The cave that friend Tom and I slept in was the typical dank 58 degrees of every other cave.  As Junior High boys we didn’t think or care that sleeping in a cave might be horribly uncomfortable, we just wanted to do it.  It felt like risk and freedom joined at the hip.

It was simple to find; just a one mile walk on a well-traveled two lane road through our neighborhood.   A short, steep 30 foot trail led up through thick brambles to the entrance.  The cool air streaming out of the entrance was a relief on hot summer days.  We frequented this hole in the ground often.  

There was a large (dare I say cavernous) entry room that was long and wide with floor to ceiling stalactites and stalagmites.  There was a rock in the middle the size of a manatee.  It looked like the kind of table on which a king might slam a goblet.  When you did pound it with your palm or fist it would give off a low and deep sound like a cast iron tub.  Not far after you entered the main room a tunnel went down to the right offering a crawling passage.  Another was found at the end of the main room.  It was a dream for us to explore. 

The main space had the only area that was somewhat level, though sloping slightly down toward the king’s table.  Here we thought we could set up our sleeping bags for a cool nights sleep.  So we did.  Unfortunately, the floor sloped a little too much.  Even though we placed large stones at our feet to push ourselves up the grade over and over again throughout the night, we didn’t sleep well.  Plus, that 58 degree cave air was also humid air.   We felt like we were breathing in the musty smell an upright clothes washer.

The highlight and low point of our spelunking adventures happened one evening as we got bored waiting until we were tired enough to sleep the first 30 minutes before pushing our bodies uphill.  On the opposite side of the musical table was a pile of rocks which looked as though, sometime over the centuries, the roof had crumbled to the floor.  We started digging around in the rocks looking for fossils or beer cans; whatever was of interest.  We found a human vertebrae.  Then we ran.  Flashlights in hand, we ran home. 

After a decent nights sleep on a level mattress, we came to our senses and braved the cave.  We found a scapula and jawbone complete with teeth.  After sending the bones off to Dr. Bass at the University of Tennessee (look him up), we found out that some of the parts were deer and the other probably Native American; not a murder victim or a vagrant.  

Eventually we wised up and realized that sleeping in a cave was for the bats.