PROJECT SISTEMAS HUASTECAS
We name this region of our exploration for the Huastecas who are among the most ancient of the indigenous Indian populations of pre-hispanic México. They live in a territory which includes the southern part of Tamaulipas, the northern section of the state of Veracruz, the eastern regions of San Luis Potosi, and parts of Queretaro, Hidalgo, and Puebla. Their settlements extend west to the southern reaches of the Sierra Madre Oriental, including that section known as La Sierra Del Abra. It is a region remarkable for it's ecological diversity, greater than 31.5 inches [800 centimeters] of annual rainfall produces tropical lushness with bamboo standing taller than 30 feet [9 meters], prehistoric volcanoes fill deep valleys and winds sweep across stark, broad plateaus. The fabulous rainfall imposes a seasonal restriction on exploration, and Bowden and his team are denied access during from the end of May until the end of January. This range of mountains holds some of the deepest and most majestic water filled caves in the world, including the Nacimiento del Rio Mante. The Proyecto is currently exploring multiple large river caves in this region. The waters typically flow forcefully out of the mountainside and divers frequently encounter current and limited visibility. Like Mante, many other caves of the El Abra are deep, and the team will rely on mixed gas technology and custom tables to extend their exploration. The Farallon DPV will be particularly suitable in these caves where the average depth is great, and passages are large and long.