Crystal Onyx Cave in Cave City KY

I had heard that Crystal Onyx Cave was going to reopen as a show cave after about a decade of being closed!  I definitely wanted to get out there and see the cave!

Opening and closing...  sometimes frequently is a thing with show caves.  it happens.  Nearby Cub Run Cave is a good example.  It briefly reopened a year or so ago, then it was closed again.  I missed my window of opportunity to see it.

I think there is something very sad about this.  The thought of a cave that once had visitors going through it daily...  with lighting and nice paved paths sitting empty and alone....  Well, like I said, its just a sad thought.

Luckily for Crystal Onyx cave, Scott and Sara Sendtko purchased the cave several years ago, and they have put a lot into reopening it.

When we stopped by recently, Sara gave us a tour.

It seemed that everyone there was a member of the family, and the place had a very casual, family feel to it.  Things are pretty informal.


Sara took us to a building with a locked door.  On the other side of the door was a stairway leading into the cave.  There is something so surreal about going inside of a building and then seeing stairs leading down into a cave.  You almost feel like you are in an old sci-fi or fantasy novel.

So we went into the cave which had a slightly more cramped feel than some caves, and I don't mean that in a negative way.  You are very literally right next to the formations.  At several points, a walkway was slightly separated by a stalagmite.  A solid cave rock seemed to have grown from beneath a bench and become a part of it.  The cave is very much all around you here.

Our small group asked Sara about her adventures as a VERY new cave owner. 

She talked very openly about her recent work on getting this cave back open again.  She said that it was owned by a cell phone company.  They contacted the company about purchasing it and eventually a deal was made.  She said that she and her husband had visited Crystal Onyx Cave before as tourists and they loved it, so they were particularly excited about getting it.

She also talked about all of their efforts in getting the cave fixed back up after a long dormant period.  Rewiring, fixing paths, and a lot of other work needed to be done. 

Most impressively, they totally redid the parking area.  If I understood correctly, the paved parking area previously right above the cave had stopped water from coming down into the cave naturally.  This stopped/stalled the growth of formations in the cave.  After correcting this, Sara said they have seen a lot of growth starting up again.

Seeing Crystal Onyx Cave is a unique experience.  It is a more intimate cave, and it is nice getting to interact with the family putting so much into it.