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For those who might be interested in a more detailed play-by-play, here's what happened at Resto Camp on Friday, Mar. 3, 2023. Most of the few who made it to Maple Springs told me they experienced bad weather getting there --no surprise-- but here's my tale. As I approached the Interstate 24 'on ramp' at Paducah, Kentucky, I rolled down my car window a bit because I thought I heard an ambulace siren that strangely sounded unlike any Chicago-area ambulance siren. But it wasn't an ambulance--it was a city-wide tornado warning siren! I got onto I-24 anyway, thinking I would 'out run' the dark grey clouds in my rear view mirror. I was wrong. Heavy rain overtook me like I'd never experienced it before. Yes, my wipers were on 'high' the entire time, but it nearly didn't matter. Yes, there were cars parked beneath the highway overpasses with their flashers turned on. It wasn't just rainy, but it also was windy like I'd never experienced. All you could do was slow down, be safe, and get there alive --was the mindset of everyone on the road, both car and semi-truck alike. About 30-minutes into the harrowing drive East, there was a medium-sized SUV right in front of me (in the left lane), but a moderate distance ahead, for safety. As the vehicle began to slowly come even with and overtake a semi-truck in the right lane, I watched in horror as the rear of the SUV suddenly got blown to the left. Keep in mind the torrential rain and the incredible wind. The SUV hydroplaned on the water-soaked road and seemed to purposely drive across the right lane, then across the paved shoulder, and then straight into the ditch --by then going backwards! (This is happening right in front of me!) As I passed the poor motorist, the car careened up the other side of the embankment, sideways, with muddy water and pieces of sod flying wildly into the air. But the car did not flip over, and it seemed the driver lucked out. It was too treacherous for me to see much else in my mirrors--my heart was pounding and I was gripping my steering wheel for dear life. A couple miles down the road was a highway weigh station, where I saw a State Trooper do a U-turn, presumably heading to assist the one-car spinout accident. Wow. Although the rain seemed to let up a little when I exited the interstate and headed toward Nolin Dam, the wind was still blowing hard. As I made my way down the 2-lane roads to reach Maple Springs (the 'back way'), there were no fewer than four times traffic came to a stop or serious slowdown due to giant trees that had fallen across the roadway. One tree was about three feet in diameter, and there were about 10 vehicles stopped in both directions. Luckily, however, a guy who had a chainsaw in his pickup truck had just finished cutting through the massive log, and several other men rolled the logs to the shoulder. I arrived at Maple to find that the electricity had gone out a couple hours prior. Ugh. Brian pointed out how a section of a very tall, dead tree right in front of the Maple Springs barn sliding door had crashed down and damaged the eave of the barn roof. As several of us stood around, there were massive blowing gusts that made so much noise in the teetering trees all around us, we had to keep a constant watch as twigs, leaves and sometimes small branches rained down on us (and parked cars). At that point, due to the danger of more trees falling onto cars parked in the little gravel parking area, Brian recommended that the vehicle owners more their cars to the front lawn, well away from any trees that might fall over. Suddenly, a massive 80-foot-tall tree between the rear of the Maple Springs barn and the 'bat house' uprooted and crashed to the ground, narrowly missing the rear of the barn. A little while later, Brian received a phone call that some Resto cavers were unable to reach Maple Springs due to fallen trees on the north Green River Ferry Road (toward the former 'Forks' convenience store). Two vehicles containing Brian, John Kirk, Dave and Dee Boerma and Gary set out down the Maple Springs Loop road and turned left at the st

Boy howdy the weather is changing fast and that can mean only one thing, it’s almost time for November Weekend Camp on November 5th and 6th! Don’t forget that signup starts this Saturday, October 1st at 12:01 EST. November is one of the best times to be at Mammoth and the beautiful Fall weather usually means plenty of time around the fire pit. We will be at Maple Springs, and I can’t wait to see you all there. You can signup at Eventbrite or visit restoremammoth.com for more information. Brian

Kudos to Resto Camp Director Brian! I don't know if this was stated at the Awards Dinner (which I was unable to attend) but, on behalf of all Resto Camp participants, Brian should be recognized and thanked for all the time and effort he puts in as Director --and especially with how well the 2022 Field Camp went. Here's a list of what Brian did: - he planned and organized the week; - he networked with the Park (Liz, Dr. Rick) on making sure Maple Springs was reserved for us; - he discussed work projects with them; - he networked and discussed work with Charlie/Kat Bishop and the James Cavers for our work at Coach Cave; - he did the same with Rick Olson and the massive project we successfully completed at Coate's Cave; - he organized and maintained the participant list --which grew and grew-- as well as handled all the registration fees; - as the participant list expanded, he managed the growing list of food and the menu it would take to feed us; - he planned and executed the Awards and 'spiff' gifts we all received; - he and Katt arrived days early at Maple in order to make the site ready for us; - they (and others) made the big 'shopping trip' to purchase all the food, beverages and other supplies; - he and Katt woke up early every day to prepare breakfast for everyone; - they (and additional helpers, like Dee Boerma and others) helped cook, lay-out the food spread and put it all away after we'd eaten our fill; - Brian supervised all the work that was done and (along with Ken) did a great job in demolishing the wood wall at Coate's and rigging the water tank for removal; - he even found time (along with John and Ken) to diagnose, order a new motor and repair the kitchen ceiling exhaust fan. Other recognitions: - Jonathan and Teresa for cooking a delicious dinner - Dave Boerma for making a fire every night - Ken for cleaning the bunkhouse gutters - Other 'unsung heroes' for doing tasks and other jobs that cement us as a family and tribe! But mainly, we owe you our thanks and gratitude, Brian. With your always-cheerful demeanor and positive outlook on things, you're an outstanding Resto Director. We thank you!

Merry Christmas Friends! On Sat, Sep 25, 2021, 1:08 PM Gary via groups.io <garygibula@...> wrote: Hey MACA Resto cavers! The report of our August Camp activities is published in the Fall newsletter of the ACCA (American Cave Conservation Association --the folks over at Hidden River Cave, in nearby Horse Cave KY). The newsletter is attached to this message. If anyone is wanting to help, the ACCA will be hosting two cleanup events in November: one is to clean up construction debris and remove ivy from the entrance area of Hidden River Cave, and the other will be the removal of trash from a shallow cave pit (see page 7 of the newsletter). Regardless, please mark you calendars for the first weekend of November, which will be our next MACA Restoration weekend. Signup for this event will begin at 12:01am Eastern time on Fri. Oct. 1. see you then! - Brian & Gary