Cavechat.org

Hi everyone I'm Jaycee

First timer from Illinois!

Trying to get the family in to exploring caves this spring, they love hiking but never have been in many caves. I was looking for a nice cave a little more on the easy side for the first timer cave explorer. I was thinking Indiana maybe!

Any suggestions?

thanks Jaycee

Hi Jaycee! Welcome to Cavechat.

I grew up across the river in Iowa and that's where I started caving. I wouldn't call that part of the midwest a caving Mecca, but there are certainly options for you. The first thing to do is get in contact with some local cavers. They will probably have some equipment to lend you and can guide you in what to buy. They also will know when the caves are. They will help teach you to be safe and to keep the cave safe from people.


Here's a link to caving chapters in Illinois:

http://www.nssio.org/find_grotto_overview.cfm?state=IL

There are chapters in pretty much all the states, if another one is closer to you.

I should warn you that this is a tough time to start an interest in caving. There's a fungal disease spreading across the US that is killing bats on a huge scale (White Nose Syndrome-WNS). It's very controversial whether cavers can spread the fungus, but many areas have ban on caving. Others require decontamination procedures on your gear. Cavechat has an entire subforum on WNS that will tell you more than you ever want to know on the topics (plus a huge amount of b***hing).

welcome. what part of illinois??

Hey thanks for the info but my chapter seems to be closed. I always thought I would love to explore caves I just never was curious till now. I'm a late bloomer I guess.

@ Chads93GT I live very close to springfield.

Jaycee wrote:Hey thanks for the info but my chapter seems to be closed. I always thought I would love to explore caves I just never was curious till now. I'm a late bloomer I guess.

Better late than never!

Springfield ehh. I grew up an hour west of there in Pike county. Contact the Near Normal Grotto in Bloomington. They come to Perry county, MO, Monroe Co. Il, Indiana and Tag to go caving. They are a great group of guys and gals.

@Chads93GT Hey thanks I dropped them a line, hope they get back to me soon. Weather is kinda rough today.

Welcome aboard. I'm up north near the Quad Cities, but thought I'd say "hi" as there aren't a whole ton of cavers in the state. I spend most of my time underground in IA and MN, but like Chad said you should be in good shape with Near Normal. Have fun.