There are a lot of caves in Missouri. A LOT. According to Mo.gov, there are over 7,000 of them. To put on my Geographer hat (overlapping with a Geologist hat, as Geography tends to do), I’ll tell you why that is. Missouri has what’s called a karst landscape, that is a lot of limestone and dolomite. These minerals are easily (comparatively) worn away by slightly acidic water. This water slowly but surely dissolves rock, creating impressive underground landscapes.
I could talk all day about different types of caves, the water table, and minerals, but I’ll save that for your Wikipedia browsing. Or, maybe you’ll get inspired by this post and go find a cave to explore! Any cave that gives public tours is most likely going to have a knowledgeable tour guide.
I’ve been to caves a lot in my life. I remember going to Onandaga caverns in school. I’ve been to Meramec Caverns several times. I went spelunking in one of the systems in eastern Missouri during summer camp. That was the first time I got to really go caving. We wore hardhats, long pants, sturdy shoes we could get messed up, and headlamps. It was WILD and awesome! I also went to the glowworm caves in New Zealand, which was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.
Fast forward several years, and I ended up on one of the best trips of my life: Costa Rica. The travel agency I used hooked me up with a spelunking expedition in Cavernas de Venado. This was the most hardcore caving I’d ever done!
Me in Cavernas de Venado. This was in 2021, so masks were still enforced. My tour guide spoke little English, I spoke little Spanish, and the two other people I was with translated as best they could, and we all had a wonderful time. Next time I won’t wear skinny jeans spelunking! We got SOAKED as we had to crawl through feet of water and duck down to avoid hitting our heads at the same time. Somehow my phone survived!
I work as a seasonal interpreter at Cahokia Mounds. Interpreter as in I interpret the site, sharing history, the culture of the people who built the mounds, and helping visitors understand the importance of the mounds. Sadly I am not fluent in another language, so not that type of interpreter. My main duty is to give tours, though I’ve also written educational materials and made some props for education bins. Anyway, that’s a roundabout way of explaining that I have a different work week than many people (thought not too different from owning a bakery!). I work Wednesdays through Sundays, as opposed Mondays through Fridays. Our bakery is Tuesday through Saturday so kind of a middle ground. ANYWAY, since it was Memorial Day on Monday and my nephews were out of school, they went with me to the Lake of the Ozarks.
Packing up with two teenage boys, two dogs, and all our stuff was a bit cramped, but we made it. At least we weren’t camping and I didn’t have to lug my huge Rtic cooler! My parents have a condo right on the lake, so we got to enjoy free lodging. We took it pretty easy on the weekend, though I forgot my swim suit like a doof so we couldn’t go swimming. And I didn’t really have the money to rent a boat or jet skis, so we couldn’t do the lake stuff (maybe next time!). We did do go karts and mini golf.
But the highlight of the trip was when we went to Bridal Caverns. I wasn’t entirely sure want to expect since I hadn’t been to any of the caves in the Ozarks. I wondered if it would be as polished and built up as Meramec. Meramec, by the way, is significantly bigger than Bridal Cave. Also the infrastructure of the walkways is a lot more built up. Bridal Cave was super cool. Our tour guide Hattie was marvelous, and we chatted a bit before the tour about being tour guides.
There’s just something about the natural world that gets to me. I feel the same way when I go out west, or when I went to New Zealand, or even when I went on an ocean cruise. I just love it. I guess my chosen field makes sense, then.
We actually had to stoop down to get through part of the caves!
When you have 2 teenage boys who are cracking 6 foot, that presents a problem! My 5 foot tall self had no problem. There were also a couple places we had to turn sideways but I didn’t get photos.
That wooden plank is actually an old ladder! You can just barely see the “rungs.” I’m not afraid of heights, but I’d probably break my neck climbing that thing.
It’s remarkable with a little water can create, isn’t it? The teeny tiny stalactites are my favorite. They’re called soda straws since they’re hollow. The saying is “stalactites cling tight” to tell the differences between them and stalagmites. But when I was a kid, they told us stalaCtites, C for ceiling; stalaGmites, G for ground. So I still think of them that way.
Bridal Cave has this really cool underground “lake.” If I recall the tour correctly, it didn’t exist until they created the Lake of the Ozarks when they dammed the Osage River.
If you are ever at the Lake of the Ozarks and need something to do on a rainy day, I highly recommend Bridal Cave. It’s really interesting with some unique features, and has some great stories. The gift shop isn’t quite as big as others I’ve seen, but we did indulge in rock candy and the boys got fun stone necklaces. We’re going to Utah in a couple weeks and we’re for sure going to hit the rock shop when we go, and that entire store deserves it’s own post! I can’t wait.
I’d also like to check out Stark Caverns next time I’m out at the lake. I don’t know when I’ll get out that way with work and my other summer plans, but I always enjoy going to the condo and relaxing for a couple of days. Even if I don’t do anything at all, it’s nice to go someplace different to clear your head.
We left for home soon after our cave tour, but it was fun, and I always love geeking out over interesting landscapes, above or below the ground. Just you wait until we go to Utah! I don’t know if I’ll take my fancy DSLR camera with me since I need to fix some settings, but I’ll definitely take lots of photos of our adventures. Before that, I think I’ll make a cooking post or two.
Til next time!
The Solo Geographer 