Spelunking in Calaveras County

By Jennifer Nichols
Editor
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City life can get dull and repetitive if you don’t get out of town once in a while. Fortunately, Californians have many options to make life adventurous and interesting when boredom strikes.

For the adventurous or thrill-seeking who are looking for engaging and challenging activities, spelunking may fill that void. Spelunking, the sport or pastime of exploring caves, draws those who wish to challenge their body and mind – or do it just for the fun of it.

Caves are perhaps the least explored type of natural formations on earth. Historically, caves were explored for shelter, mystical reasons or out of pure curiosity. Adventurous spirits relied on minimal equipment which made cave exploration even more scary and hazardous. Imagine descending into one of the darkest places on the planet, equal only to the bottom of the ocean, armed with the dim light of a solitary candle. Add to this the skill and fearlessness needed to maneuver over slippery surfaces wearing shoes with little tread and without any idea how far the caverns reached or what may lurk within.

City dwellers can jump in a car and drive east for about three hours through increasingly beautiful scenery into Calaveras County. The area is home to hundreds of limestone caverns, many of which are open to the public all year round. Calaveras is also well known for its gold rush past, which is exciting for anybody interested in that particular era of California history.

Most of the caverns in Calaveras offer activities ranging from very affordable 45 minute walking trips to 3 hour belly-crawling journeys through sticky mud, to rappelling into massive caverns.

Experienced tour guides lead all of the trips and provide most of the equipment you’ll need. Once inside, a variety of geological structures including stalactites, stalagmites, crystal flowers and draperies can be seen while moving through narrow passageways and huge chambers.

The main chamber of Calaveras’ Moaning Cavern is large enough to fit the Statue of Liberty inside. The remains of people and animals who had fallen through the narrow entrance passage were found at the time the 165 feet deep cavern was first discovered. Evidence suggests that one person survived the fall and lived there for some time, but was unable to escape.

My partner and I decided to go for a two-day trip and though there are a wide variety of affordable accommodations, we decided stay at the Victoria Inn in the small town of Murphys.

The inn boasts gorgeous rooms with huge claw-footed tubs, king-sized beds, private balconies and what locals consider to be the best restaurant in the area. After a long day of climbing through caverns, we enjoyed some wine and got to know some local personalities at several tasting rooms within walking distance of the inn.

A quick online search provides all the information you need, including directions, accommodations, recommended gear and clothing and other nearby attractions. The caves are open all year. Some of them are even open on Christmas for those who are tired of sitting around and eating all day during the holidays and chose to live on the edge a little instead. Enjoy!