GREENS WELL & MAXWELL CAVE

August 06, 2013

Green's Well

We got a chance to sleep in a bit more and catch up on some rest for the trip out to Green's Well. This cave was about an hour and a half drive from Chattanooga but once we got to the landowners property, we geared up and had a swift but mildly challenging ascent up the mountain to the cave location. It was not as hot out as it was the day before which made it nice but the humidity was up there so again, I was sweating like crazy. We rigged the drop with a redirect and pigs tail for tandem climbing which helped save a bit of time in the 227 ft drop. Once I descended down the pit, the water from the waterfall at the top started to expand out so once at the bottom it was like you were in a rain storm, a cold but a beautiful rain storm as you looked up to see the sun entering from the hole in the ground and reflecting off the wet cave walls.

Green's Well

There was some cave passage to check out which was very pretty and wet. The slot canyon passages opened up just enough for one person to walk through at a time to a waterfall that you could climb over. The passage continued to a shelf that dropped into a dome room where the water has cut through another layer down to a chert level leaving dark stones cemented into the canyon walls.

Slot Passage Green's Well

This was one of the more impressive slot canyons I have ever seen with the layers of Chert embedded into the scalloped rock showing signs of major flooding through this cave when the water levels are high.

Slot Canyon Green's Well

I was very impressed with this cave but it was getting rather cold even with a rain jacket on so we had everyone ascend out without a problem. While we were waiting for everyone to ascend the cave Laura, Noboru, and I went to Maxwell Cave just up the mountain.

Maxwell Cave entrance

This cave had an impressive entrance with water flowing out and down into another insurgence which is said to feed Green's Well. The water from Greens well flows down inside the mountain to Doug Green Cave which has a waterfall inside but we were not able to get the time to check out this cave.

Maxwell Cave passage

Inside Maxwell Cave reminded me a bit of the caves in Puerto Rico as it was a bit warm and a lot of old looking formations with a stream running through it. I went to the back of the cave where their appeared to be a sump that seems to keep going. Maybe sometime in the future I can come back to this and check it out.

Maxwell Cave

Afterwards, We went to the landowners house to share pictures and stories about our trip into greens well as well as celebrate good times with friends both old and new. Has anyone seen the movie teeth?