Gretchen Baker

Gretchen Baker, author of "Great Basin National Park: A Guide to the Park and Surrounding Area" and ecologist at Great Basin National Park uses signs in the cave to identify climate changes in an article published in 2012 by The Salt Lake Tribune. "It turns out the caves are a time machine, reflecting not only what's happening on Mount Wheeler and in the Snake Valley outside but also centuries worth of global climate patterns. That's the crux of research on Lehman Caves stalagmites." she said.

Baker participates in may conservation activities in the Great Basin National park including the 2013 Lehman Cave Lint Camp where volunteers removed grime from the beautiful interior of the cave trapped by visitors. This year during Thanksgiving weekend, a crew of about 10 people worked more than 120 hours underground and hauled out nearly 40 pounds of dirt, lint and other debris from the most heavily trafficked parts of the cave. "I was surprised by how much hair there is," Baker said with a laugh. "It's pretty disgusting, actually." It was the first such cleanup at Lehman since 2009. Much of the work was done by members of a Las Vegas-based caving club known as the Southern Nevada Grotto.

In 2009 Baker with Ben Roberts discovered in Model Cave several a new species of cave critters including two varieties of tiny shrimp and two new kinds of all-white cave millipedes. I am sure Baker is responsible for many more credits to cave conservation, education, and exploration too. She has discovered caves, but the exact number and names are not listed online. Nice work Gretchen. Thank you for being an extraordinary woman caver!

SOURCES
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/54935816-78/caves-climate-outside-broecker.html.csp

http://cavingnews.com/20130118-volunteer-at-lehman-cave-lint-camp-february-great-basin

http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nevada-and-west/caves-get-cleaned-great-basin-national-park