They include narrow squeezes, high ledges, vertical drops, and sections where the ceiling drops close to the floor.

Navigating them with nothing but a bundle of lit cane for light required confidence, familiarity, and either prior knowledge or extraordinary adaptability.

The Torch That Made Everything Possible

River cane — Arundinaria gigantea — grows along the banks of the Green River, which flows through the park about a mile south of the cave entrance.

It is a grass species, the only native bamboo of North America, and its hollow stems produce exactly the kind of burning characteristics that make it useful as a torch material: they ignite readily, burn slowly enough to be controllable, and can be bundled together in clusters that produce a sustained light source.

The ancient miners cut cane from the river’s banks, bundled it, and carried it underground.