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Welcome to the Grotto

The Underground Texas Grotto (UTG) is an Austin-based non-profit that explores caves in Central Texas and beyond, keeping alive traditions from 1951. We are the oldest caving organization in Texas and have served as the nexus for cave exploration all over Texas and Mexico for more than fifty years. Members range from total beginners to international expedition cavers. Any central Texan interested in caves is welcome. Learn about our meetings below.

  • UTG Meeting Minutes — July 1, 2026

    Location: UT Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Room 104.

    Officers in Attendance:   Enzo Monfre (President), London Darce (Vice President), Holly Klein Perrine (Treasurer), Aaron de la Garza (Secretary), Joel Haus (Webmaster)

    Presiding officer Enzo Monfre called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm

    Official Announcements

    No official announcements.

    Unofficial Announcements

    The NSS convention is next week, July 6-10 in Corydon, Indiana. All officers and many members will attend.

    There will be a pond party at Stricklandia on July 18, 2026 starting at 2 pm.

    Upcoming Trips

    Ethan Perrine announced a July 14th Tuesday Night Dig; details will be posted on Facebook.

    New Attendees

    One new attendee introduced himself and discussed his first cave, The Caverns of Sonora.

    Recent Caving

    Aaron de la Garza briefly discussed the Grotto’s July 27th Goat Cave trip, which was held to provide newer vertical cavers an opportunity to practice their SRT skills in-cave.

    Formal Presentation

    The Grotto watched a Karst Waters Institute presentation entitled “Carbon Dioxide in Karst Caves- Safety and Science: Examples from Texas and Virginia.” After the meeting, members discussed their own experiences with CO2 in caves.

    The meeting concluded at approximately 9:00pm. Members met up afterwards at the Hold Out Brewery.

    The UTG’s next meeting will take place at 7:30 pm on Wednesday July 15, 2026 in room 104 of the UT Brackenridge Field Laboratory. This will be a trip report meeting, and members are encouraged to send their photos and presentations to vicepresident@utgrotto.org or to just bring photos or a presentation with them on a USB drive or their own device.

Calendar

Meetings

Photo of a UTG Meeting

We meet twice monthly on 1st and 3rd Wednesdays. The first meeting of the month is a formal meeting. Details are available on our email list, calendar, and Facebook page. Formal meetings feature presentations by guest speakers, trip reports of recent caving, announcements about upcoming trips and practices, and a chance to mingle afterward. Third-Wednesday meetings are more informal and include a series of short presentations on recent caving trips. Both meetings are held in-person at a rotation of venues.