Lost River - Karst Information Portal

placed about 150 feet inside the entrance so
that the aesthetics of the entrance area remain
as they originally looked. After the gate, a short
stoopway in water leads to a breakdown room
on the right-hand side of the passage. This is
the only breakdown encountered in the front
section of the cave. There are several crawlways
off of this room including one that doubles
back and connects with the entrance passage
near the gate. The far left crawlway leads to a
fixed ladder that goes back down into the main
stream passage.
Upstream from the ladder the stream
passage continues 10 to 15 feet wide by 10 to
20 feet high for approximately 1,600 feet. This
is a classic Indiana stream passage with some
Figure 3. Old Town Spring Cave entrance about 1900. From a postcard in the
National Cave Museum, Diamond Caverns, Park City, Kentucky.
The entrance to this cave is located on a
heavily-wooded hillside just downhill
from a hiking trail. To enter the cave one must
climb down a body-sized 11-foot pit. This pit
was originally dug open by Tom Fritsch, John
Danovich, and Dave Black in 1979. At the base
of this pit is a small room 7 feet wide and 15
feet long with a 3-foot-high ceiling. On the far
side is a 13-foot climbable pit that leads to a
Paradise Lost Cavern
Crawford County Caves
small formations high on ledges and smooth,
clean, white limestone walls. The clear stream
averages 1 to 2 feet deep in this section. At
the end of this section is the Frozen Niagara
formation on the right side of the passage.
Shortly beyond this point is a small, wet crawl
at floor level on the right side of the passage.
A strong wind indicates passage beyond and
this crawlway eventually leads through several
semi-sumps and very tight squeezes to the main
stream passage in Marengo Cave.
At this point the cave changes dramatically.
The main passage lowers to 4 to 5 feet with a
large, long gravel bar damming up the stream.
Beyond the gravel bar the water gets deeper
with several spots over 6 feet deep. The deep
water area extends
about 1,200 feet and
a wet suit and/or
flotation device is
a good idea, if not
required. The water
level eventually drops
and several small
crawlways lead off to
the left. Surface debris
is evident in the crawls
and broken glass and
rusted cans make
travel particularly
hazardous. The main
passage quickly ends
in breakdown at this
point.
By Dave Black
narrow crack. Squeezing down this crack leads
to a narrow canyon that quickly turns into a
belly crawl. This crawlway was originally dug
open when the cave was discovered. After 10
feet the crawl opens into the top of a 22-foot
pit. Do not attempt to free-climb this pit. Rig
it with at least a 60-foot rope for rappel.
At the base of this pit is a small room with
two passages. One is a 16-foot climbable pit;
315