QuikTrip: 1930s Caving Experience

I thought I knew what we were getting in to. I research and plan our excursions, and most of the time our adventure turns out even better than expected. Our trip to Jewel Cave National Monument on Sunday was no different. However, it was not exactly what I expected.

I reserved two ticket for the “Historic Lantern Tour”. We drove about an hour into the Blackhills to the Jewel Cave Visitor Center. We weren’t newbs to this kind of thing; we had our closed-toed shoes on, a jacket for the cold underground tunnels, we even stashed our headlamps in our pocket in case things went sideways.

Our first indication that it wasn’t exactly what we expected is when we were checking in and the park ranger said, “Oh, your tour is actually a mile further down the road at the old historic entrance.” So we hopped back in Subie and rushed another mile to join our small group just in time for the safety briefing … the first of several safety briefings.

I was fully aware that we’d be using lanterns, similar to what was used a hundred years ago (except an LED version), but I guess I didn’t realize we’d be using the same entrance and infrastructure the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built in the 1930s. Of course it’s been maintained, but it wasn’t originally designed for tour groups.

After we all entered the gated entrance to the cave the ranger padlocked it so that unescorted people couldn’t get access. I have to admit, I didn’t like that one bit. She then gave us instructions on how to get out if something happens to her, and pointed out a landline phone in a wooden box by the entrance that connects to the visitor center.

After completing probably our third safety brief, the tour started. Almost immediately we were heading down narrow, damp ladders and stairwells. The photos you see below are much brighter, due to the iPhone’s camera capabilities, than it really was. You could not see the next step. We had to keep three points of contact with the surface at all times (two hands and one foot for example).

The maximum size for a group is 15 people which helped keep us somewhat close together. Most of the time the cave was so narrow that the ranger and most of the group were out of eyeshot and hearing. I didn’t like that either, but we did learn to work as a team.

After the very informative two-hour, out and back, tour was over, Dale and I headed back to the main visitor center to do one of the short hiking trails. It was a very pleasant walk with birds singing, a deer grazing and a chipmunk, doing whatever it is that chipmunks do.

It was well after one in the afternoon so we were ready to enjoy the turkey sandwiches we had packed in the cooler. Unfortunately all the picnic tables around the visitor center was taken so we hit the road back toward Rapid City with the hope of finding a nice spot to pull over, and we did! It was quiet and had a beautiful view.

After arriving back in town we got groceries and relaxed for the rest of the day!