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Having conquered over 20 caves, big and small, across Vietnam, Tạ Nam Long shares his insights and reveals the costs of mountaineering gear for cave exploration.
Travel Tip: Gear Essentials of Vietnam's Deepest Caves Explorer
Our reporter met Tạ Nam Long at his home one afternoon, three months after the accident. Long greeted us with a bright smile, saying, 'I'll be fully recovered in just 2 months. The fire of passion for exploration within me has never died out.'
Long recounted that over 2 years ago, he was a fan of outdoor adventures and exploration. Once, a friend invited him to explore a water cave in Thanh Hoa. The two had incredibly exciting experiences. Since then, he developed a love for cave exploration, founded the Vietnam Cave Exploration Association, and now, the group has over 1,800 members on social media, with 40 actively participating in cave expeditions. They're also the first Vietnamese cave exploration group in the country.
Long stated, 'The group regularly organizes a cave exploration every two weeks. Easy caves attract around 30-40 participants, while more challenging and dangerous ones are limited to 5 individuals with the best physical and skill capabilities. After 2 years since its establishment, the group has explored 20 caves.
Tạ Nam Long (born in 1981, residing in Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi) leads the Cave Exploration Team of Cống Nước (Lai Châu) with a depth of 600 meters. Previously, his expedition successfully conquered the 300-meter-deep Địa Ngục Cave and the 400-meter-deep Ong Cave in Hà Giang, ranking sixth among the deepest caves in Vietnam. After the accident in March at Cống Nước Cave, Nam Long received treatment at Viet Duc Hospital and is currently undergoing recovery.
Substantial Expenses
To pursue his passion, the man born in 1981 revealed: 'This is quite a dangerous sport, so safety equipment is crucial and needs to be fully equipped. The cost for each set of personal protective gear is around 10 million Vietnamese dong. My team's equipment now totals over 70 million dong, including load-bearing ropes, electronic devices (walkie-talkies, waterproof cameras, waterproof camcorders, depth gauges, etc.), protective belts, safety hooks, headlamps, helmets, life jackets... All are specialized equipment, purchased from overseas.'
Initially, members were hesitant to spend a large sum on protective gear and equipment. After a few expeditions, everyone realized the necessity and importance of full equipment to ensure safety, including basic tools required for cave exploration such as helmets, waterproof headlamps, waterproof bags, and life jackets.
Survival Skills
To prepare for high-difficulty, high-risk cave expeditions like Cống Nước Cave (Lai Châu), Ong Cave (Hà Giang), and Địa Ngục Cave (Hà Giang), Nam Long and team members often undergo six months of training and equipment preparation.
Advice from this 8X gentleman for those aspiring to become cave explorers is to join clubs or exploration groups where members can share experiences, knowledge, skills, and explore caves from easy to challenging ones; practice and learn skills such as orientation when lost, assessing situations, assigning tasks, rescue operations, medical care, mountaineering knowledge, rope techniques, knot tying, etc.
The 8X cave explorer emphasizes that for this sport, players need to have sufficient health and no cardiovascular-related diseases. Before setting off, they must thoroughly research the caves they plan to explore, check equipment, monitor weather forecasts to prevent floods, getting trapped in caves, carry medical supplies to prevent blood loss.
Tạ Nam Long said he made two continuous mistakes leading to the accident of falling into a 50-meter-deep hole while exploring Cống Nước Cave: as the team leader, he didn't descend first at the section with a 10-meter-deep hole, and the person ahead forgot to anchor the rope when reaching the end of the rock edge. In a moment of confusion, he used the safety rope to secure luggage without a backup rescue rope. Immediately after, he fell into the 50-meter-deep hole, suffered spinal injuries, and a broken thigh bone. He had to stay immobile for a day and a night until the rescue team brought him out of the cave.
During the exploration, the team must leave contact information and the estimated time to exit the cave. Members cross-check equipment, technical skills for each other. Especially, members should not split from the group without the leader's consent, or wander alone in the cave.
In case of danger or accidents, Nam Long advises: 'Stay calm, if lost, sit still and use a whistle to call teammates. In case of rising water, find a high spot to take shelter, limit movement, conserve energy. Members of the team should assign one person to stay with the injured, bring along plenty of food, drinks, while others go out of the cave to seek help.
Additionally, when preparing equipment, it's important not to wear denim pants (waterlogged jeans can be very heavy, affecting climbing); avoid tight clothing; bring quick-drying clothes, long-sleeved shirts to avoid scratches. You should also avoid wearing flip-flops or backless sandals prone to slipping. Important items like phones, electronic devices should be sealed in plastic bags, then put into waterproof pouches or backpacks. Water inside caves should not be used as it may contain parasites and disease-causing agents. Lastly, carry lightweight but high-energy foods such as raisins, dried jackfruit, chocolate, condensed milk, canned goods...
Source: Zing News
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Reference: Travel Guide from Mytour
MytourApril 26, 2016
