Surveyor Cave

Episode 1

The twelve contestants departed Nashville, Tennessee on the first of April, bound for the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. The steady drone of the old school bus engine lulled some of them to sleep. Roger fell into a half-dream state, visions of compass dials spinning in his head as he mulled over his crash course in cave survey. Large numbers on top... front site... bottom...back site... spinning, slowing, a blur, and at last he too fell asleep.

The seven day drive went without incident, except for the 12-hour delay by customs officials at the Nuevo Laredo border, and the brake failure in the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains, and the Guatemalan guerilla attack where they almost had to forfeit their gear. Fortunately, they were saved when the insurgents fled at the sound of a carbide bomb set off by George behind the bus.

The drive across narrow roads on the flat limestone plateau of the Yucatan seemed to last an eternity to the weary travellers. They know that the area was pockmarked with sinkholes, a fact not apparent as the view out the windows of the bus was limited by the thick foliage of the humid jungle. They were too hot, sweaty, and tired to object to Anthony's incessant humming of "99 bottles of beer on the wall..." At last, they disembarked at a nondescript, remote portion of the jungle, and as the bus pulled away they all massaged their sore buttocks and examined their initial set of instructions:

Hike 20 miles through the jungle to GPS coordinates [xxx]*. Locate pit that drops into a multi-level maze cave. Break into groups of four. Each group find and map a route through cave to a resurgence spring 3 miles from the pit. 1st Group to emerge gains immunity for first elimination.

Warning: caves of the Yucatan are protected by the Oztotl. Anyone who breaks, defaces, or removes a formation, injures or kills a cave creature, or leaves a footprint that is not well placed, will suffer the dreaded breathing disease.

*Actual location omitted to protect the cave from throngs of spelunkers and tourists.

Click on the Oztotle water passage for the next episode or on a number to go to that episode

*Episode 1*

The twelve contestants departed Nashville, Tennessee on the first of April, bound for the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. The steady drone of the old school bus engine lulled some of them to sleep. Roger fell into a half-dream state, visions of compass dials spinning in his head as he mulled over his crash course in cave survey. Large numbers on top... front site... bottom...back site... spinning, slowing, a blur, and at last he too fell asleep. The seven day drive went without incident, except for the 12-hour delay by customs officials at the Nuevo Laredo border, and the brake failure in the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains, and the Guatemalan guerilla attack where they almost had to forfeit their gear. Fortunately, they were saved when the insurgents fled at the sound of a carbide bomb set off by George behind the bus. The drive across narrow roads on the flat limestone plateau of the Yucatan seemed to last an eternity to the weary travellers. They know that the area was pockmarked with sinkholes, a fact not apparent as the view out the windows of the bus was limited by the thick foliage of the humid jungle. They were too hot, sweaty, and tired to object to Anthony's incessant humming of "99 bottles of beer on the wall..." At last, they disembarked at a nondescript, remote portion of the jungle, and as the bus pulled away they all massaged their sore buttocks and examined their initial set of instructions:
	Hike 20 miles through the jungle to GPS coordinates [xxx]*. Locate pit that drops into a multi-level maze cave. Break into groups of four. Each group find and map a route through cave to a resurgence spring 3 miles from the pit. 1st Group to emerge gains immunity for first elimination. Warning: caves of the Yucatan are protected by the Oztotl. Anyone who breaks, defaces, or removes a formation, injures or kills a cave creature, or leaves a footprint that is not well placed, will suffer the dreaded breathing disease.
*Actual location omitted to protect the cave from throngs of spelunkers and tourists.