DIROS CAVE 2008
This last expedition to Diros
wasn’t of the exploratory nature but of the documentary type. Indeed, our
objective was to organize and get some videos for a documentary about caving
which would be broadcasted by the Swiss-German television.
Before my departure, my
countdown starts. I have only two days at my disposal to prepare the equipment
and modify my new toy, a rebreather manufactured by the InnerSpace Systems
Corporation: the "COPIS Megalodon”. At Parisi’s I obtain some hoses whose
lengths can fit my needs, make the shoulder straps to my own measurements,
position an additional valve on the counterlungs, build corrugated hose
protectors, and finally repair my suits by sealing up the small holes. The work
continues at my garage where I have a welder, an angle grinder and a drill to
build a stainless steel plate to which I would then apply an emergency oxygen
tank. In the end I manage to finish all my work in time.
The adventure begins on
Saturday, March 14: my travel companion, Patrick, comes to me at dawn. We
immediately load the van and leave at 12.15 from Lecco. As usual, we find a
little traffic at the entrance to the Milan bypass but then it is plain sailing
until the boarding dock. The ferry from Ancona to Patras leaves at 19.30. We
enjoy a relaxing journey on a sunny day, while comfortably seated on board,
reading, writing and translating some Italian texts for my web site into French.
From time to time I draw myself away from the pages and gaze at the waves in the
distance, that become white, only to disappear and be swallowed by the deep blue
sea. And yet, in that giant vessel, the sea seems so calm that it is impossible
to feel the emotional impulses of those waves. As often happens, the forecasted
journey times are not correct: the ferry is one hour late and, moreover, we take
another hour to drive the van off the ship, so we decide to eat and stay
overnight in Patras in company with Nectarios, a Greek friend of ours.
On Sunday morning we set off
for Pyrgos Dirou. We get to the village around 13.00 and there, we are greeted
by the group of Swiss cavers who had arrived by plane the previous day. Without
losing precious time, we go off to the cave site where we unload the van and
meet the local tourist guides. There it is, Diros: from that moment, for
everyone it would become our temporary home and where we would all work
frenetically preparing the equipment for diving and videoing; for some it would
seem the right place to ask me about Jean-Jeaques; personally, Diros remains,
first of all, my sea of thoughts wetting its bay, my thread of memories that
still runs its flooded galleries, tying me inextricably to those caves that had
so often seen me and Jean-Jacques together. I remember warmly when Jean-Jacques
learned how to use the “Recy01”, a passive circuit. And how on his first cave
dive with that new circuit, he felt so ill at ease that, while surface swimming
along the gallery leading to the "Panther", we should have explored the flooded
galleries in turn but he, failing to breathe well, left me to explore those that
we had localized. Then, coming back from an incredible gallery which is located
a few metres below the surface, I told him -You cannot miss this wonder!- Thus
he plucked up the courage and departed. Shortly after I followed him and, in
order not to be seen, I switched off my lights and kept at a sufficient distance
to be able to exploit his illumination. Once we had re-emerged in an air pocket,
I came out from the darkness that had hidden me from his eyes. I would never
forget the moment when he caught sight of me, with a look of surprise and
amazement on his face. Like the red Peloponnesus’ sun disappearing behind a sea
of memories, so my first day in
Dyros also comes to an end.
On Monday, while the group is
getting ready to go to the gallery of "Megalocechi", I continue to make changes
on my new “Copis”: I take down and reassemble the plates, check the length of
the shoulder straps, apply the protectors to the hoses, etc.. In the end it
seems perfectly cut out for my needs, nothing left to do but put it into the
water and do the litmus test. I prepare myself in a short time and decide to go
to the "Great Ocean" working my way through the flooded galleries which pass
under the tourist route. The water temperature is 17 degrees Celsius. I start to
slowly traverse the gallery, at -6m. I run a check on the sensors and then down
to -23m. and again up to -9m. and so on like this up-and-down until the "Great
Ocean" is reached. Happy to see that huge shaft again, I let myself drift down
into the void but then, with great displeasure, I notice that the water has a
milky look and the visibility has reduced to ten metres. I go down as far as
-60m. and I find myself in front of a fork that was lined by Jean Jacques in
1992. I decide to return to -15m. and, once back in the horizontal gallery,
rather than head towards the exit, I proceed forward into the cave. After a few
dozen meters, in front of the sight of a big hole with no line entering, a
thought begins to materialize in that deep blackness: the next day I would
certainly go into it to take a look. But it's time for re-entry: I surface in
the tourist gallery and decide to abandon the underwater world until the next
day, in the meanwhile I would adjust the mouthpiece and find a more suitable
position for the counterlungs, which were most presumably the cause of my
backache. Once on dry land, I manage to make these little improvements and
complete the tweak of my equipment
even before the others had exited from the cave: it finally seems that the new
configuration of my reb is perfect.
On Tuesday, I subject the Copis
to another test dive. Patrick follows me to take some photos along the path
toward the "Great Ocean". Once we get to our destination, after a short descent
to -30m., we head towards the black shaft that I had found the day before.
Patrick communicates to me that the autonomy of his two 12lt cylinders is almost
at the limit, so I signal to continue rather than go back through the sumps,
given that in that cave there are several points where you can re-emerge and we
are only about thirty metres away from one of those. We divide: Patrick goes
back along a dry gallery stretch while I devote myself to start the exploration
of the shaft. I slip into a clay passage that, for my good luck, significantly
changes its appearance after only a few metres: clay disappears and sea water
reigns supreme in an environment which is entirely lined with beautiful
concretions. Only a few stalactites and stalagmites obstruct the passage, so I
use a few dozen seconds to cross them avoiding damage to them. I am also afraid
of breaking the counterlungs if I bump into them, therefore I move with caution
being much more careful than usual whenever I have to move the “Copis” against
the speleothems. I just laugh at the thought that Aldo, not even a month before,
had handed me a new brand machine and, after a few dives, the jewel was
inevitably scratched. Shortly past the narrow passage, I reach a beautiful white
room that, unfortunately, does not promise any further development and thus puts
an end to my first exploration with the new rebreather. All things considered I
could say that it was not that bad: I had explored a dream space and, moreover,
I had discovered it by chance! Coming back, I carefully observe the area and I
notice there is a gallery opening on the left side. Abandoning the withdrawal
plan immediately, I tie off the line again and go in: I pass through an
environment with lots of clay sediment until I pop out into another gallery
that, in a nutshell, seems already familiar. In fact, with my eyes I follow a
line that runs right above me and, at a distance of about 7m, I see the head of
the line that I had laid shortly before. I am forced to return through a large
cloud of turbid water, kicked up by me on my entry, to retrieve a bottle that I
had left in mid-way. However I am now attracted by another virgin gallery
propelling me to take a new course again: also my reel is ready to run new line
meters. Unfortunately, despite the enthusiasm, we, my reel and I, would not go
that far because the gallery, as before, begins to become too narrow to
continue. I finally recover the cylinder, I ascend following the line that would
take me, still remaining submerged, to the exit of the cave. Here are the
results of the day: the total dive time is 90', I cover more than 2km moving
within spectacular environments, I explore 100m of new galleries.
In the late afternoon we are
reached by Edo, who came for the event to film some of the tunnels. Edo had
brought along two different rebreathers: an “Ouroboros” and a “Buddy”, but on
the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday dives he only would use the “Boris” (nickname
for Ouroboros). Meanwhile, the
preparations for the sophisticated machine are already in progress and I,
intrigued, look at them.
Wednesday morning Edo begins to
meticulously prepare his video camcorder too. He has a true professional kit
with him which I thought could not fit into the cramped space of his trunk.
Having set up the camera in its underwater video housing and completed the final
preparations, we finally reach the cave and load all our equipment onto the boat
that would take us along the tourist route. Once we don the suits, we head
towards the “Z” gallery where the troupe responsible for out-of-water filming is
waiting for us: the two camera operators are ready and can count on camera
assistants for logistical support, transport of materials and lighting,
particularly the placement and the focus of lighting fixtures as well as the
creation of interesting visual effects in the cavities. We are like actors
working between the flashes, the sounds of clapperboards and the calling out of
Lights! Camera! Action! but, fortunately, the teamwork on this set is very
pleasant, and therefore the task is neither tiring nor too long. Having
terminated the “play”, we enter the water and start the long finning that would
take us to the most fascinating parts of the gallery. The water level, that is
at least 10cm. higher than usual because of winter rains, forces us to
repeatedly make small dives to avoid colliding and breaking the fragile
concreted formations in the initial stretch. Arriving at the predetermined
point, Edo turns on the video lights and verifies the camera’s controls. A light
does not work: thinking back to the phase of the housing assembly, which had
taken place in great haste and was disturbed by the urgent request for
information, we can consider the inconvenience as a little careless distraction,
however, it would not affect the continuation of our work. Even the “Boris” is
found to have a poorly functioning sensor but, in this case too, the problem
fortunately does not seem irreparable, because the maximum planned depth for the
dive is -7m. We have more than enough gas on our bailout open circuit to allow
us to repeat the planned tour several times. It seems that the equipment is
working against us but for the moment, we push on. At the end of the first
flooded stretch, Edo rejoices at the beauty of those submerged environments,
although he can only enjoy them through the video monitor, which despite its
excellent quality, makes it impossible to admire full-size. We keep going
straight on through a room, then penetrate into relatively small-sized galleries
that lead us to a point where, if you wish, you may still reach the surface. We,
however, continue our journey through an intricate maze of submerged passages.
After several years of explorations within that system, I have developed an
infallible sense of direction, which allows me to pass with ease from one line
to another but also mentally anticipate their continuation. As expected, after
more than 200m., we pop into the “Z” gallery, some fifty metres from the point
from where we started and not very far from the "New Generation" gallery. The
unexpected occurs just as we are agreeing on what to do: the idea is to film the
entrance to the "New Generation", but one of the two Hid camera lights refuses
to function. No need for discussions: we have to give up. We leave the emergency
cylinders in place and return to the surface by finning while continuing to
breathe oxygen from our closed circuits. At the boat, we drop off our heavy
equipment, store it, and then, with one of us on the bow and one on the stern,
we move towards the exit. Our curiosity to see the images is so strong that we
quickly put away the rebreathers to get vision of them on the camera’s display
screen as soon as possible. At first sight it seems better than we had expected
and therefore, worth the while to resume our work and the preparation of
equipment for the following day’s dive.
The programme for Thursday is
heavy, we plan three dives: one at the "New Generation" gallery, one at the
"Crystal Room" and, finally, one at the "Room of Wonders". Three pleasant dives
at depths ranging from -30m and -40m. The script to follow is the same as the
previous day but this time, the operations will be streamlined to avoid
out-of-water shooting and, furthermore, the camera and the “Boris”, that seem to
be working impeccably, will not impede our plans. At the starting point in the
“Z” gallery, we zip up our suits and enter the water but, while we are
preparing, I have a feeling of "cool-wet" at the height of the zip, at the point
where the zip pull ends; my suspicion of water infiltration is confirmed by Edo,
who while observing me floating face upwards, sees air escaping. All in all,
even if the water reaches the temperature of 17°C, it is definitely better to
have dry clothes in contact with my skin. Luckily I was well prepared and had
included a second drysuit and an undersuit in my expedition materials. I decide
to quickly go and fetch them while Edo waits for me on the spot. Unfortunately I
do not have the p-valve connection tube and therefore, even if I want to, I
would have to hold on and wait if I wanted to have a pee. We load ourselves with
two additional safety cylinders for the deco stages and then we are ready to go.
Twenty minutes of swimming are needed to reach the diving spot in the "New
Generation", but once we are underwater, the room playing hard to get would
present breathtaking views to us between imposing and impressive columns.
Witness of the unique beauty of those natural architectures, the eye of the
camera follows my tireless swimming around the columns like a whirlpool. And
then more and more intriguingly, accompanies my playful continual comings and
goings, made up of magical appearances and disappearances between the lights of
the hall and the darkness of the blind holes.
The show continues as we ascend up to -3m. into a shaft which exhibits its
extraordinary calcite crystals. We have to descend to -30m. to resume the
gallery which would lead us back to the bottom of the entrance shaft. From there
the other branch of the "New Generation" also starts, exactly in the opposite
direction from where we have just swum. We penetrate into it: in the initial
stretch we notice the fault that was its origin, while in the final one there
are once again concretions. I descend to -40m. into a little shaft that had
escaped my attention during the exploration phases; I notice that, one side
connects to a shaft that I had already explored a few years earlier, but the
other is lost away in the darkness. The temptation to set off for that unknown
journey excites me, but I am compelled to pull back the reigns of my desires:
our task is to film and not to explore. We continue videoing in two other rooms,
then we ascend, decompress for a short time, and there we are out of the water
after nearly 60' diving. It is only after a while that we return underwater; we
cover a stretch of gallery along which, unfortunately, the clay that we had
raised the day before while passing precisely through there, is still in
suspension in the halocline and makes the visibility poor for the first 3-4m. of
depth. The old lines are still in good condition so we, without hesitation,
reach the first descending spot: we go down to -35m and, after we have taken
some interesting shots of the surroundings, start the ascent. Just a bit of deco
stopping at -3m, then we get going again, always following the line, some twenty
meters further on to get to the top of a new shaft that would take us to around
-30m. in the "Room of Wonders". Regrettably, the cam lights run out leaving the
wonders we would have filmed in the obscurity. That’s a great pity considering
that only the descend into this cave portion would have been worth the entire
trip to Greece. We swim around without entering the narrow passages, we observe
the various morphologies and then, to prevent us from accumulating too much deco
time, we start ascending. We finally surface after more than two hours. Having
recovered all the equipment, our load is heavier now than on the trip in so it
takes at least thirty minutes swimming before reaching the boat.
The Friday working day is
short, conditioned by the boarding time of Edo’s ferry which would leave at
18.00 from Patrass in the direction of Bari. Also getting to the diving site
would take a short while, in fact we would not travel any stretch by boat but we
would directly leave from the landing stage: at 10.00 we are ready to enter the
water. The programme is initially filming Patrick doing an underwater survey and
then immortalizing the
environments of the "Great Ocean".
At a short distance from the
sump, we start the shooting work: I am there acting in the unusual role of light
operator and, with my 200W of light power, I illuminate our star from above,
then from the side or opposite, depending on the cave conditions and the needs
of filming. After ten minutes we decide to abandon filming the topography.
Patrick, diving on open circuit, is obliged to the re-entry even if he would
feel like following us; Edo and I head towards our new destination: the shaft of
the "Great Ocean". There I let myself sink down slowly, gently brushing a couple
of stalagmites: white, long, like walrus’ teeth. The shaft bottoms out at -60m.
from where two decidedly smaller sized galleries start. We go into action
creating amazing plays of light that would add a magic taste to our filming.
Then we get going to the decompression zone and when arrived at around -15m., we
elect not to re-emerge in order to travel back on dry land, but to come back
through the flooded galleries so that we would capture some images of the cave
and could quickly arrive at the exit. The dive concludes on the ninetieth
minute. Edo is late for the ferry boarding, but he fortunately found Patrick and
me good helpers: we take the equipment out of the water and we pack it away in
as little time as possible. There is only just time left for the goodbye
greetings.
We spend the rest of the day
first loading the van and then visiting the dry land cave section that I still
know very little about. That evening is the last dinner together, in fact,
tomorrow, the group will be divided: the Swiss head towards the capital, Vassili
and Lakis will leave for Athens and stop there, while Patrick and I board the
ferry in Patrass.
The weather forecasts announce
sea storms and gales with winds gusting up to Force 7, but really the sea
crossing would not be so rough: our large ship, which ploughs through the water
like a sea monster, makes the movement of the big waves a pleasant swinging
which lulls me into a deep sleep.
