Shotgun Hole? Who Said That?

The first official meeting of the semester was held during the second week of classes for some reason, with a planned after meeting paddle. Our new president has been militant about recruiting and advertising, though usually OAR just lets people find it on their own. Thus, the first meeting was packed and the after meeting paddle was beyond full. Mike and I, as well as a few others, decided instead to lead a trip to Shotgun Hole, an OAR favorite. Our group was about 10 people and we had the rope ladder with us, since Mike had commandeered all of the vertical gear the previous weekend with the intention of leading vertical practice. 

I was really hesitant about Shotgun Hole. I had been so careful with my shoulder injury and had been feeling better but I wasn't sure if this trip would tip the scales and send me flying back to the doctor. I brought a set of vertical gear and rope just in case I couldn't climb the rope ladder. Luckily, it was unnecessary and after about an hour or so of swimming and paying around in Shotgun Hole, I sprinted up the rope ladder with ease, a successful test of my shoulder. 

Logels in Florida

Due to the persuading of Mike (and me, a little bit... at least, I like to think), Logel decided to actually come to Florida to visit for once, bringing his brother and two friends, Windham and Joseph. They were expected to arrive around 2 AM Friday night/Saturday morning, so we decided to stay up and play foosball in anticipation. However, when Logel informed us that they would be arriving around 5 AM, Kelsey and I decided to go home and sleep. 

The next day, we met Logel and crowd for breakfast in Gainesville and then headed to UF's Lake Wauberg for some sailing. I hadn't been sailing on a Hobie Cat before and I was in for quite the adventure. My first round was with Mike, Logel, and Kelsey. The water was chilly and the sun was playing coy with us, so getting soaked was not as fun as I anticipated. We almost flipped the Hobie several times and I seemed to get the brunt of the waves smashing into us. Suffice to say, I looked as if I had been swimming by the time we circled back to shore. Bevin's Hobie Cat was having rudder issues, so I volunteered to go in her boat and give the others a chance. I was with Bevin, Vlad, Kelsey, and Logel, Mike had the other three. We raced each other around the Lake and Mike's boat kept trying to jump onto ours. We ended up at one point with six people on our boat, swapping Logel for his brother and Windham. Bevin kept trying to get Kelsey and I to swim and she eventually elbowed me out of the boat. I flew over the edge and fully submerged as they sped away. Mike and Logel came to get me and pulled me out of the freezing water. We played around with the boats for a while longer before going to get ice cream nearby and then hiking to Paynes Prairie. 

That night, we invited over tons of OAR people to Mike's apartment and challenged each other to rounds of foosball. I'm absolutely terrible but it was a lot of fun and I practiced with Bevin until we both were pretty decent. We moved the foosball table into the hallway and tried to drag random passersby into our games. Few complied but the ones that did seemed to have fun. Then we headed to Shotgun Hole for a night of caving and swimming in the springs. The next day, Logel and his fellow North Carolinians joined Mike and I in Jacksonville for further adventures. We went to Mike's house and paddled his Hobie Cat (rather than sailing it, the mast was difficult to deal with) to Exchange Club Island. We walked around and explored the island some before paddling back. I steered the boat in for a perfect landing and then we piled into cars and went to my house. There, my mother prepared a chocolate fountain party for the six of us and I was impressed with the guys' ability to eat through a majority of the food. We then went to Mike's parents' for dinner, at which point I thought my stomach would explode. Then the Logel group headed back home, a nice weekend on the water in the middle of February. 

Events occurred: February 22-24, 2013

Vertical Caving Crash Courses and Practical

In an attempt to encourage more OAR people to try vertical caving, Mike organized several crash courses and a local practical. Crash courses entail throwing a rope up into a tree, teaching people how to ascend up the rope and perform a changeover from ascent to rappel. Once you are familiar with the gear and the concepts, it is actually relatively easy. However, if you don't understand the mechanics and aren't familiar with how the different devices work, it can be extremely difficult. As the only one in the group other than Mike that had actually been vertical caving before, I found myself primarily teaching others. I like this though because in teaching, I was able to reiterate to myself what to do and it has become instinctive. 




After several practices on trees, one night Mike took us to Shotgun Hole, a local "cave" with a spring. The cave itself is tiny and the rappel is only about 20 feet. Usually, the club uses a rope ladder instead of caving gear for ease and expediency. However, for the sake of education, we used the vertical harnesses, racks, and ascent devices. Shotgun Hole was a typical OAR adventure before my time but in recent years, we have only gone sporadically. I had never been before and though I have returned several times, I still cannot remember its precise location: somewhere in the middle of nowhere just outside of Gainesville. I am also uncertain as to the origin of its name, which I don't find particularly comforting. Regardless, our group of two cars headed to Shotgun Hole to show off our vertical caving skills. Though I didn't intend on swimming, we all ended up in the water, splashing around the spring. Ascending out was actually somewhat difficult despite its short distance, mostly because the rocks were chossy (a climbing term used to describe rock that crumbles at the touch or when you are gripping it). Many of us unintentionally kicked down rocks and sediments, calling out "rock!" to warn those below of the hazardous falling debris. 

Events occurred: October 3, 10, and 17, 2012