The Salt Shaker Press
JACOX, WEST VIRGINIA — In a thrilling first-hand account of subterranean exploration, local traveler John Branch Green has issued a stirring call to adventure for the daring sport of "a-caving," while offering crucial safety warnings for those who dare to venture into the deep.
The Lure of the Limestone Labyrinths
Green, who admits he was first "bit by the cave bug" several summers ago during a trip into the damp depths of the Hugh Sharp cave in Elk Valley alongside Editor Calvin, has once again journeyed beneath the earth. He reports that the limestone hills of Pocahontas and neighboring counties are teeming with underground labyrinths, vaulted chambers, and obscure corridors that offer a highly unique form of diversion.
For beginners looking to get into the cave-exploring business, Green highly recommends starting with the Dick Snedegar cave near Jacox, located off the side of Droop Mountain. Noted as the most accessible cavern in the area, its entrance is so grand that it can easily accommodate the passage of a two-horse team and wagon. Once past the opening, explorers follow a single, relatively easy corridor that opens into a magnificent subterranean hall measuring up to thirty feet in width and twenty feet in height.
Retracing Frontier History at Sewell's Cave
In his latest expedition, Green and his party set out to locate a historical cave near Millpoint, situated in the face of a rock cliff just to the right of the highway. This cavern is famous as the site where pioneer Stephen Sewell wintered around the year 1750, following a bitter split with his partner, Jacob Marlin, over religious differences. While Marlin chose to move north, Sewell sought shelter under a protecting ledge on this limestone cliffside.
Finding the cave proved to be an arduous task, as Green's party took the wrong path on their first attempt before finally locating the opening, which divides the cliff almost in half.
A Tight Squeeze and a Lesson in Spelunking
Upon investigating Sewell's old winter shelter, Green discovered that what appears to be a simple, shallow indenture under the overhanging cliff actually conceals a narrow crack leading deep into the heart of the rock.
"On hands and knees one can crawl back through this uninviting passage for several hundred feet," Green observed. The exploration quickly grew treacherous as the tunnel narrowed to the size of a large barrel, forcing Green into a grueling "belly-crawl" as the stone walls closed in slowly and relentlessly. Faced with failing light, Green made the tactical decision to put his crawl into reverse, backing out a hundred or two feet to escape the suffocating darkness and return to "Old Sol's dominion" (the sunlight).
To his immense regret, local residents later informed him that had he pushed forward just a hundred feet further, he would have broken through the bottleneck into the first of two magnificent, large chambers where the cave opens into a cavern of massive proportions.
Reflecting on his narrow retreat, Green offered a vital piece of advice for all future cave explorers: "Next time I'll carry three independent and powerful [lights] too".
MIRACLE BIRD: Pet Carrier Pigeon Finds Hospitalized Owner Eighty Miles From Home
PHILIPPI, WEST VIRGINIA — In an astonishing story of animal loyalty reported by the Nicholas Chronicle, twelve-year-old Brady "Spark Plug" Perkins has been reunited with his pet carrier pigeon in his hospital room under circumstances that have left doctors and nurses entirely spellbound.
Young Brady, the son of Sheriff Floyd Perkins, was recovering in a hospital bed at the Myers Clinic in Philippi—some eighty miles away from his home—when he was startled by a tapping noise at his window sill. Looking up, the boy was shocked to see a New Year's visitor: a pigeon perched outside.
"That's my pigeon, I know him by his bill!" Brady called out to his day nurse, pleading with her to let the bird inside.
Though the nurse initially tried to dismiss his claims as a dream or a trick of the mind, she eventually complied with his pleas. As soon as the window was opened, Brady reached out and captured the bird, immediately identifying it by the distinct band around its leg bearing the number 187.
Sheriff Floyd Perkins explained that the carrier pigeon had first arrived at their home the previous autumn, where Brady fed it and made a pet of it. The bird had not been seen since Brady was admitted to the clinic three weeks prior. It is believed that the loyal bird was on a long flight when it was buffeted by severe, stormy weather, ultimately seeking shelter at the exact hospital window of its young owner.
Young "Spark Plug" returned home this Wednesday with his miraculous bird in hand, fully recovered and eager to get back to his schoolwork.
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