But finally I hoisted myself up a 450-foot rope to the cave’s main entrance (dubbed Izhevskaya, or R21). I began to see why cavers think of Dark Star as a living, breathing entity. Down at base ...

The narrow paths flowed up and down. The group spent four days ... a 200-foot barrier to be conquered by both ladder and rope climbing. In a cave there’s no way to get a signal.

He eased down feet first and carefully wrung his ... he had helped untangle Collins from a snag in Crystal Cave. When the rope crew left, all eyes fell on him. Gerald slipped into Sand Cave ...