“Caves Near Me” (why you need to be searching it + exploring the fascinating underground life)

“One in four Americans have yet to visit iconic landmarks in their own cities” (New York Post). Although I have traveled all over the US in my life, I have often overlooked my local treasures. Over the past year, I have been more intentional and taken the time to explore closer to home.

With a simple ” caves near me “ search, you can find some fascinating underground life to explore…

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One of our latest adventures- visiting local caves. Northern Arkansas and (more so) Southern Missouri are hot spots for caves. Within an hour (or so) drive, we can reach 5 caves…

Caves Near Me #1: Bluff Dwellers

Our Visit

We visited Bluff Dwellers Cave in October of 2022. This month was special because they sold tickets for an “Abandoned Passageway Lantern Tour.” Using only lanterns, we toured a passageway that had been closed to the general public for over 50 years.

The Halloween mood was set by the torches lining the pathway to the cave, and the cool, rainy night. The cave had extra decor lining the paths (bones, skeletons, and other creepy things). And a bonus– random scary visitors popping out to pay a visit.

It was well worth the money for the Halloween scare we wanted.

Caves Near Me #2: Old Spanish Treasure Cave

Our Visit

Visiting on a Monday late morning, we had the Old Spanish Treasure Cave to ourselves. After parking and buying our tour tickets, we explored the visitor center.

The tours run every 1.5 hours and we had just missed the previous tour by 30 minutes.

Although we had already decided to wait out the hour for the next one to start, our tour guide decided to start our tour right away.

It was our first solo cave tour and was so amazing to explore at our own speed and ask all the questions we desired.

Caves Near Me #3: War Eagle Cavern

Our Visit

We visited War Eagle Cavern in a mid-September week for a small-sized tour (>10 people) with a very talkative and knowledgeable guide.

And a bonus is the nearby War Eagle Mill and Hobbs State Park, to make a full day of outdoor activities.

Caves Near Me #4: Eden Falls Cave

Our Visit

Eden Falls Cave is not a tour, but rather a small, self-guided cave sitting at the top of a waterfall. With the right gear and know-how, you can travel back into the cave for an underground waterfall.

We have been in this cave twice and made it to the falls on the second attempt (with a local hiker who knew the way).

There are not as many of the typical cool cave features, but it’s fun to wind through the narrow paths (with a little crawling) to get to the waterfall.

Read more about our trip to Eden Falls Cave- Ultimate Hiking at Lost Valley: Ponca, AR {Trail Options + Tips}

Caves Near Me #5: ??

Our Visit

A small, seemingly unknown cave that we have been to twice, with no other visitors to be seen. It includes a waterfall inside the cave and is fully equipped with all of the standard cool cave things (and bats!).

A cave like this one takes extra prep for safety since it is so secluded. This one takes first place prize for me because of the waterfall and the size (much larger than the Eden Falls Cave).

Read more about our trip to this cave- AWESOME Spelunking Trip + 7 Tips

Ozarks Cave Explorer’s Club

Our tour guide at The Old Spanish Treasure Cave introduced us to the Ozarks Cave Explorer’s Club.

To Join the Explorer’s Club, and earn the Explorer’s Club Patch, you present the Cave Passport at each cave to be stamped. Once you visit 3 of the caves (20 Missouri caves and 5 Arkansas caves) to get your passport stamp, and then submit the passport to the Missouri Caves Association, you earn a patch and are an Official Cave Explorer.

I’m a sucker for challenges (we are currently on 18/52 of the Arkansas State Parks Challenge also), so we will be adding this one to our list as well! We want to mark the 5 official Arkansas caves off our list (2 down, 3 to go).

Challenge Yourself with a “caves near me” search!

Go EXPLORE! Whether it’s a cave, a park, or a lake…find something (anything!) to explore. In the Northwest Arkansas area, we have endless options for outdoor activities.

All Arkansas State Parks are free to enter and explore. And then there are the rivers, waterfalls, mountains, and overlooks in abundance in this area.

So many things to see and do! A quick online search can give you endless ideas. Start by searching “caves near me”…

Our “caves near me” Explorations

AWESOME Spelunking Trip + 7 Tips (Unknown cave)

Plan a ROAD TRIP Itinerary- Your Simple Steps (Mammoth Cave National Park)

Ultimate Hiking at Lost Valley: Ponca, AR {Trail Options + Tips} (Eden Falls Cave)

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Outdoor Adventures: Information, Inspiration, Ideas

✓Hiking ✓Kayaking ✓Arkansas State Parks ✓Camping ✓Road Trips

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