Buckner Cave is located in the

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

topography of the

Crawford Upland The Crawford Upland of Southern Indiana, United States. The eastern section of the Indiana Uplands, this region contains the hilliest terrain in the state caused by the outcropping of sandstone units at the surface. In some areas erosion cuts throu ...

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, United States just outside Bloomington. The

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

contains approximately 3 miles of known passage. It is managed by the Richard Blenz Nature Conservancy (RBNC) and resides in privately owned property. Over the years, the cave has been heavily

vandalize Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property. The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The term f ...

d with spray paint and trashed out from garbage including; food wrappers, broken bottles, empty beer cans, and spent calcium carbonate from carbide lamps. There is an ongoing effort to restore the cave to its natural state.

Historical evidence

It is alleged that the earliest known signature recorded found in the cave was from a visitor with the inscription "L. V. Cushing" and "Nov. 23, 1775, " which astute cavers will notice hidden beneath the destruction caused by the cave graffiti.

Cave layout

Its entrance is an oval shaped

sinkhole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are locally also known as ''vrtače'' and shakeholes, and to openi ...

approximately 15 ft tall and 20 ft wide which leads downwards in a gentle incline for about 50 ft and then opens up into a large room. Access to the rest of the cave is found through a small hole that brings explorers to an approximately 600 foot army crawl to the next large cavern. From here the cave branches into areas abandoned by flowing water and areas with flowing water. Many paths and routes through the cave exist with several having offshoots. Most of the caverns and passages have been cut out by water over the ages and generally appear to be quite safe. Some areas, especially the side-tunnels and offshoots, are underneath piles of large rocks. A significant section of the cave runs along what is a still running stream that is never more than a couple of feet in depth. Small bats may be found throughout the cave. Graffiti is rather prominent in many parts of the cave. Though vandals have destroyed many of the natural rock formations in the cave, it remains a complex mesh of tunnels and squeezes.

Difficulty

Buckner Cave is easily traversable without rope or special equipment. Many areas have low ceilings and necessitate hands and belly crawling. Areas in the lower parts of the cave are near a shallow stream.

Visiting the cave

Interested visitors need t
obtain permission from the RBNC
one week in advance in order to enter. Alternatively, people can become members of the RBNC to help maintain the cave as well as benefit from expedited access.

References

{{reflist

External links

Buckner Cave Official SiteBuckner Cave Historical Markings Project
Caves of Indiana Protected areas of Monroe County, Indiana Landforms of Monroe County, Indiana