cooch-webb

Speleofest runs yearly during Memorial Day weekend in Louisville, KY.

After about 7 hours of driving we arrived at Hart County Fairgrounds with plenty of daylight left to set up camp and check out the posted cave trips. It had rained so much lately that a couple of the trips were cancelled due to cave flooding.

Saturday my brother and I met up with the car caravan and headed over to Cooch-Webb Cave. After a bit we pulled off the country road and parked next to a field where a man was plowing. The entrance, a tightish squeeze between 2 rocks, was in a cow pasture. After we were in there for a bit we turned around, headed out and walked down the street to the other "piano" entrance to the cave. That was an even tighter squeeze entrance, but quite doable, for most of us anyway.

After a bit in there we headed out and back onto the hot cement road to search out another cave, Rough Cave, that the trip leader heard of. It was about 90 degrees which feels a lot hotter than that when your walking around in coveralls, boots and a helmet. So, we finally located the drainage ditch which told us to veer off into the woods and a short distance in was the large entrance.The cave is only a few hundred feet deep, but suprisingly it was quite full of formations.

That afternoon we met up with Josje, a fellow Cleveland Grotto member, and her friend Karl. We talked about the day's events. They were going to drop a pit or two, but ended up doing something else instead.

On Sunday Glenn and I ditched our previously scheduled cave trip and switched it to Cub Run, a beautiful cave which, after 50 years of being closed to the public will be open again in about a month after restoring the walkways and getting it ready for the public. This is one of the most spectacular caves I've seen. Chock full of formations.

We also went to Diamond Caverns, which was nice, but still not as nice as Cub Run. And we can't forget our jaunt out to Mammoth Caves. All of the caves were in the same geneneral vicinity so how can you not go to Mammoth Caves?! We walked through the short, but sweet self led tour.

Last year my brother and I took tours of Big Bat and Thorn Hill Caves. Both of which I highly recommend. Before we left on the last day my brother and I walked from the campsite over to Wood Cutters Cave , which we spent about 1/2 hr in before we hit the road.