DNR Home Page | Locator Map | Resource Center | FAQ | Events | Directory | Search

Rock Bridge Memorial State Park
573-449-7402

Additional Information... Accessibility Cave Tours Directions Events General Information Interpretive Programs Links of Interest Other Amenities Park Hours Park Map Photo Gallery Picnic Area/Playgrounds Places to visit nearby Trails

Interpretive Programs

Programs for School and Civic Groups

Goals: Our program goals are to use interpretive techniques and recreational experiences to lead people into an increased understanding of and appreciation for natural and cultural resources and the need to protect them.

Naturalists: The naturalist who presents your program may either be a staff person or a trained volunteer. The naturalist(s) planning to present your programs(s) will be noted on your confirmation letter. If conflicts arise, substitutions may be made.

Making a Reservation: Call the park office at 573-449-7402 to make a program reservation. Whether we can do a program for you or not depends upon the availability of naturalists on the date(s) you request and whether that date is already reserved by another group. It helps a lot if you have two or three date options and if you call at least two months in advance. When you call, we can create a plan that meets your needs. We will make a written record of the program plans and send you a copy of that as a confirmation.

Your leadership is needed: Periods of quiet attention from the group are necessary for a safe and successful program, and obtaining that cooperation is primarily the responsibility of the teacher or group leader.

Locations of Programs: Caving programs and guided hikes must be conducted at the park. Activities and audio/visual programs can be done either at your location or at the park.

Audio/Visual Programs: Our audio/visual (A/V) programs are videos or slide programs which either can be presented by a naturalist or loaned out if you have the equipment necessary to present them. Most of our A/V programs were designed for an 8th grade audience. An * is used to note any topics for which we have A/V programs designed especially for children. The length is about 20 minutes unless otherwise noted.

Video topics include: bats* (7, 15 or 48 min.); Missouri state parks; groundwater; wetlands (30 min.); and energy conservation.

Slide program topics include: bats; a Devil’s Icebox Wild Cave Tour (45 min.); caves in Missouri’s state parks; karst/Devil’s Icebox Cave/water quality/animals; Ozark glades; prairie; owls; spiders; snakes; Missouri state parks; Osage Indians; American woodcock; Rock Bridge Memorial State Park; and stewardship in Rock Bridge Memorial State Park.

Guided Cave Tours:

Group Size Considerations:
The maximum group size for a cave tour is 35. If you have more than 35, we can:

1. Form additional groups with one group caving at one time period while other groups are doing other activities. The other activities can either be naturalist-led, if the additional naturalists are available, or teacher-led.
2. If your time is very limited, then two cave tours can go on simultaneously if the start times are staggered by at least one half hour. If there is not enough time to stagger, then one group can use the alcoves under the Rock Bridge instead of Connor's Cave for its caving experience.

Customize Your Guided Cave Tour:

Choose and match three factors in the chart. Refer to the difficulty descriptions and the cave map when selecting your cave destination. All activities take Devil's Icebox Trail.

Cave #	Cave Destination	Caving and Hiking Time (in minutes)	Total Time Needed/Number of Interpretive Stops
			4 (10 min.)	7 (20 min.)	11 (30 min.)	11 (40 min.)
1	Rock Bridge	25	35	45	55	65
2	Crinoid City	45	55	65	75	85
3	The Beach	60	70	80	90	100
4	Crevice Climb	90	100	110	120	130
5	Cave Cricket Crawl and Bat Hang Out	60	70	80	90	100
6	Crevice Climb, Cave Cricket Crawl and Bat Hang Out	105	115	125	135

Choose the Topics You Want the Naturalist to Interpret.

• Caving Safely and Softly -- a requirement on all cave tours.
• Caves -- how they form, Rock Bridge formation, Devil’s Icebox Cave and its tours.
• Water -- connection of land and cave, sinkholes, a karst water flow model is available.
• Bats -- basic facts, insects eaten, guano for cave, echolocation, reproduction and hibernation.
• Other Cave Animals -- pink planarian, salamanders, frogs, crickets, amphipods.
• History -- industries, road, town and life of 1800s and their impact on nature.

Cave Difficulty Descriptions

• Rock Bridge -- Stay on the boardwalk trail through the Rock Bridge. Done on every cave tour program.
• Crinoid City -- Enter Connor’s Cave and walk upright for 30 meters on irregular stones and in a few inches of flowing water. You will get your feet wet.
• The Beach -- Do everything listed for Crinoid City and go 20 more meters through a wade of 6 to 12” to a solid rock “beach.” Despite instructions, kids have a tendency to step on a steep rock wall to try to keep their feet dry. While we don’t go there, you should be aware that the pool of water is 3 or 4 feet deep near The Beach and deeper further out.
• Crevice Climb -- Do everything listed for Crinoid City and The Beach plus go 20 more meters up a steep passage of dry packed mud. It is slippery. Good traction on shoes is very helpful. May need to use hands and knees to climb up. We require sitting on the way down. You will get dirty!
• Cave Cricket Crawl and Bat Hang Out -- Explore the alcoves under Rock Bridge. Climb and crawl on hands and knees on a total of 40 meters in dirt and rock. Walk on irregular stones and in a few inches of water while crossing Rock Bridge Creek. See roots and cave crickets not usually seen in Connor’s Cave.
• Crevice Climb, Cave Cricket Crawl and Bat Hang Out -- Do everything listed for the Crevice Climb and for the Cave Cricket Crawl and Bat Hang Out.
  

Safety Supplies
The park provides helmets during off-trail cave exploring in order to protect heads from low ceiling spots. The group should provide a flashlight for each person. For safety and good traction, boots or tennis shoes are advised rather than sandals, rubber boots or the like. If you are doing cave destinations # 4, 5 or 6 and your kids have poor traction on their shoes, they will either have difficulty, be unsuccessful or be prohibited from trying the climb due to safety considerations. Everyone in the group may want to bring a change of shoes and socks for comfort and warmth following the cave tour. Water fountains are not available in most of the park, so please bring drinks for your group.

Guided Hikes:

The recommended trail and time are just that -- a recommendation. We can accommodate using any trail in the park and any time frame between one-half and two hours in length. The park has a Trail and Wild Area Guide publication, which is available to help you in your selection. The hikes and topics listed below are ones we often do, but we also can customize a guided hike and cover almost any topic as long as those resources exist in the park.

Activities: