UMTYRA (Krem)

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

The friendly and inviting entrance (neither big nor small) to this cave and spring suffered harsh comments when the legendarily aquaphobic Andrew -Andy- Peter Tyler (2000.02.28 Mss: Krem Um-Tyra) judged it a minor resurgence and, instead of wet, very low, gets too low [too wet?] to continue (note 1). ETYMOLOGY: Speding Dkhar from Thangskai referred on 16th February 1999 to a cave name which I recorded as -Krem Umtra- and interpreted as signifying a -krem- or cave on the -um- or stream (of water) specified by a -tra- (or so). The Khasi -u tyra- (noun) is the same as the Bengali -nol bas- and the name of a species of small bamboo (SINGH, N 1906: 240). APPROACH (note 2): To reach the cave from the village of Thangskai (25°11'45”N: 92°22'35“E), follow what had been in February 1999 a 4WD track east. Where this track forded a second stream, walk upstream to a point where a water pipe had crossed in February 1999 the stream and two minor streams converge. Follow the second of these two treamdes up to the cave entrance (note 3). CAVE DESCRIPTION: Cave [sic! qua: the visiting caver] follows a north-west direction in low stream way max. 1 m high and 2 m wide (Tyler 2000.02.28 Mss).SPELEOMETRY: Andrew -Andy- Peter Tyler claimed a survey length of 33.57 m at an unspecified vertical range of plus or minus 5 m (Tyler 2000.02.28 Mss) but the accumulated mass or mess of survey data yielded an exercise of futility and no cave survey (cave plan). CAVE POTENTIAL: A P Tyler (2000.02.28 Mss: Krem Umtyra) said he did not like this cave but possibly wanted to say he did not like the suffocating aspect of the potentially lethal water in this cave. Nevertheless he draws attention to the then unexplored Krem Umtyra 2, which lies higher up and seems to be a bigger cave.CAVE LIFE: Cray fish (Crustacea: conf Palaemonida).The friendly and inviting entrance (neither big nor small) to this cave and spring suffered harsh comments when the legendarily aquaphobic Andrew -Andy- Peter Tyler (2000.02.28 Mss: Krem Um-Tyra) judged it a minor resurgence and, instead of wet, very low, gets too low [too wet?] to continue (note 1). ETYMOLOGY: Speding Dkhar from Thangskai referred on 16th February 1999 to a cave name which I recorded as -Krem Umtra- and interpreted as signifying a -krem- or cave on the -um- or stream (of water) specified by a -tra- (or so). The Khasi -u tyra- (noun) is the same as the Bengali -nol bas- and the name of a species of small bamboo (SINGH, N 1906: 240). APPROACH (note 2): To reach the cave from the village of Thangskai (25°11'45”N: 92°22'35“E), follow what had been in February 1999 a 4WD track east. Where this track forded a second stream, walk upstream to a point where a water pipe had crossed in February 1999 the stream and two minor streams converge. Follow the second of these two treamdes up to the cave entrance (note 3). CAVE DESCRIPTION: Cave [sic! qua: the visiting caver] follows a north-west direction in low stream way max. 1 m high and 2 m wide (Tyler 2000.02.28 Mss).SPELEOMETRY: Andrew -Andy- Peter Tyler claimed a survey length of 33.57 m at an unspecified vertical range of plus or minus 5 m (Tyler 2000.02.28 Mss) but the accumulated mass or mess of survey data yielded an exercise of futility and no cave survey (cave plan). CAVE POTENTIAL: A P Tyler (2000.02.28 Mss: Krem Umtyra) said he did not like this cave but possibly wanted to say he did not like the suffocating aspect of the potentially lethal water in this cave. Nevertheless he draws attention to the then unexplored Krem Umtyra 2, which lies higher up and seems to be a bigger cave.CAVE LIFE: Cray fish (Crustacea: conf Palaemonida).