KHWAI TDONG (Krem)

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

The north-facing cave entrance (up to 0.6 m wide and 1.9 m high) was identified as a relatively small hole and leads to a horizontal, north-south-aligned cave passage which, however, contains liquid and thus potentially lethal water that threatens to make dry cave visitor successively more and more wet. The apparently seasonal sink is said to drain some of the water that flows down [along an unspecified] the valley [with an unidentified name] to the Kopili in Monsoon time [note 1] (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss -2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011- = Krem Khwai Tdong.doc). ETYMOLOGY: The origin and meaning of the recorded cave names was never discovered but it seems likely that the Syntang Khasi (Pnar) cave name combines the Khasi word -khwai- for to angle, to fish, to hook (fish) (note 1) with -u tdong-, the word for a tail (note 2) or with -[ka] t'dong-, simply -[ka] 'dong-, a short form of -[ka] tyndong- and the word for a duct, pipe or tube (note 3). All in all, foreigners recordd at least three spelling versions, namely: Khwai Tedong Waelchli, U & Ludwig, P after Damian Manar from Mooknor in: Anonymous Arbenz, T (2013.08.07 Meghalaya Expedition 2013 Diary.doc: February, Saturday 16th, Sunday 17th) Khwai Tdong Arbenz, T (2013.12.06 Mss ” 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011- = Krem Khwai Tdong.doc); Arbenz, T (2013.12.06 KhwaiTdongPlan.pdf) Khwetadong Kharpran Daly, Brian D. after Bikin Paslein from Samasi in: Stead, J (2004.02.17 Mss). ETYMOLOGY 2013: Khwai = catch, Tdong = tail (according to an ignored informant, no name mentioned, undated in: Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011).SITUATION: Some 600 m or 700 m in a direct line from the orographically left (locally south) bank of the Kopili River and about 2 km NW of Moo Knor (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). POSITION A: Near (unspecified precision error) N25°24'54.2”: E092°37'15.8”: 760 m asl / N25.415056°: E92.621056° (unspecified geodetic dtum possibly WGS84, anonymous Waelchli U & Ludwig P 2013.02.16 survey data file: Khwai Tedong_01.Text) or 11.6 m in a direct line approximately further east but 2 m lower down and near POSITION B: Near (±20 m) N25°24'54.1”: E092°37'16.2” / N25.415028°: E92.621167°: 758 m asl (WGS84, Bailey N 2011.02.21 GPS Garmin e-trex in: Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss ” 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011- = Krem Khwai Tdong.doc). APPROACH: Take what had been in February 2013 a 4WD-track from the village of Moo Knor northwest up to a point near N25°24'34.0”: E092°37'28.8” (WGS84) and search for a footpath north which goes steeply uphill for about 10 m and then drops into a short valley following a direction of roughly NNW (sic!). The footpath leads after 500 m to an open karst area and the cave entrance lies in one way or another right beside the path and at the base of a low cliff (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). CAVE DESCRIPTION 2013a: A relatively small holewas found to lead to the first 150 m of walking-sized and nice to look at cave passage with knee-deep water. At this point, the cave passage became more aquatic and continues as a relatively much bigger passage and the passage appears to be continuing … (anonymous Arbenz, T 2013.08.07 Mss: Meghalaya Expedition 2013 Diary: 16th February, Saturday). The comparatively low duck section leads to a relatively larger walking or stooping size passage trending SW and towards a second, harder duck followed by a relatively low canal passage which continues as a duck with a certain airspace which, however, was absurdly interpreted as a sump with an inward draft (anonymous Arbenz, T 2013.08.07 Mss: Meghalaya Expedition 2013 Diary: 17th February, Sunday). CAVE DESCRIPTION 2013b: A small hole leads into a stooping size passage with soft pebbly shingles on the floor, which again leads into walking size passage and knee-deep water. After about 150 metres of nice gallery the passage becomes more aquati. A short swim leads to a much bigger passage; then a low duck section is followed by larger walking or stooping size passages generally trending SW. A second harder duck has to be negotiated to get access to the last bit of low canal passage ending at a sump with an inward draught noted on 17th Feb. 2013 (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). CAVE DESCRIPTION 2013c: A relatively small hole gives access to a stooping-sized cave passage with soft pebbly shingles on the floor, which leads to a walking-sized cave passage with knee-deep water. After about 150 m, the nice cave passage becomes more aquatic. A short swim leads via much bigger passage to a duck followed by walking- or stooping-sized cave passages generally southwest. A second, harder duck has to be negotiated to get access to the last known bit of canal passage which leads to a so-called sump (sic! qua: the third duck) with an inward draught noted on 17th Feb. 2013 at an unidentified time (after Arenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). CAVE POTENTIAL: Krem Khwai Tdong could have potential to be connected with Krem Shalong (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). PROSPECTS 2011: Nothing less than a quick and easy but superficial glance at this one of a couple of small sinks with unidentified names in the offhand-created the Stanghar area resulzed in simply stating that it did not look promising (anonymous Nicola -Nicky- Bayley, Angela -Angi- or -Angie- Glanvill, Hellen 'Helli' or 'Hellie' Brooke, Cdr. Vijay Chhikara and Brian D. Kharpran Daly in: anonymous Arbenz, T 2011.03.07 -Meghalaya Expedition 2011 Diary- = 2011 Diary.doc: 21st February, Monday). PROSPECTS 2013: The unknown parts of this cave continues unexplored and is believed to lead to a sump flooded with liquid water. Since the unsurveyed part of the cave passage leads to a much bigger passage which appears to be continuing it needs no reason to assume that the ikelihood of it ending in [sic! qua: leading to] a sump is very much on the cards (anonymous Arbenz, T 2013.08.07 Mss: Meghalaya Expedition 2013 Diary: 16th February, Saturday). CULTURAL HISTORY - human use: Quite naturally, there is none known (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011) to expedition cavers. Since the name of this cave refers explicitly to the catching of fish and the cave itself is known even to persons in Samasi, this cave is probably well-known to people familiar with the area as a renowned fishing ground.CAVE LIFE: Numerous huntsman spiders (Heteropoda), shrimps, fish. Some paw prints inside, maybe feline? (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011).enz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). CAVE POTENTIAL: Krem Khwai Tdong could have potential to be connected with Krem Shalong (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011). PROSPECTS 2011: Nothing less than a quick and easy but superficial glance at this one of a couple of small sinks with unidentified names in the offhand-created the Stanghar area resulzed in simply stating that it did not look promising (anonymous Nicola -Nicky- Bayley, Angela -Angi- or -Angie- Glanvill, Hellen 'Helli' or 'Hellie' Brooke, Cdr. Vijay Chhikara and Brian D. Kharpran Daly in: anonymous Arbenz, T 2011.03.07 -Meghalaya Expedition 2011 Diary- = 2011 Diary.doc: 21st February, Monday). PROSPECTS 2013: The unknown parts of this cave continues unexplored and is believed to lead to a sump flooded with liquid water. Since the unsurveyed part of the cave passage leads to a much bigger passage which appears to be continuing it needs no reason to assume that the ikelihood of it ending in [sic! qua: leading to] a sump is very much on the cards (anonymous Arbenz, T 2013.08.07 Mss: Meghalaya Expedition 2013 Diary: 16th February, Saturday). CULTURAL HISTORY - human use: Quite naturally, there is none known (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011) to expedition cavers. Since the name of this cave refers explicitly to the catching of fish and the cave itself is known even to persons in Samasi, this cave is probably well-known to people familiar with the area as a renowned fishing ground.CAVE LIFE: Numerous huntsman spiders (Heteropoda), shrimps, fish. Some paw prints inside, maybe feline? (Arbenz, T 2013.12.06 Mss: 2013.12.05 Krem Khwai Tdong 21.2.2011).