Black Chasm Cave

Black Chasm Cavern is a dissolution cave, formed by carbonic acid eroding the subterranean bedrock.

There are a variety of formations in Black Chasm Cavern, including stalactites, stalagmites, columns, flowstone, draperies, ribbons, angel's wings, cave bacon, soda straws, helictites, false floors, and others.

Related to the harvestman, the Banksula grubbsi has a multi-segmented body that appears to be one single trunk at first glance, it has detached retinas, and no pigmentation.

The miners described the cave as having "...vaulted chamber[s] large enough to contain the largest trees..." and "... crystals [that] stood out from the walls in every conceivable direction, turning and bending into many shapes...".

[3] Following the gold rush, Black Chasm's name faded from recent memory amongst the population only to be rediscovered with a resurgence in caving interest in the 1950s.

SNRC purchased Black Chasm Cavern in 1996 and began offering 5 hour expedition trips, including rappelling, rafting, climbing, and crawling through the wild areas of the cave.

In 1999, development began on the property, which included creating a road, septic and utility installation, and building storage facilities.

Though introductory tours were being conducted during the stair construction period, the grand opening of Black Chasm took place in April 2001.

Black Chasm Cavern currently offers Landmark walking tours for all ages, and a self-guided nature hike through the rock Zen Garden.

This tour explored the surface features of convoluted rock created by the hydraulic mining process used during the gold rush.