8. Canmore: Rat’s Nest Cave Guided Adventure Tour
Explore the Rat’s Nest Cave on this adventure in Canmore with a guide and safety equipment. Experience the cave in its natural state, just as the original explorers did, without handrails or walkways. Enjoy an 18-meter rappel and plenty of time to explore passages like the Laundry Chute.
Meet your guide to collect your caving equipment and undergo a safety briefing. Then, follow them for a 10-minute drive to the cave parking lot. Suit up in your caving gear and hike for 30 minutes up a mountain trail to the cave entrance.
Along the way, listen to stories that tell the incredible history of the Bow Valley. Gain insight into how caves are formed, learn about the geologic history of the area, discover and examine some local fossils, and more.
Make sure to keep an eye out for bighorn sheep and maybe even signs of a bear or a cougar. Once at the entrance, climb, crawl, wiggle, and slide your way through the cave's water-worn passages.
Your route through the cave gives you a lot of adrenaline-pumping moments including rappelling down an 18-meter drop, passing the Five Way Chamber, crawling through the Laundry Chute, and taking in the Grand Gallery.
Finally, make your way to the Grotto, the lowest point on the tour, but also one of the highlights with its crystal-clear pool and walls covered in stalactites and stalagmites.
Emerge victoriously from the cave with a celebratory high five. Return to the cave parking lot and say goodbye to your guide.