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Empire Cave
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Tue Oct 01 2002 at 7:31:52
Empire Cave, Santa Cruz, California
Also known as the "
Porter Cave
(s)" for its proximity to
UC Santa Cruz
's
Porter College
, Empire
Cave
is a small series of
marble
cavern
s on the western side of the UCSC campus, slightly north of
Santa Cruz
,
California
. It is accessible either from the west, via the Empire Grade (road), or from the east via a series of
trail
s from Porter College.
Empire Cave consists of three or four major caverns (one cavern narrows significantly in the center) and one minor one, connected by smaller
tunnel
s. It is fairly muddy, even in dry weather, and can partly fill with water after a good rain; the water always drains quickly, however, although the mud stays for quite a bit longer. No parts of the cave are dangerous to explore; although getting to the last and smallest cavern is reasonably difficult, involving several awkward
hold
s while in a prone position, it's pretty much impossible to pick up any injury more severe than a
sprained ankle
while attempting it.
Belly-crawling
through muddy tunnels, however, is to be expected; wear old clothes that can take some dirt or don't go past the first chamber.
Externally, Empire Cave is easily found and easily recognizable; it is located a hundred or so feet from Empire Grade, and capped by a large
concrete
block (legacy of one of the University's several attempts to seal it) with a sizable hole blown in it (legacy, or so I am told, of irate cave enthusiasts equipped with
explosives
). Entry is accomplished by climbing down a narrow shaft on a thirty-foot metal ladder. Although none but the most
obese
should have any problems getting down the shaft, it's still a good idea to watch your head.
Empire Cave is physically unremarkable. While some chambers, particularly the third cavern, do possess interesting
flowstone
outcroppings, none of the more spectacular rock formations associated with caves may be easily found. Marks of
human
contact
are
easily found, however, and range from the benign (faces sculpted into the mud in the last two chambers) to the
vandal
istic (
graffiti
on the walls of the entry shaft). The first chamber is in particularly bad shape; several broken
plank
s and a nearly complete set of
mattress
springs, among other
artifact
s, have accumulated in one corner. The final chamber is a favorite location for
hotbox
ing;
marijuana
and
incense
fumes, while not entirely unwelcome to some visitors, do linger in the cave for days and should be expected during any visit.
According to the
San Francisco
chapter of the
National Speleological Society
, at least two
endangered species
of
arthropod
have been found in Empire Cave; one or both, however, may now be
extinct
.
Sources
:
personal experience
http://www.caves.org/grotto/sfbc/projects/empire.html
printable version
chaos
limestone
Cavern
Porter College
University of California, Santa Cruz
Bureau of Export Administration Entity List
marble
Tom Lund
The Infamous Bell Tower Prank of 1996
Cement
Dungeons and Dragons
How to make your breasts look bigger
flowstone
obese
hotbox
graffiti
Endangered species
marijuana
Vandal
Ankle sprain
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