Madison-Smith Goes Underground
For the third time in five years, Mammoth Cave National Park has called on Madison-Smith to assist them in the formidable task of moving construction materials deep into the world’s largest cave system.

During 1998 Mammoth Cave began an experimental project to help protect the cave’s fragile environment. A large part of this project involved placing paving stones along the Historic Entrance walkway that is an area of heavy visitor traffic. The reasons were three-fold:
    A. to help prevent erosion from the people walking the area,
    B. to make the area more accessible to visitors, &
    C. to reduce the amount of dust stirred up by visitors walking the path. This dust served to carry       foreign material & bacteria deeper into the cave which was threatening the ecological balance       deep inside the cave.

From a logistics standpoint, moving the pavers into the cave presented a challenge for several reasons. There is no way to “drive” into the cave. All of the entrances are accessible only by foot. Also, any equipment used within the cave, must not damage the floor of the cave and cannot emit any fumes. In addition to this the small passageways & rough terrain of the cave floor limit what type of equipment can be used in the cave.

Working with MCNP personnel, Madison-Smith came up with a process that involved utilizing an old ventilation shaft to lower materials into the cave & then using electric carts & manpower to move the materials within the cave.

After positive results from the original project, the decision to go deeper into the cave resulted in another project in 1999, and again in 2004. As the project goes deeper into the cave, the challenges grow, but Madison-Smith is proud to work with MCNP personnel in preserving one of this country’s great natural treasures.