LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — An opportunity to discover caves which were off-limits to the general public for 46 years awaits adventurers at Nice Basin Nationwide Park.
A particular “Wild Caving Tour” is accessible on Saturdays and Sundays by Labor Day weekend, giving guests a uncommon alternative to enterprise into the darkish depths of 10-million-year-old Lehman Caves.
The three-hour ranger-guided excursions restore entry to among the most spectacular rooms within the cave, in keeping with a Monday information launch from the Nationwide Park Service. One of many rooms, the Behman Annex, has by no means been open to the general public earlier than. On the way in which there, guests will ascend the Royal Gorge into the soccer field-sized Talus Room.
Park cave ecologist Gretchen Baker, an avid caver, led the hassle to present guests an opportunity to expertise wild caving.
“I treasure the time I get to spend underground, exploring cave passages and assisting with scientific discoveries,” Baker stated. “I’m so excited that visitors will get a taste of this experience and also get to see and hear a part of the cave that is so different from the traditional tour route.”
The park is about 285 miles north of Las Vegas, by way of U.S. 93.
The tour is restricted to eight members. Tickets are $40 and can be found solely by superior reservations on-line at https://recreation.gov. The tour is open to adults 16 and over; these below 18 will want parental permission.
“On this Introduction to Wild Caving Tour, you’ll journey off the paved tourist trail and away from the electrical lighting system where you will experience the cave in its natural environment. Learn how to cave safely while protecting the cave and the natural and cultural history that lies deep within,” in keeping with the web site’s description.
Individuals should be ready for rock scrambling and stomach crawling.