Lava Tube Caving

El Malpais National Monument. We were there mid May. 

From the park website: "The richly diverse volcanic landscape of El Malpais offers solitude, recreation, and discovery. Explore cinder cones, lava tube caves, sandstone bluffs, and hiking trails." 

Rough road to get to the Big Tubes Area where Big Skylight Cave is located. I think the run-over Four Wheel Drive sign in this photo is a nice touch.

Before starting out, it is necessary to decontaminate your boots in hydrogen peroxide to remove any trace of the fungus which causes White Nose Syndrome, deadly to bats.
We bring our bike helmets to be used as caving helmets.  

Life finds a toehold in the inhospitable lava 

Big Skylight Cave
It is necessary to climb down to the entrance

The big skylight in Big Skylight Cave is where part of the ceiling collapsed

Lava shelves behind me from successive lava flows. 

Reflective tape shows a way through the lava rubble 

Junction Cave