Utah Caves

Spanish Spar Cave

Spanish Spar Cave is located along Pole Creek. It extends back about 15' to a 15' vertical drop. From there it extends down another 30' to where it is filled in with debris.

The ceiling is covered with large quartz crystals.

Down climbing this is very sketchy so plan on bringing your gear.

The tunnel angles down to the left here. There are a few chute offs, but they dont go more than a few feet.

Bloomington Cave is a fault cave and is the fifth longest cave in Utah at 1.30 miles, and still has several unmapped passages and several thousand feet remain to be surveyed. Being so close to town, there is a high number of visitors, and this was definitely the most graffitied cave I have ever seen. The myriad of passages that overlap each other is a dangerous maze to the novice caver. No equipment is required but good common sense is.

There are three entrances to the cave, this is South entrance.

This is looking down from the first ledge inside the cave.

It is a steep slope, but manageable with a hand line.

This appears to be the party room.

Blow Hole

Blow hole is a geothermal cave and can exceed 80 degrees at the bottom of Miners pit, a depth of 340'. This cave is one of the most annoying to ascend due to its corkscrew shape, but has some incredible geological formations that I have only seen in this location. The cave is now gated and no entrance is being granted until a new management plan is decided upon.

Descending Navajo Hall.

Dropping down into "Miners Pit".

Onyx Cave

This is an old mine that ran into a natural cavern about 30 feet back. From there you can take an upper or lower shute. The upper is the decorated and more interesting side. No gear is needed for this one, but some climbing skills are helpful.

The was a nice ice pillar just inside the entrance when we were there in early April.

My brother snapped this great close up of a sleeping bat.

One of the tighter squeezes in the cave.

It opens up to a surprisingly large cavern. Although there are some wet areas in the cave, most of the formations are not growing anymore.

Helectites.

This is a picture looking up the ridge up one of the largest bacon I have ever seen.

An interesting jawbone foramtion.

Grave Cave

Grave Cave is a typical Soapstone Basin sink hole. It is a 30 foot incline to a 10 foot drop into a large 20'x30' room.

At the back of the cave is a small hole that opens to a small room.

Mouse Hole Cave

Mouse Hole is one of those caves that you do once just to say that you have done it and never come back again. It is very jagged, tight, and uncomfortable throughout the majority of the cave. It is 91 feet long and extends down about 56 feet until it gets too tight to continue on.
It was originally mapped in 1988 by David Herron and was latter re-surveyed and mapped by Brandon Kowallis.

Map courtesy of Brandon Kowallis.

The entrance.

Looking down the jagged hole.

The walls are covered with flowstone.

As well as little popcorn formations. Not a beautiful cave, but a cave none the less.

Cave of the Chocolate Drop

This cave is on West Mountain. There are always several black widow spiders around the opening, and we also had a small rattle snake slither in the last time we were there. This cave is extremely tight and has a strong continual flow of air coming out of the entrance. Do not attempt this one unless you are skinny and ready to beat yourself up. The cave winds its way down a good 40 feet through several tight squeezes to a sloped dirt floor. In the bottom of the floor is a small hole that we were unable to squeeze through, but with some more digging that hole could be opened up larger and allow access to the rest of the cave. There was still an incredible flow of air at this point signifying a large cavern on the other side, or another entrance further down the mountain.

Just inside the "Crack" room.

The tightest squeeze in the cave.

Pine Pole Pit

Pine Pole Pit is one of the many Cold Springs caves. This one is about 30' vertical and opens up to a 15' x 20' room.

Pyrite Pit

Pyrite Pit is one of my all time favorite verts in the state. The shoulder width hole opens up a few feet in and drops into a round room about 30' down. In the center of that room is a 4' hole that drops another 50' into an eye shaped pit. The cave recieved its name from the gold looking water droplets that form in the first room.

Looking back up at the entrance from just above "Gold Room".

This hole is in the middle of "Gold Room" which gives you a great free hanging descent into the eye shaped room known as "Rock Chuck Room".

Lots of curtains and flowstone all over the lower pit.

This curtain is nearly the entire length of the second pit.

I laugh everytime I see this picture. This was our first vertical pit, and all we had for gear were two gibbs that we slid up and down the rope to each other. Good times!

Ascending this one is nice and easy, no obstructions, just rope.

Owl Hole

The owl hole is the most famous Cold Springs cave. Although bare of any formations, the entrance has an arch down the center that makes it look like a pair of owl eyes. The rappel is about 30' to a sloped landing which then drops another 40' into a large room with a few small passages. Owl Cave is known to be the second largest cave in the Soapstone Basin at 283 feet.

The Great Deep

This is one of Utahs many forgoten caves. Even with its close proximity to Pleasant Grove it does not appear that anyone has been in here for several years. The Great Deep is located at the bottom of a muddy sink hole, and as can be expected is very muddy inside. The cave is almost completely vertical and is about 150 feet deep. There are several passages to explore and makes for a good, tiring adventure.