“Cave Camp is where cavers of all experience levels come together to teach and learn from each other in a super cool way! You can enjoy a jam packed weekend full of hands-on workshops, over a dozen caving trips, and so much more!”

The NRMG’s Annual CAVE CAMP will take place from October 4th through October 6th, 2019. Whether you’re a veteran caver, or a first time explorer, we welcome you to join us!

COST (Buy Tickets Now!)

$100 per Adult
$60 per Youth aged 13-17 (must be accompanied by an adult)
$30 per Child 12 and under (must be accompanied by an adult) NO CHILD SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES THIS YEAR

A ticket includes a mattress and a box spring in a heated cabin for Friday and Saturday night, food and drink for the entire weekend, a FREE synthetic limited edition 2019 Cave Camp t-shirt, and lots more!!!

WHERE THE HECK IS MONARCH? WHY MONARCH MONTANA?
Monarch is centrally located in our great state. But most importantly, it’s near many of the classic Montana caves! Want to visit our deepest cave that doesn’t require rope? No problem. How about a cave with 2 vertical drops, each over 150′ deep? That’s nearby! Want to push muddy squeezes, or see the largest underground room in the state? It’s all right here! And in Montana standards, it’s a “close” drive for everyone!
Billings – 3 hours, 13 minute
Bozeman – 2 hours, 23 minutes
Butte – 2 hours, 52 minutes
Helena – 2 hours, 13 minutes
Great Falls – 0 hours, 48 minutes
Missoula – 3 hours, 28 minutes
Whitefish – 4 hours, 15 minutes
Lovell, WY – 4 hours, 28 minutes
Calgary, AB – 5 hours, 38 minutes
Custer, SD – 8 hours, 15 minutes
Salt Lake City, UT – 8 hours, 11 minutes
Seattle, WA – 10 hours, 38 minutes
Denver, CO – 11 hours 25 minutes

WEEKEND ITINERARY (Subject to change)

Friday October 4th:
9:00 am to 1:00 pm – Lick Creek Cave Annual Cave Cleanup
1:00 pm to 8:00 pm – Setup, registration, and check-in at Rotary Camp
4:00 pm to 4:30 pm – Raising of the NRMG flag
4:30 pm to 6:30 pm – Speleolympics qualifiers for vertical caving section
6:30 pm to 7:30 pm – Dinner Provided
7:30 pm to bat:30 – Jam session (bring your instruments!)

Saturday October 5th:
6:30 am to 7:30 am – Begin drinking coffee
7:00 am to 8:00 am – Breakfast (see menu here)
8:00 am to 8:30 am – Welcome to Cave Camp! (group)
8:30 am to 12:00 pm – AM Workshops
12:00 pm to 1:00 pm – Lunch (see menu here)
1:00 pm to 2:00 pm – Afternoon Demonstrations (group)
2:00 pm to 5:30 pm – PM Workshops (see list here)
5:30 pm to 6:30 pm – Dinner (see menu here), End of Silent Auction
6:30 pm to 7:00 pm – Lick Creek Discussion
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm – Speleolympic Finals!
8:30 pm to bat:30 – Socializing

Sunday October 6th:
7:00 am to 7:30 am – Begin drinking coffee
7:30 am to 8:30 am – Breakfast (see menu here)
8:30 am to 8:45 am – Speleolympics Awards Ceremony!
8:45 am to 9:00 am – Pack up, clean up the camp, and get ready for CAVING!!
9:00 am to late afternoon – Break into groups of 4-6 people, and head out for your alpine caving trip! There are dozens of caves nearby! There will be restoration trips, photography trips, surveying trips, and more! Sign up for the trip you want when you check-in.

We have the beautiful Camp Rotary in Monarch, MT. This facility contains:

A main lodge capable of seating 100 people. The great room contains a fireplace and piano, and is over 2,500 square feet! At night, this will be a community hangout area
Nine cabins, each with 11 single beds (not bunked) with mattresses. No linens are provided. There will be 3 late-night cabins and 3 quiet/family cabins.
A bathhouse with 9 showers (4 men, and 5 women), 5 toilets for women & 5 for men.
A few acres of tent space, with some spots right next to Belt Creek
A fire-pit complete with stadium seating and firewood provided
A 20′ tall pavilion capable of seating over 100 people outdoors!
If you’re looking for more privacy or alone time, there’s always Cougar Canyon Lodge and Escape only 6 miles away! However, we’re hoping you can stay the whole weekend

FOOD & DRINK (Subject to change)

We are excited to announce that, through various brewery sponsors, we will have FREE BEER FOR ALL ATTENDEES of legal drinking age!!
Our menu may evolve as we secure more sponsors and funding. If you eat the food of 3 people or have special dietary restrictions, please consider bringing some of your own food. With that in mind, check out the latest revision of the menu below: (COMING SOON)

WHAT TO BRING

Overnight kit including blankets, pajamas, toiletry items, extra clothes, etc
WINTER CLOTHES. We’ll be outside at times and it could be chilly out there!
Vertical Gear, Gloves, and Helmet to compete in the contests
[optional] tent or some other form of shelter
[optional] winter sleeping bag
[If you plan to go caving] bring clean and decontaminated caving gear including:
-helmet
-caving pack/backpack
-3 sources of light, preferably headlamps
-gloves and other in-cave clothing (caves are ~40 degrees F)
-change of clothes for after the cave
-vertical gear (if you don’t have it, there are still many horizontal caves)
-hiking shoes (A cave trip might be 0.5-6 miles round trip)
-water bottle

ONLY BRING CLEAN AND DECONTAMINATED CAVE GEAR. NO CAVE DIRT.

Carl says “You better come to Cave Camp OR ELSE!”

TRAVEL

There are no major facilities or shopping centers nearby, so bring what you need! The camp can be accessed by any vehicle, including most low-clearance passenger vehicles. The final one-mile-long gravel section has some serious potholes, so you’ll need to travel very slow and carefully. Some cave trips may require a high-clearance vehicle.

WORKSHOPS AND INSTRUCTORS

Many highly experienced cavers from across Montana and the entire US are planning to attend to provide personalized, hands-on instruction!