Product Description
Cave Geology is the definitive book on the subject by an internationally recognized authority. It can be easily understood by non-scientists but also covers a wide range of topics in enough detail to be used by advanced researchers. Illustrated with more than 500 black-and-white photographs and 250 diagrams and maps, this book is dedicated to anyone with an interest in caves and their origin. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

cave geology
This is an excellent book written by one greatest cave and karst geologists in the world.It contains information that is useful for cavers, geology students and anyone interested in cave geology.It is fully understandable with no background in the subject.A must have for any caver. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Note From The Author.
Most people are surpised to find that this book is still in print after 34 years, however it is now in it's 5th Printing by the Tennessee Division of Geology.

"Descriptions of Tennessee Caves" describes 316 different caves in Tennessee and has a special section on saltpeter mining during both the War of 1812 and the Civil War.This book was written as a supplement to "Caves of Tennessee", which was published in 1961 and described 700 different Tennessee Caves.Together, these two books describe over 1,000 Tennessee caves.

This book has numerous maps and black and white photographs.Both books are considered "must haves" by Tennessee cave explorers.

The original First Edition of this book was hardbound and is considered quite a collector's item in good condition.All subsequent printings have been softbound.

Larry E. Matthews
Professional Geologist ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

For the Basic Geology of Mammoth Cave, Look No Further!
Art Palmer has been caving in the area seemingly forever, and the book shows it. Written for the non-geologist yet with plenty of details (& black-and-white pictures), it gives you the tools to understand the cave& it's setting. By using examples from the cave, as well as maps &simple diagrams, the complex nature of cavern formation in this area isexplained. The ways that the geology influence the layout of the passagesis particularly informative, and the detailed step-by-step evolution of thevarious levels & passages is covered in detail. Finally, the chapter onthe geology of the various tour routes changes the tours from interestingwalking trips to a virtual feast, with well-written descriptions anddetailed maps. If you like caves like Mammoth and want to learn more aboutthe geology of the longest cave in the world, turn to this book. ... Read more

Book Description
This book is aimed at students of the natural environment, but it will also appeal to those - cavers, environmental managers and field naturalists - who are curious about the underground world and its inhabitants. it is illustrated throughout with photographs, maps and line diagrams, almost all of which are original to the book. ... Read more

Book Description
Atlas of the Great Caves of the World is an almanac, encyclopedia, and book of records all under one cover. It is an invaluable reference book for cave explorers and cave enthusiasts of all levels.

Contained in its 376 pages are:
Descriptions of over 2,000 caves from all over the world. 540 in America, 310 in Asia, 950 in Europe, 190 in Africa, and 169 others.
Maps of 200 caves that are either more than 700m deep or over 30km long or of special interest.
Caves and maps are listed for 118 countries, arranged in descending order of depth and length within that country.
Special section on deep pits with profiles of pits over 300m deep.
World's Longest Caves List.
World's Deepest Caves List.
Chronology of World Depth Record.
Record Cave Dives.
Longest Cave Chambers.
Non-limestone Caves.
Complete index of all caves. ... Read more

Book Description
Hidden Beneath the Mountains: The Caves of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks is a new book about the amazing caves in this mountainous region of California by National Park Cave Specialist Joel Despain. The 128 page, large-format volume focuses on the larger caves of the parks and describes their fascinating human history, the rare and strange animals that live in the caves, and the role of these caves in science.

The book is richly illustrated with color photos of beautiful cave formations, stunning marble banding, and the wonderful mountains that contain the caves. Hidden Beneath the Mountains also includes many cave maps and graphics illustrating the geology that makes caves. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Amazing photos, Great history and natural science
I was fortunate to meet Joel Despain at his presentation of a recent expedition to Chile. This book was available for purchase at the presentation.

The book has some amazing photos from some of the big names in cave photography; Dave Bunnell and Peter and Ann Bosted, among others. This book is easily worth the price simply for the photography.

But once you stop browsing the pictures, you discover Joel's text is interesting and enjoyable. The book profiles several cave systems in Sequoia National Park. It covers the history of man's discovery and exploration of the caves. It also explains the geological history of the caves in clear layman's terminology.

This book is appropriate for school projects and experienced cavers alike. It also will make a great souvenir for visitors to Sequoia National Park. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (6)

WOW!You will LOVE this book! Waiting for a MOVIE!!!
The Longest Cave is a book which will hold you spellbound and wishing it would never end! Roger Brucker and "Red" Watson were young men 50 years ago when they first toured what was then known as Floyd Collin's Crystal Cave.This book is the story of how they and so many others dedicated days, months and years to seek out new passageways deep underground. In the case of Roger and Red, they dedicated decades and continue to work to preserve the very fragile cave environment.

This book has everything that you would want not only in a book but in a feature blockbuster movie!Adventure, Suspense, Humor, Friendship, Excitement, Discovery, Danger, and around every corner lurks the Unknown which would leave any movie-goer on the edge of their seat! All this without the gore and crime which seems to be the standard in so many books and movies today.

I HIGHLY recommend this book for anyone of any age!!! What makes this even more amazing is that this is a true story.

What these men and women accomplished is the equivalent ofclimbing Mount Everest in the DARK and without ever having seen a map of it! This is the American Dream of hard work, dedication, comraderie, and perseverance.

We have movies of Everest and Space Exploration and I look forward to the movie based on this book!
Without a doubt "The Longest Cave" will far surpass any movie on the above-mentioned topics.

Thanks Roger and Red for an AWESOME book!

A fascinating tale of cave exploration limits
I bought this book about 15 years ago while visiting Mammoth Cave National Park.I still enjoy rereading it from time to time. It is the sort of book one hates to see end.

The book narrates the history of the discovery that Kentucky's Flint Ridge-Mammoth Cave system of caves is by far the world's longest known series of continuously-connected caverns. The writers and their many cohorts are not only daring adventurers, but a collection of cavers who deeply appreciate the mystery, beauty and science of caves.

A very interesting part of the book is the well-developed character sketches of the many explorers, a good number of whom participated in parts of the long, arduous struggle to discover the connections between five different large caves so as to make them one.

The overriding star of the show is the cave system itself, and the book contains many facinating portions about the beauty, danger, wonder, and history of the things found there by explorers dating back to prehistoric Native Americans, forward.

After a frustrating series of events, including an initial startling lack of interest/resistance by National Park personnel, progress begins to be made in leaps and bounds.When the Ohio cavers find that the Flint Ridge system is the longest then know, an effort is taken up to connect it with Mammoth Cave.

In a spine-tingling narrative about going past the "Tight Spot", a very small passage, the cavers eventually make the connection by going down in Flint Ridge and emerging in a well-known Mammoth Cave tourist gallery.The sense of truiumph and relief is overwhelming and excellently captured.

My size and age prohibit me from doing the things described in this book, and I have never done them.But I was captivated from start to finish by the story of these brave, resourceful people and the cave system they explored and charted.It is as if I am there myself.

My only quibble is that the photographs are limited and in black and white, but the excellent descriptive writing overcomes this factor.I love the book.Very, very highly recommended.

Captivating, awe-inspiring, and incredibly exciting
If you like adventure, if you like caves, if you like drama and suspense, or if you breath in and out regularly and have a pulse, you really ought to read this book. The story of the years it took to connect the FlintRidge/Mammoth cave systems, it sweeps the reader into the wonderfullyobsessive world of the Flint Ridge Cavers. A great book. Stronglyreccomended.

The All-timeNumber One Cave Adventure Book
Caves have been intertwined with Kentucky history since a man named Houchins chased a bear into Mammoth cave in the late 1700s. Later on, the valley north of Mammoth Cave was named after this early settler, and the ridge north of Houchins' Valley was called Flint Ridge. Starting in the early 1950s a group of cavers began a lifelong ambition of connecting the caves on the northern ridge (Flint Ridge) to the caves on the southern ridge (Mammoth Cave Ridge). Their goal was simple: To map the Longest Cave.This book covers that time. Along with 'The Caves Beyond' and 'Trapped', this book constitutes an informal trilogy about Mammoth Cave. It is a story of determination over hardship, of perseverence over fatigue, of triumph over nature. Roger Brucker and Red Watson write this book with the confidence of people that were there. From the very beginning, their influence on the project helped mold it into what it was to become. We see them age, from young men in their ealry twenties, to grizzled Flint Ridge veterans to seeing their children caving alongside them. There is a real sense of the passage of time here; people come, people go, the cave is eternal. Fiction should hope to be so true.Dominating all this is the cave. It is all pervading. Over three hundred miles of passage lies under their feet, and the reader fells as if he is crawling, climbing and squirming along with them. We feel the explorer's chill they wade through Hanson's Lost River, we feel their pain as they crawl through Agony Avenue. We satand alongside them as they are awed by the vastness and remoteness of Unknown Cave.Above all else, it is the story of the people who explore the cave. For fourty years, cavers have been gathering in Central Kentucky to explore this cave. To mankind, the cave is eternal. We may choos to protect it, we may, in our ignorance deface it. Either way, we live our lives by interacting with it. Or to put it in the books words: "That is where life is, that is where your friends are".

Read this b! ook.

The Best True Story Adventure Ever!
This book is the best book I've ever came across! Outstanding adventure of how the World's Largest Cave System ever came about. The discoveries in this book are amazing! Suspence to the fullest! The people in this book who made this discovery should be noted as the best exploration team of all time! I can only amagine the feeling they got knowing they had made the biggest connection in cave history to this day. It would be almost impossible for anyone else to top the discovery in this book. An amazing adventure!! I couldn't stop reading this book over and over. The authors of this book should give the story to Hollywood to make into a motion picture. I could imagine this story making the best adventure movie of all time. Ron Howard or Steven Speilburg should be given a copy of this book! It would be a hit! I wish I had the full video tape of this expidition. National Geographic's short segment in "Mysteries Underground" was a tease. If anyone knows where or if there is such a tape, please post it! This is a must read if you like adventure to the fullest! ... Read more

Product Description
Book 1: 120 pages. Book 2: 103 pages. 17 maps are of various sizes ranging from 2-folds to 9-folds. ... Read more