Mo is the "Cave State" Plenty to do underground (Eureka: environment, getaway)

[Versatile]

Recreation heads underground in Missouri - CNN.com

New digs for Shadowcaver maybe.lol

[MoNative34]

Do you have any cave safety tips you'd like to share?

[da jammer]

Originally Posted by MoNative34

Do you have any cave safety tips you'd like to share?

[Versatile]

Sure! Don't go in them. You might get lost!

[bentaxlecrew]

Uh oh! Karst! LOL! Does'nt that sound like a word a pirate would use.

That was an unbelievable story! I had no idea you could do any of those things under ground. Thanks for sharing that one versatile.

[2beamissourian]

bat collection............ swim ........... scare the heck out of friends ........

as a teenager- get grounded for a whole summer for going into them ;0

[Wanderer0101]

I used to spend quite a bit of time in Missouri caves. Caves should not be entered casually. You always need to let someone know where you're going and when you plan to return. Always carry a minimum of two light sources, three is better. Wear a hard hat. Don't go in caves with visible breakdown (fallen rock). Look behind you every couple of minutes because it looks different when you're coming out and it's easy to get lost. Remember what's easy to go down may be very difficult to climb up. Stay out of caves when it's raining or rain is forecast. Etc.

You really need to go with experienced people in the beginning, find a club and join.

[ajf131]

I have to admit Missouri is THE cave state out there. Onyx Cave (or is that in Northern Arkansas?), Bridal Cave, Meramec Caverns...I even remember going into water-filled caves and losing one of my shoes in the sticky mud years ago at heritage crossing, I believe just southwest of Sullivan, Missouri. I am quite fascinated by the spaces, or caverns, in between the cliffs, even on Business Loop 44 in Eureka, MO. lol, we woke up a bunch of sleeping bats in the caves, boy was that a friggin' scary experience hahaha

[firebll31]

Here's a tip the local cave clubs will thank you for: If you find a PVC tube with the ends sealed in a cave entrance DO NOT REPORT IT AS A BOMB! The end comes off and there is a logbook inside, in which spelunkers can record the date and time they entered the cave and exited. I think they can also leave comments. This is for safety reasons, and also to gauge how many visitors the cave has had, since it is a very sensitive environment. Unfortunately, this happened a few years ago in my town. It created quite an uproar and the authorities were quite proud that they removed the "bomb" and blew it up outside of town. If they had looked closer, they would have seen the letters MSS-Missouri Speliological Society.

Silver Dollar City has a pretty neat cave tour, which is free once you enter the park. The cave is memorable-alas, the jokes the tour guides make are not.

[Northwoods Voyager]

Originally Posted by ajf131

I have to admit Missouri is THE cave state out there. Onyx Cave (or is that in Northern Arkansas?), Bridal Cave, Meramec Caverns...I even remember going into water-filled caves and losing one of my shoes in the sticky mud years ago at heritage crossing, I believe just southwest of Sullivan, Missouri. I am quite fascinated by the spaces, or caverns, in between the cliffs, even on Business Loop 44 in Eureka, MO. lol, we woke up a bunch of sleeping bats in the caves, boy was that a friggin' scary experience hahaha

Using your post just as an example:

A small percentage of Missouri's caves are home to endangered grey and Indiana bats. Both species of bats usually roost in very large numbers, up to hundreds of thousands, which makes them extremely vulnerable to disturbance.

IF you happen upon a cave and find big clusters of bats in it, you undoubtedly have stumbled upon one or the other of these endangered bats. Disturbance by humans is among the main reason that these bats are endangered. Each time the bats are awakened from hibernation they use up vital fat reserves that CANNOT be replaced in winter. Excessive disturbance can cause bats to die or abandon a cave.

For this reason, if you do encounter a large group of bats in a cave, quietly retreat and allow the bats to roost undisturbed.

Thank you....