cave cleanup #1

On August 6, eight attendees of the NSS Conference being held in Shippensburg made a worktrip to Conodoguinet Cave to begin its conservation and rehabilitation project. Participants pulled every piece of litter from the cave, including a giant plastic tarp that had been half buried by silt. They also operated a 3500psi pressure washer with 500gallon trailer-mounted water trank, contributed at a significant discount by Bestline Equipment in Mechanicsburg, to blast off grafitti. Other paint was removed with elbow grease, a biodegradable grafitti remover, and cordless tool brushes. Finally, we covered up the last signs of abuse with silt from the cave. In the process, they discovered some new 18th and 19th-century etched signatures and had a good time. It's a pleasure to have restored the cave to its natural appearances, and obliterated signs of abuse and neglect.