Mid-Atlantic Karst Conservancy

04/18/2026

MAKC has lost one of its longtime members, Pittsburgh Grotto member Mike Singer. He was always a pleasant person to be around and was one of our very reliable volunteers, helping us set up the booth prior to the start of OTR, where he was always a stalwart, as well as helping us with some of our cave closings for seasonal bat closures, such as Barton. He will be missed. Condolences to Carolyn and to his children and grandchildren.

View Benjamin "Michael" Singer's obituary, contribute to their memorial, see their funeral service details, and more.

04/07/2026

03/26/2026

Bald Eagle Grotto is proud to celebrate 40 years underground, and we are excited to serve as your host for the 2026 Spring MAR Field Meet, held at the McClure Bean Soup Festival & Fairgrounds in McClure, Pennsylvania.

03/12/2026

Annual trail maintenance at Penn Aqua Cave

03/03/2026

This photo is from 2009, taken in Indiana County’s longest known cave, right out side of Blairsville. Did you know there are about three dozen documented caves in Indiana County, including one right alongside the Ghost Town Trail? Come find out:
• how you can help document Indiana County’s caves
• about the cave library located just a few blocks from the Historical Society Museum
• about the history of some of the area’s caves
• about how maps are made of caves
Do bats get in your hair? Do snakes live in caves? Why do people go into caves? Members of the Mid-Atlantic Karst Conservancy have the answers (and what they don’t know … well, they may create an answer). Come to the Historical Society of the Blairsville Area meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 4 at the Fellowship Hall at the Presbyterian Church and ask all the questions about caves you have!

02/04/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/182WJYUb82/

Great article from BBC mentioning fellow caver Hazel Barton.

In one of the most baffling discoveries of the last decade, scientists have found a clue in a cave to how life might survive in deep space without light.

12/05/2025

2026 NSS convention lodging reservations open.

2026 NSS Convention Hundreds of Caves, Hundreds of Miles Corydon, IN – July 6 – July 10, 2026 Register Lodging / Camping Schedule / Sessions Caving / Activities Convention News…

11/30/2025

Another great Black Friday Trip to Harlansburg. This time was spent on some resurvey cleaning up areas where multiple surveys came together. The large crew on hand contributed greatly to understanding this area of the cave. Photos, as usual, by Sunni Reitmyer.

11/02/2025

So sorry to see this post from Jen via an OTR group. I spent some time talking to Chuck at OTR this year as I try to do every year. We got to know him very well more than 30 years ago when he helped us “Save the Caves” from being quarried away. He was dedicated, smart, and determined and loved a good challenge. I am sure others who caved with him, did rescue or geology work with him, can say a lot more. Deepest condolences to all who knew and loved him.

10/22/2025

https://www.earth.com/news/bats-found-to-glow-bright-green-in-ultraviolet-light/

Several bats glow bright green under ultraviolet light. The glow could reveal clues about evolution in these mysterious night creatures.

10/15/2025

Franklin County Grotto has planned a Conservation project at Cleversburg Sink October 25th.

Meeting time will be 10:00am cavers time. If we have about 10 cavers, we should have everything done by around 14:00.

Dress according to weather, unless it's a complete downpour of rain we will still plan to work.

An RSVP or questions to Tom at [email protected] would be nice so we have a count.

10/04/2025

People think Harlansburg isn't well decorated...