Slowing to a Crawl in Depths of Great Basin Park

During visits to our national parks, I’ve slogged through the watery narrows of the Virgin River in Zion, crossed Yosemite’s back country on skis and hiked the Highline Trail in Montana’s Glacier National Park. None of these outings prepared me for slithering through the “Birth Canal” under America’s newest national park, Great Basin, in eastern Nevada.

With only 68,000 annual visitors (compared to Zion’s 2,300,000), Great Basin is one of the park system’s least-crowded, and one of its best-kept secrets--despite being a day’s drive from Los Angeles and only four hours from Salt Lake City. The 77,000-acre park lies 13 miles from the Utah border in Nevada’s Snake Mountain Range.

The National Park Service hasn’t even built an entrance kiosk at the 5-year-old park, so there isn’t the typical $5 national park entrance fee. Since the park is thus far without a lodge, visitors have their choice of camping or roughing it in the Silver Jack motel in Baker or the Border Inn truck-stop motel on the Utah-Nevada border.

Established in 1986, Great Basin is America’s first upstairs/downstairs national park. With limestone-etched caves that burrow 100 feet below the earth’s surface, and soaring, 13,063-foot Wheeler Peak towering over the landscape, the park offers visitors the chance to explore both subterranean and alpine worlds. A real plus for Los Angelenos is that it boasts the clearest air in the country, according to a 1989 national park study. Great Basin’s average summer visibility of 116 miles is tops among the national parks, with Utah’s Bryce Canyon second-best at 104 miles.

Views from 12-mile Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive, of sagebrush-covered valleys split by narrow mountain ranges, define the sweeping plains known as the Great Basin--an area stretching east from the Sierras in California to the Wasatch Range in Utah. Water from these mountains doesn’t drain into the sea, but collects in shallow salt lakes and mud flats in this arid ecosystem.

The park’s water is as clean as the air. Lakes Stella and Teresa, on the Wheeler Peak Trail, register a perfect PH balance of 7. Another trail leads to a grove of bristlecone pine trees, the oldest living things on earth. These trees can live for 5,000 years, but Great Basin’s are a mere 3,500 years old.

The park’s free Wheeler Peak Campground is one of the most spectacular car-camping spots in America. Mule deer graze in an aspen-ringed meadow with Wheeler Peak towering above. In the fall--usually late September to mid-October--golden aspen emblazon the scene. The bristlecones are an easy hourlong hike from the campground, as are lakes Stella and Teresa. Hiking to the top of Wheeler Peak via the excellent trail is a five-hour trudge, but the scenery and views are worth the 3,000-foot climb.

The area was first established as a national monument, called Lehman Caves, in 1922. As with most such decisions, a combination of merit and behind-the-scenes politics led to its designation as a national park. The politicking produced a compromise that allowed local cattlemen to continue grazing their stock on parklands. The cows are controversial, with many park rangers critical of the “walking hamburgers.” In June, cows decimated a trail in the Baker Creek area, prompting visitors to suggest that the bovines be removed. On my visit in mid-July, I saw a few cows during three days in the park, but saw many more mule deer and mountain bluebirds.

Great Basin’s underground dimension piqued my curiosity. Spelunking, or caving, was not part of my outdoor resume nor that of my adventurous traveling buddy, Lee Rosenthal, a college professor at New Jersey’s Farleigh Dickinson University. Spelunking tours are offered every weekend, with advance reservations by phone needed to secure the six spots. Arriving at the park midweek, we found the young, innovative ranger staff eager to show us the terrain, both above and below the ground.

We both observed a noticeable difference between Park Service employees here and at the more established popular parks such as Utah’s Zion and Bryce. Without the pressure of huge crowds, Great Basin’s rangers have time to dispense information personably and humorously.

Ranger Alan Young, a descendant of Mormon pioneer Brigham Young, turned out to be our spelunking guide. After a 20-person, 90-minute walking tour of the main Lehman cave, we were eager to try spelunking. Young volunteered to show us the cave known as Little Muddy if we could work things out with his supervisor, ranger Nancy Hadlock. She asked us to pay for Young’s time and sign a waiver, and pointed out that such arrangements are not always possible.

We also had to fit through an 18x18-inch cylinder block sitting on the ground outside the visitor center. People with wide shoulders can’t maneuver through Little Muddy’s claustrophobic confines, and it’s better to get stuck above ground in the light than 100 feet down in the dark.

After writing the Park Service a check for $23.48 to cover Young’s two hours, we set off for Little Muddy with miner’s lanterns and our worst, most durable clothing. Young, one of four rangers who conducts spelunking tours, enjoys the job but doesn’t paint an entirely inviting picture. “Spelunking is not mildly strenuous; it’s considered arduous. It’s like doing many pushups. You have to be adventurous, otherwise it can be one of your worst nightmares. Let’s just say it’s a tactile experience.”

Little Muddy is about a quarter-mile from the visitor center on the side of a sagebrush-covered slope. Young, who carried no map, just a flashlight, opened a rusty covering with his key and we followed him down eight wooden stairs. Suddenly we were on our knees, then our stomachs, pursuing Young’s quickly moving heels.

Using my knees, elbows and toes, I inched along the crawlway, struggling to keep up with our small group. Lee who is 5-8, 135 pounds and does yoga, was better suited for this tight fit. I crammed my 6-foot, 160-pound frame into a narrow, low crevice that seemed to lead into the primordial abyss, and childhood memories of crawling came out of the dark. But at 42, those baby skills were long lost; my elbows, knees and toes were starting to feel the strain.

Down here, the cave walls were nothing like the elaborate draperies and stalactites found in the main Lehman Caves, which visitors are forbidden to touch. Little Muddy’s limestone walls were solidly marbelized, with many striations. The crawlways were a combination of dirt-and-mud floors, each posing different challenges. The mud was easier to glide through but left its mark. Each passageway varied in height, with the biggest allowing us to get on our knees, greatly accelerating our pace. This intricate maze of about 30 passageways gives first-time spelunkers a feel for the sport without the hazards encountered in wild, unexplored caves. There were no bats, or spiders, although a fly was following us.

Young assured us there was no chance of a cave-in, although getting momentarily lost was always possible. The last major passage was the Birth Canal, a combination of agony and ecstasy. After squeezing under an especially low ceiling, the hard dirt floor suddenly goes downhill, with gravity pulling you through the cave. After a five-foot, slow free fall, a larger space allows you to sit up. I started to laugh uncontrollably, feeling as if I had just been reborn.

Two hours after entering, we found the main passageway and could happily see the light at the beginning of the tunnel.

GUIDEBOOK: Great Basin National Park

Getting there: Great Basin National Park is about 600 miles from Los Angeles, and about 290 miles northeast of Las Vegas. From Interstate 15 north of Las Vegas, take Nevada 93 north to Nevada 50 east. Rural Route 487 into Baker leads to the park.

Caving: Hourly tours of Lehman Caves are offered Monday through Friday, and every half-hour from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. Fees: $3 for adults, $2 for children 6-15. Candlelight tours held daily at 6 p.m. are limited to 15 people. Spelunking tours ($6) are held weekends at 1:30 p.m., reservations required. Call park headquarters at (702) 234-7331, or write Spelunking Tours, Great Basin National Park, Baker, Nev. 89311, for reservation forms.

Where to stay: The nearest motel is the seven-room Silver Jack in Baker. Open April through October. Rates start at $32 double; (702) 234-7323. The Border Inn, 13 miles away, is open year-round. Rates start at $33 double; (702) 234-7300. For motels in Ely, Nev., 67 miles away, call the White Pine Chamber of Commerce at (702) 289-8877.

The park has four campgrounds with a total of 100 sites. Upper Lehman caters primarily to RVers. Baker Creek is closest to the visitors center. Lower Lehman is the only site open year-round. Wheeler Peak Campground, at 9,950 feet, is usually open June 15-Oct. 15. It has the best views, but campers must bring potable water. Call park headquarters daily, except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day, for status of campgrounds.