with neoprene
- Bring a thick trash bag so your wet gear doesn’t soak through to your back on the descent.