Chair: Pat McKenna

The ROC makes trips to a variety of caves such as Wards-Gregory (Clarksville), Knox, Morris, Schoharie, and Gage. While most of the trips involve horizontal caving, we go vertical caving as well! These trips usually occur on Friday nights or on the weekends year-round. The club has all the basic gear necessary for basic caving (helmet, headlamp), however there is large amount of gear that the club does not provide that can greatly enhance the caving experience (knee/elbow pads, gloves) in many of the caves found in the Northeast.

The RPI outing club is a grotto affiliated with the National Speleological Society (NSS).

• Suggested Caving Gear. What clothing and footwear you need to participate in most ROC caving trips.
• Club Caving Policies. Discover what it takes to become a ROC caving leader!
• NSS webpageWebsite of the National Speological Society
• Caving Pictures!

Caving Leaders:

Class A:

• Michael Chu
• Pat McKenna
• Scott Stepenuck

Class B:

• Greg Moore

Class C:

• Matt Filippelli

Gear

It is generally a good idea to have clothes dedicated for caving, as the caves in the Northeast are generally rough on clothing. Local retailers such as Walmart and Salvation Army are often the best source to get low priced supplies for the occasional caver.

Walmart:

• Neoprene Gloves
• Rubber Boots
• Polypro
• Knee Pads, Elbow Pads
• Batteries (for electric headlamps)

Salvation Army/Good Will:

• All sorts of non-cotton clothing
  durable enough for caving at very low prices.
• Wool pants, jackets, overcoats, etc.

Caving equipment sources

• Karst Sports
• Inner Mountain Outfitters
• Bob and Bob's
• On Rope 1, Inc

Other places to go for gear

• REI
• REI-Outlet
• Eastern Mountain Sports
• Sierra Trading Post

Where can I go caving?

• in NY, Albany and Schoharie counties contain the largest number of sizeable caves. Browse the literature in the pit for more information, or contact a ROC caving leader.
• There are caves in the Adirondacks and southern NY as well.
• Popular caves near RPI