Bluespring Caverns- Bedford Indiana

We ended up completing the Indiana Cave Trail recently by stopping by to visit Bluespring Caverns in Bedford Indiana.

We really enjoyed seeing all of the caves on the Trail.  All of them were fun and unique and I honestly can't say that one was more interesting than the others.  PLUS, we each got a cool trail t-shirt when we finished!

So, we arrived early in the morning (around 9 am, when the place opens) for our visit to Bluespring Caverns.  The first tour did not go out until 9:40, so this gave us some time to talk to the staff, check out the gift shop, etc.  There were a couple of young fellows running things.  The one who sold us our ticket was extremely chatty, and you could tell that he really loved caving.  We had a nice conversation covering Floyd Collins, other caves in Indiana, etc.

At around 9:40, our guide rounded us up and started our tour.


I am very fascinated by how show caves handle tours, and how their gift shop/visitor centers relate directly to the cave.  I know this sounds like a weird statement, but I have seen cave entrances literally inside of the visitor centers.

At Bluespring, you leave the visitor center and go into a fenced in back area, where the tour path goes underneath the building you were just inside!  After a very short downhill walk, you are brought to the main cave entrance.

 Our tour guide Dylan brought us into the cave, gave us a few moments to let our eyes adjust, then he took us down a few more steps to the boat area.

From there our small morning group of about 10 people got onto a boat and Dylan launched us off for a pleasant boat tour of the cave!

Dylan gave stats on the water going through the cave, and he told stories about his adventures in Bluespring Caverns.  He also told some witty jokes.

At one point, he encouraged us to touch the ceiling of the cave.  After that, he told us that our fingers were sticky because of the bat poop.  He then told us that he was joking, and bats can't get in that area.

He did point out formations that looked like other stuff.  He did a cool demonstration holding up a light to a thin formation, showing that light can go through it.  He did do a cave standard demonstration of total darkness, BUT he incorporated a discussion of "cave thunder".  Our guide hit the boat seat with the padded flotation device provided in the seats.  He did warn us, and advised covering ears if we were sensitive.  This made a very loud bang sound that you could hear as it traveled through the cave, fading after many seconds.  He did a couple of hits with the lights on, and then he did one in total darkness which was an interesting thing to experience.

Dylan told us that they get many groups of school kids, scouts, and bikers who visit the cave.

After our wonderful tour, we did continue talking to Dylan and the other staff person running the gift shop.  They seem to have a lot of fun in their cave, and explore it leisurely when they can.  They told us of a canoe being flipped.  This happened when they were enjoying the cave after hours- no tour groups were involved.  They were able to scoop the water out and float back to the cave entrance.  They did tell us no tourists had ever fallen out of a boat.

I did pick up my usual souvenirs at the gift shop- a patch, postcards, a pin.  They did not have a hiking stick medallion.  Though there were some interesting items in the gift shop, it was not as well stocked as others.

After our boat ride in the cave, we did take a moment to walk the short trail (its about half a mile) on the property.  It circles a sinkhole!

This is a very unique cave to stop and visit with a friendly crew running the place.  PLUS, there are some other cool parks to explore in the area!  The staff at Bluespring STRONGLY encouraged us to visit Spring Mill State Park while we were here!  We did...  more on that later.