Invitation for international speleological expedition PHA SOUNG PROJECT 2018, LAOS (January 28 to February 18, 2018)
Dear colleagues,
Until now, more speleologists from the USA, Canada, Germany and Thailand have been enrolled in our expedition, PHA SOUNG PROJECT 2018, LAOS. We still have 4 positions available in our expedition and that’s why we extended the application deadline to December 15, 2017.
Invitation for international speleological expedition
PHA SOUNG PROJECT 2018, LAOS (January 28 to February 18, 2018)
The “Z” Speleology Club organizes a new speleological expedition in Pha Soung Mountain, Khammouane Province, Laos, from January 28 to February 18, 2018. We now invite any keen, speleologist, mountaineer, photographer, climber, or a biologist to join us in a unique adventure in the wonderful and mysterious Laos. The objectives of the expedition are resuming the exploration and survey of the large Pha Soung system (20,442 m development in 2017) and the new discoveries, as the large caves Tham May Moun (over 1 km), Tham Nam Kouan Moo Yo (849 m already surveyed in 2017) and, not in the last, Tham Dan Makhia (1,304 m surveyed in 2017).
For additional relationships:
Liviu Valenas, Wanderer Str. 27, D-90431 Nürnberg, Germany
Tel .: 0049-911-8014898, 0049-174-7872593
Fax: 0049-911-8014900, E-Mail: liviu.valenas@gmail.com
Facebook: Liviu Valenas
DURATION: 22 days, with the possibility of extending to 32 days.
PERIOD: January 28 – February 18, 2018, having the possibility to participate in the expedition until February 27, 2018.
PARTICIPATION FEE: 990 Euro/person. For those who want to stay in the expedition exactly one month ( January 25 – February 27, 2018), the participation fee is 1,190 Euro. All transport costs in Thailand and Laos, full board and lodging, plus fees paid to the Lao authorities (Exploring and Residence Fees in Ban Na Village) are included in the entry fee. Also included in the price is a participation map, with topographic maps of the caves and the area and a T-shirt with expedition logo. For those who want to participate in the expedition for a shorter duration, this is possible, with a reduction (between 10 and 20%) of the participation fee. The last date of registration is 15 December 2017. The participation fee will be sent to the following account:
Maliwan Valenas
Targo Bank Nürnberg – D
IBAN: DE65300209005390037093
BIC CODE: CMCIDEDD
Air tickets to Bangkok, Thailand, round trip, will be reserved and paid exclusively by each participant. From Europe to Bangkok, round-trip, with a cheap flight, eg. China Air, Etihad or Aeroflot, with a mandatory stopover, costs about 490-590 Euro/person, round trip.
President of the Speleology Club “Z”
LIVIU VALENAS
Report of the international caving expedition PHA SOUNG PROJECT, LAOS, 2017
The first expedition under the exclusive patronage of the Caving Club “Z” from Nürnberg, Germany, was carried out between February 6 and March 3, 2017. Participants: Liviu Valenas (Germany /Romania), head of the expedition, Maliwan Valenas (Thailand /Germany), deputy head of the expedition, Peter Lenahan (USA), Branislav Smida (Slovakia), Jozef Grego (Slovakia), Mario Olsavski (Slovakia), Ondrej Kameniar (Slovakia), Franz Lindenmayr (Germany), Khampeng (Kham) Seitavie (Laos), Sonsay Saithavie (Laos), Bunmin Pimmaschen (Laos) and Khamlex Khomxayxana (Laos). The base of the expedition, same like that of April 2016, was the village of Ban Na, province Khammouane distict Thakhek. The second expedition, very restricted, held between March 19 and March 21, 2017, participants Liviu Valenas, Maliwan Valenas, Stefan Hica (Romania) Uthon Thammasat (Thailand), Sonsay Saithavie (Laos) and Khomsan Saithavie (Laos).
RESULTS:
The main objective was the underground system Pha Soung, mapped in 2016 to a total length of 16,750.5 m. There were carried out a total of 17 rounds of exploring and mapping in this huge maze system, the most labyrinthine cave in Laos. Unfortunately, major technical difficulties, including galleries extremely tight and low, prevented a major breakthrough, in addition, it could not perform a junction with any neighbouring cave. The most spectacular discoveries were a phreatic suspended gallery, with the development of 279,2 m and a new labyrinth, built on 435 m (from where through two ascents of 3 and 9.5 m, led to the discovery of a new entrance into the cave system having dimensions: 18.5 x 5 m). About 70% of new discoveries are extremely tight or narrow galleries, many of them being explored by crawling. In total, were surveying in addition 3.691,5 m, which increased the Pha Soung System development at 20,442.0 m, ranked third largest in entire Laos. The objective of 22 km still remains in force for future expeditions in 2018. However, we can say that the chances of major discoveries in this monstrous maze are practically nil, 90% of the system is probably already explored and mapped.
The total length of 20,442 m is divided between the three major caves that make up the system Pha Soung: Tham Khai Nau cave: 2,942.8 m, Tham Hay cave: 7,378.6 m and Tham Kouan Moo cave: 10,120.6 m.
It resumed and explored the cave Tham Pha Kouan Moo, located only 70 m from Pha Soung System. The terminus of this cave could not be exceeded because of compacted and very thick clay walls. In contrast, in the lower level of the cave have discovered other two entrances, the development of Tham Pha Kouan Moo cave increasing to 955.5 m. Exploration of this cave can be considered complete and the chance of a junction with the Pha Soung system seems impossible. Near this cave was discovered, surprisingly, another cave, Tham Nam Kouan Moo Yo, a new labyrinth, with 9 entries, all linked by narrow and low galleries. It reached a length of 849.4 m surveying, exploration will be resumed in 2018.
An important discovery and totally unexpected was made in Tham Dan Makhia cave, mapped by the Caving Club “Z” in 2015 over a length of 525 m. Jozef Grego and Liviu Valenas, forcing some very low galleries, were able to make the junction with the resurgence of the cave and then with another fossil entrance, later participated in exploration Sonsay Saithavie and Peter Lenahan.
The development of this new underground system of Laos has now reached 1,304.0 m, level unchanged. The cave potential is enormous, but a complete exploration will be possible only by scuba diving in the huge sump lake.
Peter Lenahan, head rope, supported by a large team of Laotians and Slovaks, managed a spectacular climb on an almost vertically wall, high 70 m, reaching a large portal in the mountain Pha Soung. The cave, Tham Pha Soung, genetically interesting, has large crystals of calcite, but unfortunately, had only 65 m in total.
In the penultimate day of the short exploration tour in the range 19 to 22 March 2017, Liviu Valenas, Sonsay Saithavie and Stefan Hica have spotted a huge cave in Mount Pha Soung. After a gigantic entrance, followed by two parallel galleries and a walking for several hundred meters, the exploration halted because of lack of time. This cave, Tham May Moun, will be the main focus of the upcoming expedition of 2018. Here is a huge potential, kilometres or tens of kilometres. This new cavity has nothing to do with Pha Soung System. Near this cave were spotted other four cavities, but still unexplored.
SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
Some families in the village of Ban Na were equipped with a refrigerator, fan, new furniture etc. and Liviu Valenas made a relatively large cash donation to the Buddhist temple in the village. But the most important achievement of the expedition, from this point of view, was the water supply of the Ban Na village, each house being connected to the drinking and domestic water. It was an old project of the Caving Club “Z” in 2016 put into practice now, exclusively through the financial effort (US $ 2,600) of Peter Lenahan. The third water well performed by a drilling company from Thakhek had the water table at 18.5 m depth near the Buddhist temple. The drilling and connecting works to all houses in Ban Na village was achieved in a record time of 72 hours.
CONCLUSIONS
A total of about 6,300 m were found, of which 5,574.7 m with exact topography. It was performed for the first time also the surface topography at a high accuracy level, which showed the main entrances of the Pha Soung system, in a number of 36! Bearing in mind that nearly all galleries found in all investigated caves were narrow and very low, the result of the expedition can be considered more than satisfactory and make the Pha Soung System, the third big cave in Laos, as a great achievement. The expedition did not have any medical problem, did not register the slightest accident or incident, and relationships with officials in Thakhek and Ban Na were excellent as always.
LIVIU VALENAS
Photos Liviu Valenas: Pha Soung System (20,442 m length):