The Cave

I am back to the sweltering heat, the perspiration tickling my forehead and upper lip, the cool grapefruit Perrier water temporarily relieving my thirst...the sun high in the afternoon sky and the butte conquered...the cave beckoned.

When Elizabeth and I had first arrived at Castle Butte, the family who was up on top was in various stages of descent.  Two of their elementary school age kids had raced down first and immediately went into a dark recess in the rock.  My tour guide had asked if I'd like to check the cave out first, but seeing it occupied and the difficult climb ahead, I wanted to face the hardest challenge first!  

Now that we were on ground level, I felt ready to explore.  Elizabeth had described it as dark, cool, gradually winding upward deep inside the butte.  Being a cautious person, and recognizing I am not as adventurous as I used to be, I asked if it was a tight fit.  Would I get claustrophobic?  She brought headlamps for us and assured me we only needed to go as far as we felt comfortable.  Okay, good!  I felt safe and glad she had been here before and wasn't such a go-getter that I would feel like a complete dud on this outing.

The first step inside felt ten degrees cooler!  My eyes needed to adjust to the sudden change as we entered the shade.  The opening was about three feet wide, with a ledge about five inches deep along the left side.  A narrow space on the dirt floor just wider than my running shoes led into the depths, but it was at least five feet wide above my knees.  I didn't need to duck as the opening was eight feet or so.  My first inclination was to sit down once I had gone in far enough to let Elizabeth in, as well.  The coolness felt so refreshing.  I sat and let my eyes and temperature grow comfortable in the new environment.

Elizabeth pointed out a small opening above the main entrance that let light in.  She stood straddling the ledge and braced her other foot on a slight foothold opposite.  Straining to see out the hole, she couldn't actually get her head and face into the space!  I thought it would make a funny picture from outside, but it wasn't to be.  Anyways, the next step was to show me how to turn on my headlamp.  Aced that!  Then we went onward into the depths of the unknown...

The air felt even colder as we pushed farther inside the narrow cave.  We climbed up quite a steep dirt incline, and then the cave curved to the right.  Again, the foot space was narrow, almost like water had run down and eroded a path.  But the upper area was wider.  On we climbed and felt our way along the walls of the cave.  About fifteen or twenty feet inside from the opening, I felt like I was in a completely different world.  Cold, dark, damp, earthy.  I looked back to see Elizabeth behind me, and the faint light of day.  Ahead, the path continued to climb and got suddenly narrower.  There was no where to really sit or stand flat.  So we sort of straddled the footpath and held onto the walls.  

I am sure my friend would have gone further if I wanted to.  But I didn't want to.  Apparently, our friend, Spurgeon Root has explored this cave and told her it led to a small air-hole somewhere along the side of the butte.  Not big enough to exit the cave.  I had already accomplished one major goal this day: reaching summit of the butte.  I had my adrenal glands exercised sufficiently in open air; I didn't feel like I needed to push myself to overcome any claustrophobic tendencies I may have!  

So we turned ourselves around and I followed Elizabeth down and back to the ledge, where the temperature again grew warmer.  The perspiration now felt cold and wet where my clothing met my skin.  I enjoyed the "just right" feeling at the opening of the cave, not really wanting to bake out there!

Eventually, we turned off our headlamps and headed for the vehicle.  We grabbed more drinks and walked around the perimeter of the butte, talking and leisurely making our way along the flat, almost sidewalk-like path.  The rainwater must wash down and create concrete that is smooth, almost professional looking.  On the north side, we found some rocks and sat for a while in the shade.  It was nice to be together, to chat about surface stuff and even about heavier subjects.  Thankfulness overwhelmed me and I felt so blessed!

As we rounded the butte a westerly breeze cooled us again, and we could see the farmer continuing to make hay.  Another vehicle brought would-be climbers and hikers and explorers.  We greeted them and gave them pointers.  Then we decided we would start up the CRV and crank the air conditioning, while we made plans for the next part of our adventure.

But I should mention the gophers.  We had parked near a gopher hole unbeknownst to us.  As we had approached her vehicle, a little gopher peeked out from behind the rear tire.  It squeaked loudly.  Another one answered.  They bolted out from beneath the CRV, tussling and rolling along the dry, dusty ground.  One ran off.  The other came back towards us.  We had our phones out, taking pictures and video.  The crazy critter kept coming towards me.  Usually they run away.  This little guy was about six inches from me and I wasn't sure if he would run right up my leg!  I backed away and Elizabeth took photos and laughed!  She threatened Facebook exposure of my encounter and I must have given her an ugly look, as I haven't seen any incriminating video footage yet!

I know, the little rodent was probably hand fed by others.  Gophers are NOT my friend.  They are hungry, greedy, destructive little guys that eat farmers' crops and gardeners' produce.  So I didn't befriend this or any other gopher.  Cute, but hawk bait!

And that was the adventure of "The Cave.

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