Tumbling Creek Cave Restoration – Ozark Underground Laboratory
This article featured in Subterranean Journeys – a publication by Springfield Plateau Grotto
In the beautiful Ozark hills of Southwest Missouri lays a hidden gem of spectacular beauty, rare wildlife and immeasurable speleological importance. Surrounded by thousands of acres of rugged land and national forest is Tumbling Creek Cave at the Ozark Underground Laboratory. Described as the most biologically diverse cave west of the Mississippi River, over 130 different species of cave life have been recorded so far. Besides the diversity of life, this cave contains miles of almost perfectly preserved cave formations. A visit to the cave is an educational experience not found anywhere else. The organization provides short courses, field trips and educational tours for college groups, biologists, hydrologists, geologists, and engineers. These courses and programs have educated a large number on the importance of protecting
cave and karst resources. Any opportunity to visit this cave is a special privilege.
When it was mentioned that the Ozark Underground Laboratory needed assistance with cave restoration, I jumped at the chance. Having missed all earlier field trips, this would be a great opportunity to visit the cave as well as give back to an organization that has done so much for speleology and cave conservation. Excited about the idea to help, and of course, see the cave, I presented the idea of a cleanup effort to the members of SPG and Tom Aley, owner of Ozark Underground Laboratory. The members of SPG responded well to the idea and Tom was thrilled to have volunteers. He made a special request for us to repair a rather large speleothem and some other various tasks. Tom generously offered the use of the bunkhouse for an overnight stay. The plan was set, we would have an overnight group trip. I could hardly wait!
The day had finally arrived. Five members of Springfield Plateau Grotto graciously gave up their Saturdays and Sundays to help with our volunteer project. Members included Jon Beard, Roy Gold, Charley Young, Charley’s granddaughter Abby and myself. We assembled at our meeting place to carpool and caravan the ninety minute drive. We followed one another through beautiful and scenic Ozarks landscape. Record rainfalls were recorded the previous week. The recent flooding could be seen all along our journey, evident by the excessively high waters of lakes and streams. It was a remarkable sight. Thankfully it didn’t hamper our travels.
At last we had arrived. Tom greeted us as we parked our vehicles and introduced himself to the group. His personality and sense of humor are larger than life. It’s nearly impossible to capture Tom’s persona in writing. After a few minutes of introductions and pleasantries, Tom asked “Want to see the cave?”. We quickly gathered only the necessary gear such as helmets and headlamps and followed Tom.
As we hiked down the foot path leading to the cave we came upon a small stone building proudly displaying a National Natural Landmark emblem. ”There is very high water at the natural entrance of the cave right now, so we will go in through the second entrance.” Tom said. “But you should visit the entrance before you leave. I don’t think I have ever seen the water this high.” As we gathered around the door of the stone building, he presented us with a key and continued. “I say this to everyone that enters the cave. Stay on the trail, be careful where you step and watch for cave critters.”. Tom opened the door and we entered single file following him down the flight of stairs leading to the darkness underground.
Once inside the cave we immediately came to the first item on our to-do list and the main reason for our visit, the stalagmite repair. “Here is the stalagmite I was talking about.” Tom said. “I hope you guys will be able to get it reattached.” Looking at the broken speleothem, I thought this would be an easy task. I would soon learn that appearances can be deceiving.
Trying to keep up with Tom who had made this walk literally thousands of times, we progressed further into the cave. We arrived at a portion of the trail that was partially obstructed by neatly stacked lumber. “If you feel up to it, I would like to see this wood make its way out of here.” Tom said as we passed the fungus and decay covered stacks. “It used to be an observation deck for research. It will be a hard job so if you can’t get to it, I can hire someone to come and get it.” We continued to follow Tom as he led us to the next assignment. “This is the next thing I would like to have done. Somehow cave mud has managed to fall onto the trail. The mud is getting tracked all around.” We passed the mud watching carefully to not track it even further.
We followed the trail through enormous breakdown and gigantic walls of cave decoration. We eventually approached the “Big Room” where the underground creek roared through the darkness. “This is Tumbling Creek, the underground stream that gives this cave its name.”, explained Tom. “This stream eventually exits the natural entrance.”
The cave became more interesting and revealed more of its secrets as we moved deeper. Tom motioned to a large mound of rock and bat guano. “Here is a great spot to find pseudo-scorpions.” We all stopped for a moment to try and catch a glimpse, but no one managed to spot one. We continued on making our way around a bend. We stopped again as Tom pointed at four small pieces of wood. “This is a wood study station. We observe what happens to the pieces over time. This is also the location where we find Chaetaspis aleyorum, a very small millipede found only in this cave.” He lifted one of the pieces and turned it over to show the bottom. Tom studied it through his glasses for a moment before pointing to a tiny white arthropod. “Here’s one.” He said as he passed around the wood piece. The millipede was tiny, about 3 to 5mm long and about the width of a pencil lead. I was simply amazed! I truly felt honored to observe this unique species that is found no where else in the world.
We made one last stop to see a the final item on our list. This was a removing of a coating of mud splatter on the walls and ceilings left over from the blasting during the construction of the trail. “Unfortunately, we can’t go too much further today. When I was down here last time there was a strong guano odor which means bats are present. We don’t want to disturb them. I don’t mind if you want to explore past this point, but please turn around when you detect the odor.”
Eager to get started, we turned around and headed to the surface to gather the rest of our gear and restoration equipment. We grabbed a few buckets, brushes, tarps, adhesives and sprayers. The first item of business, the broken stalagmite.
We all surrounded Jon as he assessed the broken speleothem. “It appears that this stalagmite has been damaged before.” he sad as he examined the broken surface. “You can see a layer of old adhesive. I will need to remove it and prepare the surface before we can apply fresh adhesive position it into place.”
While Jon prepared the surfaces, the rest of us began the difficult job of carrying the stacks of lumber out of the cave. The stacks were roughly three hundred yards, and a large flight of stairs, from the surface. Once above ground there was another one hundred yards of foot trail to their final resting place. Needless to say, this was a strenuous job. Luckily we had a winch and pulley to lift small loads of lumber up the stairs. We divided into two groups, two people above ground and two below ground. We made several back and forth trips until all the lumber was removed.
By the time we were finished removing the lumber, Jon had the stalagmite surface prepared. A tarp was positioned over the damaged structures to protect from moisture from of the dripping ceiling overhead. We were ready to begin. Jon liberally applied epoxy to both surfaces. Charlie and I climbed down to the small pit to help lift the giant into place. We assembled into our positions. “Ready? One, two, three”, we chanted together and lifted with all our strength. Despite our effort we only managed to lift the hefty beast six inches off the ground. The positioning was awkward and only two people could comfortably fit in the tight space. We needed a different plan. Luckily, Charlie brought some nylon rope. We secured two ropes to each end of the formation. Charley and I climbed out of the pit and positioned ourselves above the formation. Roy and Jon arranged themselves below the formation. Together, we gathered all our strength and moved the massive calcite structure up onto its broken base. We made a few minor adjustments before we stepped back and viewed our achievement. The repair was almost perfect!
The afternoon was dwindling but we decided we had time for one last project. Charlie had already gathered the mud from the trail. All that was left was rinsing the final residue. This job went rather quickly. As we finished this task it was nearly dinnertime. While the others explored and photographed the cave, I went above ground to start the grill and begin cooking our well deserved meal.
As dinner time announced itself with sweet smoky aroma, the remainder of the group surfaced with perfect timing. We piled around a table full of burgers, bratwurst and all the fixings. The hard work left us all with a huge appetite! Tom came to join us during dinner. He entertained us with myriad of humorous stories. As the afternoon turned to evening, part of the group departed to make the long drive back. Jon and I stayed and continued to enjoy Tom’s conversation. We talked and exchanged stories and before we knew it, it was past ten! Completely exhausted, Jon and I climbed into our bunks and surrendered to sleep.
After we rose out of bed and had a quick breakfast, Jon and I decided to work a few hours before leaving to see how much we could accomplish with mud removal from the ceiling and walls that Tom pointed out the previous day. Once again, we gathered our supplies and headed back into the cave. It was both tedious and time consuming. First we spread a tarp below our work area so we didn’t contaminate the cave floor. Next, we used our hands and brushes to remove the peanut butter-like mud. Using a large hand pump backpack sprayer, we sprayed off the residual mud with water collected from Tumbling Creek. We used toothbrushes to scrub and detail between the crevices. After three hours we only managed to complete a ten foot section. The work was slow but we uncovered a beautiful ribbon formation and a nice stalactite which made our efforts rewarding.
Before we departed, Jon and I explored more of the cave. We walked the trail and admired the beautiful formations. Jon showed me the large formation called the saguaro, named for obvious reasons. I managed to snap a few photographs before we headed out.
Although the majority of our trip was spent working, I thoroughly enjoyed our stay. This special place was an experience rewarding, fascinating and wondrous and one that I will never forget.
