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Joel’s Journal: Onondaga Cave State Park
By Joel Raeber
 Onondaga Cave State Park, located about an hour west of St. Louis, Missouri, on I-44, is a great summer camping destination. The park has camping and RV sites which are mostly level and easily accessible, along with a number of recreational activities to keep everyone happy and cool, even on hot summer days.
Missouri is called “the Cave State” and has more than 5,500 caves. One of the more spectacular is Onondaga Cave in Onondaga Cave State Park. Along with the natural beauty of the cave, there is the added benefit of a cool summertime adventure. The cave's temperature is 57º F year-round. Unlike nearby Meramec Caverns, Onondaga Cave has been left mostly natural, without all the “improvements” which detract from the natural beauty.
Tours of the cave are available from March through October with trained guides over lighted, paved walkways. Bring a jacket and comfortable walking shoes for the tours. The tours are about a mile long, last about an hour, and include lots of natural features like stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone, and columns (where stalactites, stalagmites have grown together.)
 For the more adventurous, there is also a Cathedral Cave tour. It is a lantern tour that lasts approximately two hours. The tour begins at the campground and includes a short one-third mile walk to the cave's entrance. This tour is only available Saturdays and Sunday between Memorial Day and Labor Day or by special arrangement. The tour is limited to the first 30 people. It is more strenuous than the Onondaga Cave tour and covers one and two-thirds miles round trip.
Onondaga Cave is a registered National Natural Landmark.
The Onondaga Cave State Park campground has basic and electric/water campsites. Many can be reserved in advance during the summer season. Hot showers and laundry facilities are available from April through October. There is a dump station for RVs as well. The campground is open year-round.
There is also plenty to do above ground at the park. Canoeing, rafting and fishing on the Meramec River are favorite activities. There are several outfitters in the area offering canoe and raft rental during the summer. Nearby, there is floating on the Huzzah and Courtois, which are smaller and cleaner than the Meramec. There are also several hiking trails through the Meramec Valley.
This is the most rugged and scenic areas of the state. Nearby the park are the over-developed Meramec Caverns, Elephant Rocks and Johnsons Shut-Ins State Parks (which offer great swimming opportunities), Taum Sauk Mountain, the highest point in Missouri at 1,772 feet (an easy walk leads to the top), and numerous other outdoor recreational opportunities.
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