Apple Creek Karst view
Every consideration of respect and decorum should be observed.
Rules to follow
- Visit only during daylight only (sunrise to sunset)
- Although the area is open to the public, please respect any services that are being held, either in the church or the amphitheater. Leave quietly, and come back a little later.
- Do not visit the site during these set times, on these set days. Services usually last about an hour, so plan accordingly.
- SCHEDULE
- Sunday 7:30 am
- Tuesday the whole day
- Thursday 8:00 am
- First Saturday 8:00 am and 5:30 pm
- Third Saturday 5:30 pm
- Do not cross any fences
- Stay out of the caves
- Stay out of the water
- Stay on paths
Missouri is called The Cave State, and for good reason; the ground under parts of Missouri resembles Swiss cheese, riddled with caves, sinkholes, springs and karst features like this one. Perry County, Missouri, is the King of Karst, with over 650 known caves and counting. The Karst topography of eastern Perry county is well developed, where extensive systems of surface sinkholes, swallow holes, and karst valleys are linked to large cave systems that run below the ground.
Karst topography
Karst topography is a geological formation shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite. Subterranean drainage may limit surface water with few to no rivers or lakes. Many karst regions display distinctive surface features, with sinkholes being the most common. However, distinctive karst surface features may be completely absent where the soluble rock is mantled, such as by glacial debris or confined by one or more superimposed non-soluble rock strata. Some karst regions include thousands of caves, although evidence of caves large enough for human exploration is not a required characteristic of karst.
Apple Creek Karst
This is where a prominent sinkhole is, which has an underground stream that is open to view as it emerges from a low wide cave opening, plunges over a waterfall, and flows beneath a small arched bridge into a second cave opening (called a swallow hole because it “swallows” the stream).
The “swallow” cave goes back about 80 feet, till another waterfall, which is 11 feet high, drops the water into a pool that completely fills the passage. No divers have explored this part as of yet. Dye tracing shows that water entering the “swallow” cave reappears about 1 mile southeast, in Bingenheimer spring.
**Logging requirements**
DO NOT POST ANSWERS IN YOUR LOG.
Send the following answers to me via email.
- The text "GC4PRV0 Apple Creek Karst View" on the first line
- Estimate flow of the spring
- Estimate exit cave height and width
- Estimate the “swallow” cave height and width
- Measure the length of the collapsed cave roof (see waypoints and stay on paths)
- Find the first station of the cross, look close at the carving behind the glass, what four letters run vertical?
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