Lower Cueva Ventana

The entrance to Lower Ventana is a huge shelter. We ascended the slope up through foot deep guano to the left into a large chamber. To the right of the chamber, a short climb-up led to a smaller walking room with a lizard petroglyph. To the left of the climb-up, the passage led to a short climb-over and down a slope to E2. Marion wanted a picture looking out E2 at the tree so I took the picture with him in it. I then climbed back up to the lizard room and posed next to the lizard so Alan could take some pictures before climbing back up to Middle Ventana where Brandon was starting to get grumpy because he’d decided he was going to do the next cave afterall. Marion soon joined me in the entrance of Middle Ventana and we waited on Brandon to ascend and Alan to de-rig. Before I’d gone down the first time on the short rope Alan had caught a Puerto Rican boa in the cave. Brandon wouldn’t hold it because it smelled like guano. Before I went down to Lower Ventana, Alan and I went looking for it again but it coiled tight inside a hole. As I waited for Alan and Brandon, I watched birds fly in and out of Middle Ventana. There were also a couple bats here and there. It was now dusk. Alan hauled the rope up and passed it to Brandon, who gave it to me on the ledge. I tied it to the webbing and Pat pulled it up and rigged it. I climbed up the 30’ using my safety and foot ascender and got my shit together. When Brandon came up, we exited the cave and found the road we should have taken. It was an extremely easy hike back down and the road led where Brandon and I suspected it might. Right back to the Texaco station.