Welcome to the 1999 Outside Adventure Grant.

The 1999 recipients from Jackson, Wyoming Nate Fuller, David Kaplan and Scott McCoy are a trio who love the outdoors and have grown up in the mountains "which has changed the way all of us live and play."

Their climbing and systems experience with ropes, anchors and safety is the foundation to build upon the wilderness underworld of Guadalupe Ridge, New Mexico. Long considered the world class wilderness cave center of the United States, Guadalupe Ridge located on the Lincoln National Forest in southeast New Mexico is a challenging environment for any level of caver.

The overland approaches are often long, over rugged lechuguilla covered limestone ridges and valleys. Navigation to the exact location of a cave entrance is more challenging at times than the underworld experience. The United States Forest Service caves are intensively monitored and managed. Closures occur to some sensitive caves, while strict "cave use day" quotas on a monthly basis are followed. This management protects the fragile cave resource and acknowledges that wilderness cave management prioritizes natural values. Recreation is clearly a second priority in some caves.

Our expedition will follow USFS policies and practices to the fullest. This includes learning and practicing Leave No Trace caving skills, participating in survey and cave restoration projects and building slowly upon our technical skills to help asses our actual abilities prior to entering the most pristine caves. Additional effort by team members to record data retrieved from exploration will give the Lincoln National Forest valuable information of the conditions of caves. Balancing the adventure aspects of the expedition will be the challenge to avoid "naming names" or locating rare or fragile caves in print and photo for public consumption. This is ethically inappropriate within the close world of caving…and a condition of our permit when we enter the underground of Guadalupe Ridge.

Joining Nate, Dave and Scott are Expedition Coordinator Del Smith and "guest instructors" Liz Tuohy and John Gookin. Del will participate with the expedition from start to finish, while John and Liz will join us in Carlsbad, New Mexico in two separate shifts. Del, John and Liz are outdoor professionals with previous cave experience in Guadalupe Ridge through the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).

NOLS is a leading sponsor of the Outside Adventure Grant program. While Del, John and Liz provide logistical, educational and technical support to the expedition, the experience is not designed to be a NOLS course. Nate, Dave and Scott have taken on expedition roles and will continue to build upon their knowledge to achieve goals. High motivation and personal drive will lead the team forward. Areas of safety, the natural environment, camp skills, navigation and leadership are just a few aspects of expeditioning the team can look forward to facing together. The journey underground simply is the beginning of our exploratory education.

Commitment to flexibility, communication and new ideas will be some of the strongest tools in the team's backpack to make this a successful expedition.

Sincerely,

Del Smith
June 1, 1999