In August 2010, James Toland and Agnes Milowka established the connection between Peacock Springs and Baptizing Spring. The connection between the two springs enlarged the Peacock Springs cave system by more than 10,000 feet (3 km), significantly increasing its already extensive 28,000 feet (8.5 km) of passage.
In this interview, Agnes and James will share the thrill of adventure and exploration as they searched for their first connection.
Many people assume that everything in Florida has been found and explored. How is it possible that they are finding a new cave, even in popular systems like Peacock Springs?
James: Many divers in the Florida cave diving community are focusing on exploration around the world, but I think it’s important to focus on exploration in our own backyard, something I like to call backdoor diving.
There are still many caves here waiting to be pushed, and with the evolution of diving equipment and divers comes the ability to make deeper and longer dives. This opens up new and exciting opportunities that were overlooked or never considered in the past.
Agnes: I think it all comes down to attitude. Too many people assume that everything has been lined up and explored and are happy to follow the lines that are already there. While there is a culture of exploration in Florida, popular caves like Peacock are not seen these days. I guess it just goes to show that the possibilities are endless and the potential is still there, even in popular and frequently dived caves.
How did you find the clue that finally led you to baptize?
James: Ag was looking for some clues with one of his regular dive buddies and he hit the jackpot. After confirming that the lead was on, he was on. She contacted me and told me to put up a line; obviously she really had to twist my arm.
Agnes: Actually, I was doing a fun dive with another buddy and we decided to check out a section of Peacock I hadn’t seen before: the water source tunnel for the Peanut Line.
As it got narrower and smaller, I knew we were getting to the end of the line and was very curious to see what happened next. Finally, the line ended and, as he suspected, the cave continued. It was a little tight and pretty muddy but definitely still going. I tied off and used the bits of line I had left on my reel to check what was ahead. I put 200ft (60m) of line on that dive and decided I was a wizard.
So you found the lead and it looked promising. Tell us about your next dive.
James: A week later, Ag and I were back at it, and yes, we were armed with more line and more gas. The mission was simple; put the whole line inside.
They graciously gave me the lead again and we hit him. One reel, two reels, and then before we knew it, the third reel was coming out. The cave decided to throw a loop into the mix and started to break and split in various directions, so the T’s started flying. We managed to add over 1000 feet of line. In the end, the dive was 280 minutes, but with an average depth of 35ft (10m), we only incurred 10 minutes of decompression.
Agnes: This time we had more line and we were armed with two reels each. Nothing was going to stop us this time! We knew the dive was going to be a long one, so despite not being a morning person, I got up early. At 8 am we were there, waiting for the park gates to open.
It was an incredible dive. We dropped reel after reel and it didn’t seem like the cave was going to stop. Eventually the way forward became less obvious and we had to start digging into various options and clues here and there. In the end these didn’t go anywhere, but we feel like we had a successful dive. You can’t sneeze at dropping more than 1,000 feet (300 m) of line in one day.
When did you know you were headed to Baptism?
James: We started to get suspicious on our second dive. After traversing the Mud Flats, the low, muddy part at the beginning of our exploration, we begin to find these mats of hairy green algae flowing through the tunnels. We noticed it on the previous dive, but didn’t give it much thought. We saw it in abundance on this dive because of all the new line we put in. It was also in the entire peanut line in very weak wisps. As we advanced in the cave it accumulated in larger masses and with greater frequency. I mean there were large groups of these things. Then we started to find dead oak leaves in little bunches. All the telltale signs of an opening.
Agnes: We knew we had to be near an opening because of all the swollen green algae. I remember seeing a lot of if’s in the Baptizing entry when I first explored it. It began to make sense that we were headed for Baptism; Where else would all the flow come from?
I still remember standing by the banks of Baptizing with James a couple of years ago and speculating and discussing where all the water was going.
Even then we thought it was headed for Peacock, but we weren’t sure if a human would physically fit all the way through. Well, here was our chance to find out.
Tell us more about when you connected.
James: Ag was in the lead and had the great honor of joining the lines at both ends. At the mark we chose would be most likely, he put the reel in and 200 feet (60 m) later was the end of the line from Baptizing Springs downstream. Ag tied off that end and we kept going to make sure we had it done. There was no question in our minds as we entered the well downstream from the Baptism entrance. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get out, as the already very strict entry restriction was completed due to past flooding. However, we saw the light of day and after a bit of digging we opened a nice deal. We return the next day to make the crossing itself.
Agnes: It was amazing! I saw my previous line and my blue ‘Ag’ arrow and knew we had it! I was excited. He could have done a little dance right then and there, if not physically then certainly on the inside.
It was nice to come back through some old and familiar territory at Baptizar down the river. I was happy to see that my line was in good condition and not buried, even after all the flooding last year. Suddenly the cave was part of a much larger picture. Making the connection through the Baptizing inlet pool, we suddenly join Peacock with the upstream section of Baptizing. This meant that the Peacock Cave System was suddenly over 10,000 feet (3 km) longer!
The next dive, the swim was a formality but also quite exciting. Going down to one spring and out to another, 4,600 feet (1,400 m) upriver was quite remarkable. A diver physically swimming through the passages demonstrates the hydrological link between the two springs and is sobering. If a diver can swim through water, so can pollution and contamination, and it’s worth noting that the water that flows through Peacock comes from a long way and everything that happens to it upstream has an effect on water quality in the park.
Bob Schulte is an important part of your team. What was his role regarding the connection?
James: The problem was that before the new Ag scouting line was established, there was a section of the line that was not knotted, about 400ft (120m) from it. Ag and I tried to get the data with a tape measure that came out once, but couldn’t due to zero viz. This prevented us from plotting all of the survey data on a map, so we never had a real perspective on exactly where we were headed. Ag went back to Australia briefly so at that time we brought Bob along to join in the fun and games. He and I obtained the missing topographical data from the previous line and examined the rest of the cave in more detail.
Bob brings some unique skills to the table. This guy is on fire with some crazy skills in surveying, mapping, and putting all our gibberish together. Bob is going to tempt the cave diving world with his maps in the near future and he does an absolutely amazing job – he’s a must have on any project.
Agnes: Before we did the connection dive, James and I spent an entire dive blindly chasing clues. It was so frustrating; we knew we were close, but we couldn’t figure out what the magic clue was. We found all kinds of interesting things, but we were really looking for the connection.
It was only once Bob compiled the survey notes and created a map that our next step became clear. Indeed, once everything was ugly, it was simple; less than 250 feet (75 m) later we hit the mark and made the connection. The map made all the difference and Bob’s map is awesome. In the meantime, just for the record, I have an ax to grind with anyone who lays down the line and doesn’t knot it first!
Is this section of the cave unique? Is there something really cool in there or is it all low and muddy?
James: The cave is by far one of the best snorkeling spots in North Florida. Fossils litter the passageways throughout the new exploration. After jumping off the main line, the cave takes on a whole new look. The walls are without scars. The floors are alphabetized with all kinds of bones, from regular vertebrae, jaws, teeth, and long bones, to areas that look like a seafood buffet with crab claws and limbs sticking out of the walls. It looks like a cave should look before all its treasures and diver traffic are looted.
Passages range from a sizable pit cave with sandy bottoms to low restrictive muddy clay bottoms. Some passages are almost complete from top to bottom. The flow dynamics are interesting and some areas have an exceptional amount of flow compared to the rest of Peacock. Then other areas have little to no flow, especially where the cave starts to come out like a spider web. These areas are often low and muddy and have no visibility on the way out.
Agnes: I’m a big fan of Peacock in general. I think it is one of the most extraordinary and incredible caves in Florida. Baptize will always be special in my mind as it was my first foray into real extensive exploration and I found many pristine caves there. Bringing these two caves together and expanding the Peacock System was an extraordinary experience.
As James said, the amount of fossil remains in the cave is impressive and there is a lot of archaeological material around Baptizing Spring. It is a fascinating system on many levels. Baptizing Spring has this rich history going back to the Timucuan Indians and the Spanish invasion in the 17th century. Then there is hydrology; There are still many mysteries surrounding the flow of water around Peacock. Finding this plethora of new caves and revealing one more little piece of the puzzle is really cool.
But some parts of the cave are really low and muddy. The entire run from Peacock to Baptizing is an advanced side-mount cave dive, and while it’s not off limits, it certainly requires good gas management and a love of tight spots, thick silt, and zero visibility.
