Welcome to the newest section of Greensfelder County Park! In April of 2021, 156 acres were added to the park which includes an old barn, fish pond, outdoor programming area and this small cave.
Greensfelder Park, like much of the area around St. Louis, is full of caves and sinkholes. The Mississippian Limestone that is abundant throughout the eastern portion of the state is perfect for cave formation. Limestone is a soft and porous stone that is easily dissolved by the slight acidity of rain, runoff, creeks and other water sources. Missouri is second in the nation for number of caves found in the state (Tennessee is #1). Just in St. Louis County alone there are 127 known caves! St. Louis City has an additional 38 caves with likely many more that were destroyed as the city buildings, roads and bridges were constructed throughout the years.
The cave you are visiting today is a small cave that you can climb down into without needing any special equipment. Be very careful on the rocks in the entrance as they are very loose and slippery. As you enter the cave, you will see it does not go back very far, but it does have some interesting cave formations, or speleothems. Speleothems are formed when calcite in the water is deposited on the cave walls, floors or other areas. Some types of speleothems:
Stalactite - formation that hangs from the ceiling
Stagmite - formation that rises from the floor
Column - when stalactites and stalgmites meet and fuse together
Flowstone - sheetlike deposits when water flows down the walls or across the floor
Soda straws - tiny hollow formations that look like their name - very delicate
Please do not touch the walls of the cave, as the dust and oils on your skin will affect the flow of water on the cave walls and damage it over time.
Requirements: Please bring a thermometer and answer the following questions.
1) As you enter the cave, look around. Do you see any water present anywhere or is it a dry cave?
2) When you enter the cave and go around the corner to the back, please estimate the height of the back of the cave from floor to ceiling.
3) Use your thermometer to see what, if any, temperature difference there is between standing on the trail and at the back of the cave.
4) Look around inside the cave - what sort of formations do you see in the cave?
5) Please post a picture of yourself, your group or your GPS/phone at the exterior of the cave (no spoilers please!)
NOTICE: Please be respectful of the posted park hours. If you enter the park after hours you are trespassing. If you are stopped you can be ticketed or arrested and will put the future of geocaching in the parks in jeopardy.
Special permission to hide caches in St. Louis County parks is NOT needed as long as the Groundspeak rules are followed. "Blanket Permission" has been worked out in advance with the park service. DO NOT CALL THE PARK as they cannot handle the calls. The Groundspeak cache reviewer does need to know exactly how and where the caches are hidden and what type of containers are used. The geocaching liaisons will notify the park service of new caches. Remember NO AMMO BOXES or PVC PIPE caches.