I have always loved visiting caves. It is quite fascinating to travel below the surface of the ground to see what wonders lay beneath. At Bonnechere Caves, you’ll get a history lesson, a cave exploration, and an entertaining tour all in one place. It might be a little off the beaten path, but you’ll be happy that you made the drive to this secluded spot between the towns of Eganville and Douglas, Ontario, Canada.
The Region
Eganville…Douglas…where are these places? A small part of me did want to deface the Eganville sign to add a “V” in front of it, making it Veganville…my kind of place! Anyway, they’re part of the Ottawa Valley, located about an hour and a half west of Ottawa, or about four and a half hours northeast of Toronto. We combined a visit to the caves with our white water rafting trip down the Ottawa River (more to come on that later!). The property of Bonnechere Caves seems to be in the middle of the country, although the Bonnechere River does flow right past the site.
It was raining a bit that day, but the best part of visiting a cave is that the weather doesn’t matter! Rain or shine, Bonnechere Caves is always open. I would recommend that you bring a light sweater even on the hottest of days as it is always cooler underground.
The Fossils
Bonnechere Caves offers guided tours every hour. We waited with our small group in front of a table covered with fossils. At the beginning of our tour, our guide gave us an introduction to the region and the types of fossils that have been found in the area and inside the cave.
There were a couple of charts displaying both a “Record of Life through Geological Time”, as well as “Fossils of the Ordovician Time Period”. We learned that the limestone at Bonnechere Caves was deposited as layers of mud and silt during the Ordovician time period. The Ordovician time period happened around 400-500 million years ago, long before the evolution of fish or a time when dinosaurs walked the globe!
We were shown many actual fossils of creatures from the Ordovician time period, including many in the chart above. 500 million years ago, our part of the world was located in the tropics! Many of the fossils found buried in the walls of the cave are coral and sea creatures that existed in a tropical climate. All of the fossils were described to us and some of the smaller ones were even passed around. This was really educational for both children and adults as we tried to guess which creatures were preserved in each rock!
After we learned about the fossils, it was finally time to descend into the cave itself!
The Cave
One by one, we descended down a wooden walkway into the cave. Immediately, we felt the temperature fluctuate and we were glad that we wore long-sleeved shirts. The cave was very well lit. While our guide had a flashlight, there were lamps set up along the path that illuminated the rock formations. Stalactites hung like icicles from the ceilings above. They grow very slowly at a rate of about one cubic inch every 150 years. Visitors should take care not to touch the stalactites as this can disrupt their growth or kill them entirely.
We learned all about the history of the cave itself and how it was discovered by the owner. It is a fascinating and at times, funny story. I won’t completely spoil it for you, but let’s just say that the owner went through many trials and tribulations many years ago when first exploring the cave!
We discovered that many of the fossils existed in the cave walls themselves. You can see one in this photo:
At one point, we were asked if we wanted to explore a separate, small tunnel within the cave that looped back around towards the entrance. Justin, myself, and a group of the younger kids decided to walk through the narrower passageway (I can’t believe that so many people decided not to do it!). Our shoes got a little bit wet, and Justin had to duck down quite a bit to make his way through, but it was really fun! Our tour guide said that we were now “spelunkers” as we ventured through part of a cave without a guide. Well…I somehow don’t think that really counts, but I happily agreed to have the title at that moment!
During one portion of the tour, our guide turned off all of the lights in a section so we could see just how dark it was inside the cave. It was pitch black. We couldn’t see anything at all! I could see how exploring the caves initially would have had its challenges, and I appreciated that all of the lights were carefully placed and installed.
We descended deep into the bowels of the cave. Sometimes the ceiling would be directly above our heads, but at other times, the rocks extended way up high. Sometimes we would walk through narrower passages, and at other times, we would gather in larger rooms. It was fascinating to discover the interesting patterns carved over millions of years into the limestone walls.
After about an hour, our tour was over as we walked out into a very lush forested area. We were urged to follow the path and take a look into a giant sinkhole near the cave.
We had a fantastic time at Bonnechere Caves. It was great to learn some historical facts about a region that is fairly close to home. It was very educational for people of all ages, while remaining exciting and fun. We walked around examining all of the patterns and grooves in the rocks, and admired the stalactites that have been growing for thousands of years. I highly recommend checking out Bonnechere Caves, especially if you’re looking for a fun activity to do on a rainy (or sunny!) day.
Bonnechere Caves open on the May Long Weekend (Victoria Day) and stay close for the season on Canadian Thanksgiving (the 2nd weekend in October). Tickets are $17 for adults, $15 for seniors, $13 for youth (age 13-17), and $12 for children (under age 4 is free).
Bonnechere Caves
1247 Fourth Chute Road
Eganville, Ontario
Disclaimer: We were guests of Bonnechere Caves. Our thoughts and opinions, as always, are completely our own. We highly recommend that you check out these awesome caves!
40 Responses
James
Funny how you can find amazing natural wonders in the most unexpected places … excellent tour guys!
Lauren
Thanks so much! Yes, who knew such fascinating caves would be in the middle of nowhere really!
Anna
How fun! There’s a part of me that’s fascinated with caves!! I remember on a school field trip once in elementary school, we went spelunking and it was SO much fun that I’ve been dreaming about doing it again ever since! This one looks really fun with the narrow tunnels and low ceilings!
Lauren
I’m fascinated with caves too and always seek them out. That elementary school trip sounds awesome, I never got to go on any great field trips like that one!
Jessi
Yay geology! I don’t care how many caves I go to, I find them absolutely fascinating. I’ll never forget my first time underground in the Mammoth Caves in Kentucky, and it tends to be one of my favorite types of treks. Now I’ll need to check them out in Ontario too!
Lauren
I’m exactly the same way. I would LOVE to go to Mammoth Caves, it is actually on my list of places to go – hopefully at some point, soon! I’ve heard it’s awesome.
Mary {The World Is A Book}
We love exploring caves too and this is a great one. I really like how the outside area looks too. Those fossils are so cool! How neat that you were able to see them even inside the cave. I think it’s mandatory for all cave tour guides to turn the lights off. But, it is amazing to think how this cave was discovered. Great tour!
Lauren
I think so too. The tour guide even did this thing where she turned off the lights and said “there is a trick where if you put your hand on your nose, you can see in the dark!” Then she turned the lights on quickly and everyone had their hand on their nose. Hahaha. Great trick! :)
Hannah
Hahaha I went here for a field trip when I was little! It was pouring rain and supper slippery…I remember having fun and being covered in mud by the end :)
Lauren
That’s awesome! It wasn’t quite so muddy, just a little bit. I could see how that would be super fun when you’re a kid :)
Megan Claire
We love visiting caves as well – so glad you had such a fantastic time; sounds like an amazing attraction.
Lauren
We had a really fun time, and it’s not a super well-known attraction but it should be!
Carmen (CarmensTravelTips)
We’ve visited several underground caves and old mines. I find them fascinating. The best caves I’ve seen so far were in Puerto Rico.
Lauren
I’d love to visit the ones in Puerto Rico! That sounds amazing.
Christine
The caves looks amazing! Great photos as well :)
antonette - we12travel
Pretty impressive! The world underneath the surface of the earth has a lot to show to us for sure…
Sandra @ Tripper
Sounds like my kind of (de)tour! Thanks.
Jowita
What a great trip you had! I find caves scary and exiting at the same time. I would never say no to a visit like that, but when I actually go inside I’m starting to feel claustrophobic.
Heather Cole
Sounds like a fun experience! It’s amazing to think of all that beneath out feet, just waiting to be explored.
Juergen
They sound like interesting caves to explore. Unfortunately my wife gets easily claustrophobic so I can hardly ever convince her to visit any caves;
when I succeed I hear complains for weeks after. Since we travel in an RV it’s often not so easy to split up and do different things for part of the day…Casey O'Connell
Wanting to make the sign Veganville…. haha!! Sounds like something I would do too… ;) I also loveeee caves, so this will definitely have to go on my list. Thanks for sharing, guys! Awesome pictures!
Paul (@luxury__travel)
This takes me back to my days of studying geography and geology at Uni… sounds like a really interesting spot – would love to see all those fossils close up!
Elena
Those fossils look impressive! And I wouldn´t mind going to that cave either!
Sammi Wanderlustin'
Eganville! Maybe that’s where my family is from !
The location looks stunning, I’m a bit of a wimp when it comes to caves, and don’t think I’d want to venture too far underground. I visited Salt Mines in Poland and it was consistently on my mind how far down we were. I would definitely have been one of the wimps about the narrower route.
Christine
Looks like a fun trip! Those fossils look so interesting. And the cave looks super fun but I get a bit claustrophobic sometimes. Looks like a cool adventure though!
Claudia
I actually think the forest outside the cave looks just as fabulous!
Els
Love the tunnels! Although a bit creepy!
Karen Warren
I don’t really like caves – I felt claustrophobic just looking at your pictures – but I can see that these ones must be very interesting.
Brianna
Wow, I love that you can see fossils still in the rock!
Adrian of Adrian's Travel Tales
Wow, who would of thought that caves like this were in Ontario. I guess I just never associated fossils and caves like that with Canada. I need to expand my horizons! :) The pictures are beautiful! Thanks for sharing, I’ll definitely have to make my way up to that part of Canada soon.
Allison @ A Foodie in Europe
Great post! I love going in caves. I like that they showed you some fossils before you went it, I think it makes the tour a little more exciting when you know what has come out of that cave. So many of the tours I have been on are like “this is a cave, let’s walk through it. Ok any questions?” It sounds like this one is really interested in educating their visitors.
Veronika
Wow, you got great photos from the caves – I imagine the light conditions were not ideal but you nailed it! Canada has so much to offer.. I wasn’t aware there are stunning caves there as well. Good to know!
Lauren
The lighting conditions were less than ideal but we were able to snap some photos! There were many that didn’t turn out, too, so I’m thankful that a few did!
Karyn @ Not Done Travelling
That is SO cool that you were in a place that formed before dinosaurs had even evolved! :D
Lauren
Oh I know! It is awesome to think about. It’s also cool to think that the area used to be so tropical!
Cory Lee
this cave looks so cool! I love all of the fossils. I would love to do this, but it doesn’t look very wheelchair accessible. Lol
Lauren
Unfortunately, it was not very wheelchair accessible…there were many stairs to go up and down. Although since reading your blog, I have thought more and more about which places are wheelchair accessible or not – I’m happy to see when places are accessible to all!
Stacey Veikalas
Wow these caves are really cool something my kids would also love to explore. The fossils in the rock and pretty amazing and how they are just out there in the middle of nowhere makes them even cooler. Growing up in Colorado I am a cave fan love them – thank you so much for sharing – cool story and great photos.
Jon @ jonistravelling.com
This place looks awesome. I’ve visited a lot of caves in Southeast Asia – they are always fun to explore.
Rachel
I have a love for caves too. There is something so moreish about wanting to delve deeper into the dark secrets of the other world…. seeing what is in the next cavern, looking at the rock formations and sculptures…. and for me, as an ecologist, I am always on the lookout for bats! I can’t help myself :P