Along with being the “Show Me State,” Missouri has the distinction of being the “Cave State.” With more than 7,900 documented caves, according to the Missouri Speleological Survey, Missouri has known caves in 78 of its 114 counties.
Here are some other interesting cave stats from the Survey:
- We have 4670 caves which have been mapped, with about 495 miles of total cumulative surveyed passage in Missouri. MSS cooperators often add about 100 new cave maps per year.
- Missouri has 77 caves with over 1 mile of passage, summing to 260 miles of total passage for those.
- Less than 10% of Missouri’s mapped caves have about 50% of our surveyed passage.
- The longest cave in Missouri is Crevice Cave with 31 miles of passage, followed by Berome Moore Cave at 24.5 miles and then Carroll Cave at nearly 22 miles.
- Just 4 caves in Perry County add up to 85 miles of surveyed passage.
- Shannon County leads the state 754 caves, 80% surveyed with 44 miles surveyed.
- Perry County trails Shannon County with 693 caves, 53% surveyed with 121 miles surveyed.
Types of Missouri Caves
Show Caves
Missouri also contains the country’s only cave that you can ride in a tram through – Fantastic Caverns, located in Springfield.
If you want to walk through a cave, a good method is to go on a guided cave tour, such as in some Missouri State Parks, such as Onondoga Cave State Park, Meramec State Park and Lake of the Ozarks State Park. Onondoga has two show caves – Onondoga and Cathedral Caves, whereas the other parks each have one show cave.
Our family enjoyed a cave tour at Round Spring, which is south of Salem and north of Eminence. Note: As of this time of publication, the cave tours there have been suspended, due to flooding. The National Park Service expects to have tours back in operation in July 2025. Check the website.
It would be worth a summer outing to visit this cave or cavern – interchangeable words. We really enjoyed our tour. I wrote, “This cave is simply astounding, with its spleleothems, including helictites, spathites and rimstone dams. It also touts the usual tour items such as stalactites and stalagmites.
“The cave served as a home to the cave bear, and he left his identifying mark in the form of a claw scratch about 10 feet up on a couple of rock walls.
“One of my favorite rooms was the Tobacco Room, where bunches of stalactites hung in the forms of brown sheaves, just like in the tobacco barns of the Carolinas.
“We saw bats, and salamanders and a mosquito. Really. Pressed and preserved on the surface of a beautiful white flowstone, the mosquito serves as quite a conversation piece. How did it get in there? Whose DNA is it carrying?”
Wild Caving
Wild caving is a whole ’nother world for cavers. I visited Sheep’s Cave (near Sullivan, Missouri) with an experienced caver named Jo Schaper. It was at this time that I learned about ways to traverse through a cave: upright walk, gorilla walk, hand-and-knees crawl and belly crawl.
We went on a trip one time with a bunch of kids to Mushroom Cave, located in Meramec State Park, and it is a permit cave. What a great way to spend a hot summer day!
Grottos
Cavers usually belong to grottos. There are 12 grottos listed for Missouri at the National Speleological Society’s website. These grottos offer training and tours.
Wild Caving Rules
Please remember that caving can be dangerous if attempted without proper gear and knowledge. According to Jo, these are the basic rules of caving:
- Check-in at the visitors’ center at a park so they can tell you which caves are open or closed. Some closed caves can net you a $50,000 fine if you are in them the wrong time of year.
- Rule of Threes: Take 3 people minimum. Take 3 sources of light each. (One should be mounted on a helmet or hardhat, and one light should also serve as a source of heat.)
- Always tell someone not on the trip where you going, when you will return and who to call if you are two or more hours overdue.
For more information on caving, visit the National Speleological Society.
