My participation in, the expedition to Cerro Grande actually began last September in Carlsbad, New Mexico, USA. I was unfortunate enough to arrive in Carlsbad during a working week and discover cavers who actually work for a living. Needless to say, my caving there was limited, but one of the locals gave me the address for John J. Pint in the state of Jalisco, Mexico (quite close to where I live in, Colima, Mexico). After contacting John, I was introduced to ZOTZ by reading Western Mexico’s best (and only) caving magazine SUBTERRÁNEO. Plans were made to explore caves and, after a couple of cancellations, we were on our way. John, Susy and Jesús arrived on a Friday at the Hacienda that my wife and I administrate for the University of Oklahoma, and this gave us a chance to get acquainted and discover who, was the most knowledgeable speleologist ... I lost.

One reason why the caves around here are often virgin and free of litter as due to the fact that they are located in places that destroy your average vehicle. For every bang, bump and bit that we suffered on Saturday, only the thought of a ruined cave kept me from wishing for an asphalt road leading all the way to the Cerro Grande, part of the fabled Sierra de Manantlán, spanning the Jalisco-Colima border.

After looking at several possibilities, we came to a nondescript area, which we decided to check out. Susy and I went over to examine a narrow fissure about 1/2 by 2 meters and I must admit that it did not look very promising. My ability to judge a good site quickly proved itself to be less than, perfect as a rock that was tossed in fell, banged, fell, banged, fell some more, then BOOOOooomed. It seemed to be about 80 to 100 meters deep, and we did not need anyone to tell us to look no further.

Jesus “Guinea Pig” Moreno was first to explore. The extraordinary amount of time that he spent inside was not due to selfishness (boy, did I want to have my turn!) but rather to his having put on part of his ascending gear (the Croll) in a reversed position before rappelling down, necessitating the drastic maneuver of opening his main carbiner while dangling over the void. We knew he was all right since every time we screamed and yelled for him to answer, up would come some sounds that remained one of Tarzan with a sore throat. When he finally emerged, tired but pleased, we heard his description of an awesome pit.

Twenty meters below the opening, he had landed on a ledge looking onto over a 25-meter-wide shaft plunging down into utter darkness. He jumped into that darkness aria- soon reached the end of the 100 meter rope where he was able to estimate that at least another 100 meters where left before reaching the pit floor, since he threw down a chunk of mud from the wall. Considering that one of Jesus’ “meters” is equivalent to 15 of ours, this pit may have an excellent chance of beating the world’s freefall record!

I decided to not go down since it was getting late and there was more exploring to do. My two hours of pleasure would have meant that the others in ZOTZ would have been deprived of my trailblazing skills.

Three years before, I visited this area with some non-cavers. We found a very large pit that seemed to have a dry creek bed at the bottom and a cave entrance at one end. The 30 meter rope that was available was not long enough, so after swearing to return someday and then forgetting the exact location, I proceeded to drive John, Susy and Jesús all over the mountain until they finally doubted my sanity and honesty (actually all we doubted was his ability to drive at less than 200 km/hour - Ed.). As dusk arrived, we found the spot (it was a three-minute walk from where we had started in the first place!). The lateness of the day prevented exploration and I am confident that my fellow ZOTZites will be able to find this promising location in the future.

The next day, all of us had an opportunity to discuss and try out ascending techniques. I am convinced that Johns harness and climbing system as far superior to anything that I have, and will soon purchase the necessary equipment. This was my, first experience with, a caving group, and it was an enjoyable one for me. Although I have enjoyed caving by myself (not the safest of practices), the companionship adds much to each exploration, and the experience of the ZOTZ members will save me much time, money, and effort since I can, now copy “the wheel” instead of trying to re-invent it.