Extraordinary Women Leaders in Speleology (EWLS)

In honor of Valentines Day, EWLS wants to share this story written by the Kokomo Tribune about Marcy Boyd and Tim Stahl who met as cave divers. The couple began dating in March 2007 and Tim proposed underwater about a year later. "To us, this is how it's supposed to be," Tim said. Read the story here: kokomotribune.com

In 2010 a three person dive survey team that included Extraordinary Woman Caver Chrissy Richards added an additional 1.3 mi to the cave length of Blue Spring Cave . In only 8 hours this White County, TN cave became quite longer. The dive took 3 hours in 53 degree water. The team found and surveyed an additional approx 1,000' of dry cave. The team found and surveyed a new sump which ended up finally connecting to known passage. "Right after this picture was taken, we realized we had made the connection. I was so excited, cold, tired, and proud. I was part of a three man dive team, two man push team, and 16 years of diving effort to make this connection." Christina said.  The cave is now 38.19 mi long.

Becky Kagen is an award-winning underwater director of photography. Other then being a photographer, she is also a tech instructor. Becky has had a had a curiosity for what was underneath the waves since she was a kid and she always thought that documenting it was what she was going to do. Becky is an Emmy Award winning underwater camera operator, photographer and technical diver. She has been seen on major networks including National Geographic, Discovery Channel and the Travel Channel. She has done several exploration projects and has earned her place within the Fellow Explorer Club. In 2013 she was introduced into the Women Divers Hall of Fame. She has filmed in challenging environments such as caves, under ice, shipwrecks, and even sharks. She has over 20 years of diving experiences, logging thousands of hours underwater making her comfortable in most any environment. She has passion about the underwater world and loves to share her photography and give diving lesions. Her advent...

“New microbes are as exciting to me as virgin passages – for me there’s a similar thrill of discovery. You know it’s a great day when you get treated to both!” Jennifer Macalady Associate Professor, Geomicrobiologist, and 2015 EWC #ScienceWomen #WLeadership #ewls www.ewls.org

“You need to treat your team how you would like to be treated and give the young, new divers a taste of the action ... you have to give something back." Christine Grosart Founder of WetWellies Caving, Cave Photographer, Paramedic, and 2015 EWC #ScienceWomen #WLeadership #ewls www.ewls.org

“I love exploration. There is something about being the first person in a passage ... it becomes yours.” Chrissy Richards Cave Diver with a Masters of Fisheries and Aquatic Science and 2014 EWC #ScienceWomen #WLeadership #ewls www.ewls.org

Annette Price is a cave, mine, adventure sport, and wild place photographer. She has been a freelance photographer since 1988, producing images that meet the needs of magazine editors, news agencies, equipment and clothing manufactures - as well as athletes and print buyers.  She is based in the UK but travels abroad when required to photograph sports, explorers, athletes, and recreational outdoor enthusiasts in remote locations. Annette is trained as a graphic designer and illustrator. She has been diving since 2004, caving since 2003, and a photographer for operation Raleigh (now Raleigh International) for 3 month expeditions in the jungles of Guyana, South America. She is also the Assistant photographer for John Snett, an advertising and editorial studio photography in West End, London. Annette has been published in several Magazines such as BBC Focus Magazine, The Times, The Daily Mail, Digital SLR User Magazine, Land Rover Owner International Magazine, Diver Magazine, Outdo...

The 50-year-old diver, Jill Heinerth also doubles as an underwater photographer and film-maker. She  has spent decades exploring some of the world’s most dangerous waters. "Shipwrecks, dangerous caves and exploding icebergs are all in a day’s work for Jill Heinerth." writes reporter for The Royal Gazette, Jessie Moniz Hardy. Jill regularly is asked to share her skills with aspiring scientists, cavers, and divers. Two weeks ago she taught rebreathing techniques to scientists at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) and lectured about some of her experiences at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute. She has written many books on diving techniques and has become a pioneer in rebreather diving, a method still not used by the majority of divers because of the level of training needed. Her most dangerous dive was a cave in an Antarctic iceberg 15 years ago. The Connecticut-sized iceberg was one of the largest on record and broke off the Ross Ice Shelf in 2...

Liz is a Australian cave diver and Underwater Cave photographer. She is apart of the Cave Diver Association of Australia in Mt Gambier region. She takes five hour dives west of Melbourne for regular weekend trips to provide perfect opportunities for underwater cave photography with in the crystal clear freshwater within the Australia waters. Liz enjoys diving in the salty waters outside of the Queenscliff for living near a temperate ocean it means the occasional winter trips with in the tropics that become partially mandatory.   She has won several underwater cave photography awards and also has had several publications some of her publications that her photography has been published in has been the Alert Diver 2012, The Weekend Australian Magazine January 2012, and the underwater speleology: Journal of the Cave Diving section of the NSS in January 2012.   Her publications of her excellent underwater cave diving photograph go back to Sports Diver Magazine in 200...