Welcome to Virginia Cave Week
Virginia Cave Week promotes an understanding of Virginia's caves and the surrounding limestone habitats known as karst. Sponsored by the Virginia Cave Board, the week is used to highlight the importance of caves and karst and provide resources and educational opportunities to engage the community in conservation efforts. Educators are encouraged to involve their students using in-class activities and visitation to the state's numerous commercial caves.
This website is a resource for material related to cave and karst education. Check out the different tabs for information and links having to do with caves, karst-related education, classroom activities, virtual caves, and more. Enjoy.
Cave Sim is coming to VA
Cave Sim is coming to Virginia in the month of July. It will be in Bristol, Richmond, Grottoes, Roanoke, and Blacksburg between the dates of July 6 and July 14, 2024. See the flyer (flyer link) for detailed locations and dates. See the Cave Sim web site for information on what Cave Sim is all about.
2024 Cave Week events
(Click on event titles - these are links!)
Tuesday, June 4: Come join cavers and speleologists from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Karst Program on a visit to this natural area complete with a short cave tour. Learn about the importance of caves and karst and then actually go INTO a cave! Helmets and headlamps will be provided; wear sturdy shoes/boots with treads, long pants, a light jacket or rugged shirt with long sleeves—cave temp will be about 54 degrees—and gloves (garden gloves are fine). The cave tour will last up to 1 hour.
This is a “rain or shine” event, so dress accordingly. There is a limit of 75 people for the tours throughout the event, so sign up early!
Hours for the tours are from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Ogdens Cave Natural Area Preserve is in Middletown, Virginia, in Frederick County. Special permission from the Virginia Natural Heritage Program has been given for this Virginia Cave Week event. To register, email Meredith Weberg at merecaver@yahoo.com no later than June 2, 2024.
Luray Caverns will be open and celebrating Virginia Cave Week with a Cave Week brochure that tells all about the geology and importance of caves and karst.
Tuesday, June 4, 8:30 a.m. -3:00 p.m.
Blue Ridge Community College, Weyers Cave, VA
Karst experts from the U.S. Geological Survey, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation provide an overview of the unique hydrogeology of our karst landscape as it applies to policy and practice in conservation and in planning and development.
Registration is required, so please make note of that. There is a fee for the in-person symposium; there is a free virtual option as well.
https://svswcd.org/karstmeeting
June 8th, 12:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m. Bring the family out and learn about what makes the Shenandoah Valley so unique with caves and geology! This event will be packed with our partners including: Bat Conservation & Rescue of Virginia, JMU Geology Department, Cave Conservancy of the Virginias, Virginia Cave Board, Virginia Museum of Natural History, Virginia Living Museum, Shenandoah National Park, and the National Natural Landmark Program, just to name a few!!!!
Also, bring an appetite, we will have a food truck onsite.
