Deep in the Canadian Rockies, 12 kilometres north of Fernie, B.C., explorers descended further than ever before to map the limits of Canada’s deepest cave network.
The Bisaro Anima, named after Canadian Second World War veteran Private Torindo John Bisaro, is Canada’s deepest known cave, at 10.5 kilometres long.
Many parts of the cave in southeastern British Columbia are named after wars fought by the Canadian Armed Forces.
Katie Graham, the expedition lead, led her 24-person team into the cave, uncovering 1.1 kilometres of previously unmapped passages and reaching a new depth of 690 metres, breaking the previous record of 682 metres.
“Unravelling the mystery of what is around the corner, why is the rock like that?” said Graham in a press release. “It is a combination of time travel, geology field trip, climbing a mountain peak, and camping in the rain, all so we can dive to know the secrets the mountain is hiding.”
What was the expedition like?
Crawling through muddy puddles, pooping in bags, hauling 12 heavy bags of equipment, and pre-made meals are all part of the spelunking lifestyle, according to Graham.
“Nothing’s very glamorous,” said Graham. “It’s just about the people that you’re with, the conversations and the laughs. I think a lot of caving is sort of this sensory deprivation and trial on your kind of tolerances.”
But for Graham, she says that the worst part is the temperature.
“It’s so cold… Every day, you’re going out, and you’re getting wet, and the only way that you can dry off is by your internal heat,” said Graham. “We end up drinking quite a bit of chicken bouillon or beef bouillon or miso soup. Just trying to stay warm.”
When her team finally reached the Dieppe Sump, the flooded passage in all its cerulean glory, their faces lit up with “beauty and admiration of the teal blue lake.”
Why was it so important?
The new discoveries raise new scientific questions about geology and biology.
Researchers at the University of Toronto will analyze mineral samples to investigate the age of some of the deeper passages.
University of Montreal researchers will analyze water samples to support research into cave microbes.
We think those microbes represent what we could expect to find on the moon the moon of Saturn… What we expect to see in outer space will probably be a non-carbon based form. it doesn’t need much food, it can use rocks or elements as food. It won’t look like life on earth here, and so the inside of a cave is an opportunity to find this kind of microbes.
Katie Graham
Graham also says that the cave’s exploration helps support research into global warming.
Because caves act like water reservoirs, melting glaciers can affect habitats.
“One of the expectations is that with less snowpack, means there’s more water going into the river system early in the springtime. [If] rivers will dry up later in the fall or in the middle of the summer, the flood pulse in spring will be faster, and then we’ll have less water later in the year,” said Graham.
“Caves acting as the cistern actually help mitigate that. If we could understand what the volume of water is, we could understand what the impact is to the river and the fish later on.”
What is next for the Bisaro Anima expedition?
After creating a 3D model and climbing up a canyon, Graham’s team discovered they were close to the other side of the mountain and hopes to find a new entrance on the next expedition.
If they find the entrance, her team could dive the Dieppe Sump again to see what lies further.
With further passages still left to be discovered, team member Christian Stenner says, “The results are a record of what we’ve learned so far, not the limit of what is there. There’s so much more to discover.”
For more of Katie’s previous spelunking adventures, including her dive into the Dieppe Sump, you can find her featured in the award-winning documentary Subterranean.
