Southern Illinois Caves?

[nickegan]

Hey everyone this is my first post but im sure there will be many more. Anyways I'm located in Carbondale, Southern Illinois and I recently became aware of the beautiful land and caves surrounding me. I've been on guided tours before but no i want to go out on my own. I was hoping someone could tell me where to go, I've read there are more than 400 caves in Illinois but other than the major ones they are very hard to find without some help. I already know of Equality cave but other than that what are the biggest, most scenic, and interesting Caves down here? ... and more importantly how do i get to them. Any help is MUCH APPRECIATED.
Thanks Everyone
Nicholas T. Egan

[Tony Anders]

Let me say welcome to the forum and welcome to the caving world. I am sure you will find many helpful people on here to help with information gathering.

Just remember to be safe.

See ya around in the underground.

[Brian Roebuck]

Hi Nick,
Welcome to the U.S. Cavers forum. The best way to find out about caves, caving , and cavers is to seek out your nearest National Speleological Society (NSS) club. They are called grottos and information on the ones in Illinois can be found here on the NSS web pages:

www.caves.org/io/iolookup.php?state=IL

There are also your neighboring state grotto information pages you can look at if one there might be closer. Lots of great information and general caving safety and techniques can be found on the NSS website as well so look around starting at www.caves.org. You may also want to join the NSS (highly recommended) and can do so from this link:

www.caves.org/info/membertypes.shtml

We cavers don't give information on the internet about cave locations to protect the private landowners' property, keep untrained or very young explorers away from potential dangers, and keep sensitive caves out of harms way. Joining a grotto will get you the exposure to cavers, training, equipment, and information you need to cave safely and without harming the caves or yourself. Feel free to ask us questions as you begin your journey to becoming a caver!

[nickegan]

I've already contacted my local grotto, which actually meets just a few blocks away from my house ! However, they dont resume until school starts in August and I was hoping to do some exploring this summer. Anyone know of some good S. Ill. caves not on private property?

[Brian Roebuck]

Great about the grotto being so close. The grotto webpage for Little Egypt Grotto says they meet the first wednesday of every month but since I am in Tennessee I don't know if they are taking a break or not. You might try to contact the officers of the grotto or perhaps find another nearby grotto that is more active. Most grottos are active year 'round.

In any case it is against the forum policies for our members to give you cave locations in public. Someone might be able to private message or email you if they choose to with cave information you seek. I understand your wanting to go caving now - we all do! Hopefully you can find other cavers near you that are active and that will share cave locations with you and take you on a few trips. Most cavers start out looking hard to find people to go caving with that know where caves are. It takes time to make friends, get your gear ready, and be accepted. We all went through it and if you are patient and willing to learn you will find what you are looking for.

[L Roebuck]

Hi Nick, Welcome!

I wish I lived in your state so I could help you out - but I'm a Tennessee Caver so have not had the opportunity for any Illinois caving yet.

Hey what guided tours have you done?

[Sharon Faulkner]

Hi Nick, welcome to the forum!

Not exactly what you are looking for in the way of cave locations, but some info from the Illinois DNR:

dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R4/caverns/CAVE.HTM

and here is a link to Illinois Caverns, which you may have already seen:

www.greatriverroad.com/stegen/monroe/caverns.htm

[Kelly Jessop]

If you can get a hold of the guide book used at the just recent Indiana convention,you'll find an article about Gory Hole. There are several names of people in there that are still active and did a lot of exploration in the region you are requesting. Indian legend has it there is a cave that extends from Makanda toward Carbondale,but you know how Indian legends are.

[Azurerana]

Many people from your area come west to Missouri where the caves are. Have you contacted SEMO grotto? www.semogrotto.org/ They are based in Cape Girardeau, but usually cave in Perry County (Just a short trip over the Chester Bridge.)

Carbondale has some caves, but most are fairly small. I would also contact the Illinois Speleological Survey (ISS). They do a fair amount of work in the Shawnee National Forest. www.caves.org/iss/

[etzkorn]

Greetings from the Cave of a House also known as Bruce Goff's Castle where the windows besides the mass of 600 tons of rock are an architectural delight. ]http://brucegoff-castle-bandb.com

The Castle use to be directly accessing of a cave run which led to the National Landmark cave called Rich's cave located nearly a half mile down from the mountaintop noting a sizeable bat colony and Daniel's Boones signiture on the walls from before the turning of time into the 1800's. I have traveled the route from the cave opening (12 years ago) below to the backyard exit next to the castle. Also heard of a recent trip that exited another mile south by some high school teachers and students. Was on that run before the dummy sister decided to get on the right track to the castle. Besides the sizeable room where the bats hang out there are several other places to hang about and no we did not discover where Daniel Boone stashed his gold. Unlike the Cobden Cave this system requires no squirming close - belly crawling on the ground but consisting mostly of sliping between the cracks of the mountain walls and some steping over blocks. Anyways, about two years ago a team of cave mappers did thier task in both the Cobden and Rich's Cave and due to the loss of email and a solid computer crash I lost my emails with them. When exploring the Rich's cave they did not locate the bat cave exit to the mountain runs when I last spoke to them, but they were suppose to return for more exploring and had permission to enter in the winter from the national forestry that now owns and protects the system. They also explored my entries up on this property but at the time due to all the rain during the last 10 years my entry was plugged with soil. Drats the subject they teased me with that they had characters who like digging such a thing open. This winter during the big freeze the cave opening here was bellowing out out a lot of steam so I am wondering if the opening has again returned to being open again. Again during my trip to the top another opening lays somewhere I suspect on the property in as much as my sister stuck her head out before getting closer to the castle. I felt relieved after listening to her jive for several hours that she thought she remembered how to get out after a ten year previous journey.[

Other parts of the mountain are moving soil and its been a yearly trip with the dog during a good drenching as she gets in the water in a large crack in the soil and gets close to being sucked in and though she is preety smart and savy on the rocks I wonder a bit if the day will come I will have to go see if the storm spits her out the opening down below. Surely hope though I would not have to listen to her whining on the otherside of the basement walls.

I think the mappers were doing some of the work out of the University of Illinois (urbana campus) and that may be where the maps are located. They surely didn't make to much of an effort to keep me informed but I liked the examples of their previous work in the state.