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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 — May 20, 2026

    Location: UT Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Room 104.

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

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

    Official Announcements

    The UTG will hold its 75th anniversary celebration at Stricklandia on a date to be determined in September 2026. Members who would like to help with the celebration are encouraged to contact London Darce (vicepresident@utgrotto.org).

    Unofficial Announcements

    Dane Smith announced that he was planning to set up a work day at the Texas Speleological Center on Saturday May 30, 2026.

    Upcoming Trips

    London Darce and Rich Zaria are planning a trip to the Devil’s River area June 5-7, 2026. Activities include digging on a promising sinkhole feature, bat flights, karst walking, and probably swimming in the river. Attendees should be vertically competent and have dig experience.

    Trip Reports

    London Darce reported on the Crystal Caves of the Cayman Islands.

    A new member, Danny, gave a presentation on his recent trip to Maple Run Cave with his fellow Texas Master Naturalists and on cave salamanders.

    Aaron de la Garza presented on cave visits in the Wimberley and Spring Branch areas, and on a Whirlpool dig night.

    Liz Frank presented on a City of Austin-organized visit to the caves beneath a local high school, and on the City of Austin’s training session for cave leads.

    Dane Smith presented on the Texas Speleological Association’s assessment of a Hays County cave and its inhabitants (buzzards, porcupines, and harvestmen, oh my).

    Ethan Perrine and Enzo Monfre presented on a faunal survey trip to a Hondo-area cave.

    Ethan Perrine gave a presentation concerning his trip to a West Texas cave, which included discussions of (i) worm pools (ii) waterfall enhancements; (iii) the fragility of plastic buckets; (iv) cool toads.

    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 June 3, 2026 in room 104 of the UT Brackenridge Field Laboratory.

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.