$25 per participant – age 9 & up
No reservations needed. – Available every day. Memorial Day through Labor Day
11:00 am – 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Participants see all of the lighted cave and, along the way, do the “maze crawl,” enter the large unlit room called: “the Stomach,” and walk/crawl through the unlit, sandy-floored passages of Cale’s Canyon. Participants must have the physical ability to hike fifteen stories deeper into the mountain on its lit passages. Participants must wear firmly-fitting shoes with a good tread, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt or old sweater suitable for a cave temperature of 52oF. Laurel Caverns will supply the lights and the hard hat. Reservations are not needed, but schools, scouts, and summer camps, bringing groups of fifteen or more should call: 724-438-3003 for group rates.
9 years is the minimum age requirement
$40 per participant – age 12 & up
No reservations needed. – Available every day. Memorial Day through Labor Day
10:00 am & 2:00 pm – Please arrive 30 minutes early for registration.
Participants must wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts, and secure shoes, that lace above the ankles, with good tread. Hiking boots that have a quarter-inch tread and lace above the ankles are highly recommended. Laurel Caverns provides a hard hat with light, but participants are encouraged to bring hand-held lights as well as well as a change of clothing. An introductory class on cave safety and rescue is a key feature.
A release form must be signed by all participants and lawfully co-signed for minors, then presented at the time one’s program begins. Minors must be accompanied by a supervising adult. Additional rules, not covered here, are found in the release form. Reservations are not needed, but schools, scouts, and summer camps, bringing groups of fifteen or more should call: 724-438-3003 for group rates.
12 years is the minimum age requirement
$60 per participant – age 14 & up
No reservations needed. – Available every day Memorial Day through Labor Day
10:00 am – Please arrive 30 minutes early for registration.
The morning phase consists of everything offered in the Introduction to Caving Program. This has the advantage that groups, needing to divide due to age differences, can be together for everything through lunch. The second advantage is that participants have the opportunity to measure their ability for exploring a large and challenging cave, like Laurel Caverns, and opt-out of going down into the deep depths passages that will require a forty-five story climb back up the inside of the mountain. The price difference between the Deep-Depths program and the Introduction to Caving program will be refunded to those who choose not to do Phase Three.
Part Two consists of a return to the Visitors’ Center for a lunch break. Participants need to bring their own lunches since Laurel Caverns does not have food service.
Part Three, takes participants over the shortest route to the Ball Room where they enter the large passage that completes their forty-five-story descent into the more dangerous depths of Laurel Caverns, one of the steepest and deepest caves in the United States. Removing an injured person from those depths can take up to six hours and require as many as thirty EMS and Fire Department personal. Further, while twisted or broken ankles are, historically, the primary cause for injury in the very challenging terrain of those lowest depths, recent years have seen an increase in the rescue of adults who, overwhelmed by the unexpected physical challenges that attend deep-cave bouldering, believed they were having a heart attack. All individuals having a recent bone injury, recent medical operation, or history of back problems, knee problems, hip problems, or heart problems, should not to participate in the Deep Depths Program.
Participants must have reached their 14th birthday and wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts, and hiking boots that have a quarter-inch tread and lace above the ankles. Anyone arriving without meeting these requirements will not be admitted. Laurel Caverns provides a hard hat with light, but participants are encouraged to bring hand-held lights as well as a change of clothing. A release form must be signed by all participants and lawfully co-signed for minors, then presented at the time one’s program begins. Minors must be accompanied by a supervising adult. Additional rules, not covered here, are found in the release form. Reservations are not needed, but schools, scouts, and summer camps, bringing groups of fifteen or more should call: 724-438-3003 for group rates.
14 years is the minimum age requirement
(Click to expand map made by Ryan Maurer Cartologist)
At Laurel Caverns, we take learning underground.
Lookout off the back deck of the Laurel Caverns facility and see a beautiful view high above on Chestnut Ridge.
This popular activity is done in a cave-like setting in a room adjacent to the Laurel Caverns Gift Shop. Participants are given a card showing all the gems they might find, a sand-filled bag containing those gems, a bag to hold the gems, and a sifting tray. They then work the tray in a waist-high water trough that simulates those used to pan for gold in he 1800s. The cost per bag varies with size and market conditions, but there is an effort to keep the cost at Laurel Caverns below what is charged elsewhere.
Home to Pennsylvania’s largest cave.
Laurel Caverns is 8 miles from Hopwood, PA 15445 and 11 miles from Farmington, PA 15437, surrounded by the Forbes State Forest. For purposes of GPS, put in 1065 Skyline Drive, Farmington, Pennsylvania. Please read our directions.
Laurel Caverns is a large natural calcareous sandstone cave located 50 miles south of Pittsburgh. Most of the passage ceilings in its four mile labyrinth are between ten and twenty feet high (many as high as 50 feet) with an average width of over twelve feet. This makes it the largest cave in Pennsylvania. If classified as a sandstone cave, it is the largest sandstone cave in the world. The cave itself is situated beneath a 435 acre privately owned geological preserve. Because this property is at the top of Chestnut Ridge, all of the water that enters the cave is pristine.
The cost of maintaining this preserve is only funded by cave admissions, program admissions, and our gift shop. No local, state or federal tax dollars are used for either the support of this private preservation initiative or for the support of its educational programs. For this reason your patronage is greatly appreciated.
Because of its size, Laurel Caverns is also the largest natural bat hibernaculum in the north-eastern United States. In commitment to its preservation mission, the cave is closed during winter months for the bat’s winter hibernation season. Therefore, visitors will not likely see bats since the cave is open during the spring, summer, and fall months when bats have left the cave.
GPS 1065 Skyline Drive, Farmington, PA 15437
Laurel Caverns is off route 40 east of Uniontown, Pennsylvania
Geographically, it is about 50 miles south of Pittsburgh
Nearby sites are: The Summit Inn, Fort Necessity National Park,
Nemacolin Woodlands, Ohiopyle State Park, Kentuck Knob, and Fallingwater
Rain is never a problem. The cave temperature is a constant 52 degrees.
MAILING ADDRESS:
Laurel Caverns
P. O. Box 62,
Hopwood, PA
15445
Monday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Thursday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Friday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Sunday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
