Exploratory Caving

3-Day Intensive Caving School

Have you ever wanted to stumble upon a corner of our planet where humans have never been? Wandering into unknown darkness can be reckless and dangerous, but in this course, you will acquire the skills you need to safely explore (and discover) caves on your own.

In our Exploratory Caving course, you will be the guide! An experienced CMRCA instructor will lead you to the entrance of a deep cave, and from there, you will be in charge. Rig a rappel to descend into the cave, and then explore the caverns and tunnels in search of another exit... if it exists. This course is designed with the serious caver in mind, in order to give you the skills and experience necessary to go off and explore caves on your own. Along the way, you will learn about and practice single rope technique (SRT), underground navigation, low-impact caving, assessing cave integrity and air quality, and identifying speleothems and crystals. The additional safety considerations of exploring unknown caves will be discussed, and your "danger radar" will be honed by an explicit ennumeration of possible hazards and outcomes in each new setting.

Some of the caves you will explore are significantly underground, and may be unsuitably wet for much of the rainy season (June-September). Please check with CMRCA staff to determine the availability of this course and to discuss possible alternatives.

Both of CMRCA's Introductory Caving courses will be taught as the first two days of the Exploratory Caving course. If you feel that you have a significant background in caving, and would prefer to take only the third day of this course, please contact our staff so we can put together something that meets your needs!