Colorado Cave Survey

Colorado Closed and/or Restricted Access Cave List Updated: 6 August 2010

NOTE: By order of the United States Forest Service, ALL caves on in National Forest land in Region 2 (including all of Colorado) are closed until 27 July 2011. This closure was imposed to attempt to mitigate the spread of White Nose Syndrome into bats in the Colorado region, and was instigated following the discovery of a bat infected with Geomyces destructans in a cave in western Oklahoma. Please refer to the USFS website http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/wns/index.shtml for more information.

The Colorado Cave Survey (CCS) is NOT broadly in favor of closing caves, gating caves, or restricting access to caves. Cave access is a vital component of teaching future generations of cavers and the general public to value caves and be responsible cave stewards. The CCS has worked hard in recent years (with some success) to restore access to certain caves that were previously closed.

Unfortunately, there are situations where closures or restrictions are necessary and appropriate, or where the CCS has no voice in the matter. Sometimes managed access is the only way legal access can be arranged. Private landowners obviously have the right to control access to caves on their property. Please obtain permission before visiting caves on private land, failure to do so means you are trespassing. With regards to access restrictions on public lands, certain caves have sensitive features or biota that warrant protection from visitors, and sometimes visitors require protection from certain hazardous cave features or biota.

In the next few years, cave closures due to White Nose Syndrome (WNS) can be expected. WNS is a poorly understood disease that is killing alarming number of bats in the eastern U.S. Until the caver component in spreading WNS is understood, cave closures in Colorado can be expected when the disease arrives here.

Please respect the closures and access restrictions listed below. Also, please let the webmaster know if you have updates on the status of particular caves.

• White Nose Syndrome Closures
• Closed Caves on City, State and/or Federal Land
• Closed Caves on Private Land
• Closed Caves on Private Land - Williams Canyon