Forecast Foundation Announces 2024 SkyHike Fundraiser to Kartchner Caverns 

Trip Dates: June 8-9, 2024

Location: Sonoran Desert, Benson, Arizona

Forecast Foundation invites 12 guests to join us on an all-inclusive, two-day air and land adventure to the Kartchner Caverns, perfectly preserved caves filled with magical speleothems that have been continuously growing for tens of thousands of years. Usually these formations are composed of layers of calcite called travertine deposited by water. The form a speleothem takes is determined by whether the water drips, flows, seeps, condenses, or pools. 

All proceeds from Forecast Foundation SkyHike Fundraisers go towards Forecast Foundation’s mission to continue producing and publishing the biannual Forecast Journal, while also funding Forecast Foundation’s broader mission of building a new aeroastronomical world model for Earth & Sky. This includes the purchasing of 200 acres of land in the California desert, the establishment of in-person residency programs, as well as the construction of physical spaces and material resources to facilitate the production of independent exploration, forever.

Can’t make the SkyHike, but still want to help? Donate any amount here, anytime.

Contact info@forecast.foundation with reservation requests or inquiries.

The Mission

Departure – June 8, 2024

Forecast has coordinated seven single-engine planes to be flown by private pilots to take the team out to our destination. We will leave from Los Angeles and fly together to Arizona, stopping along the way for lunch and fuel. Once we arrive, everyone will be picked up in rented vehicles that will drive us to the Kartchner Caverns State Park where we will camp out overnight. Dinner and camaraderie will be provided. 

Return – June 9, 2024

The next morning, we will have breakfast together at the campsite, pack up, and head out to explore the caverns on a guided tour of the Rotunda/Throne to begin at 9 AM PST. More information on this tour can be found here.

After spelunking we will have a light lunch before driving back to the airport and flying home. Everyone will be back in LA by Sunday late afternoon. 

Cost:

The $1,500 donation is tax deductible and Forecast Foundation 501c(3) can provide the required receipts and letters for you and your tax agents. There is a $500 non-refundable reservation fee to hold your seat in one of the planes. All expenses including flights, food, car rentals, campsite reservations, and required gear are included in the cost. All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver and media release form. More information will be provided by request and upon receipt of reservation.

Notes: 

All participants must be over 18 years old.

History of the Kartchner Caverns

In November 1974 two young cavers, Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts, were exploring the limestone hills at the base of the Whetstone Mountains. In the bottom of a sinkhole, they found a narrow crack leading into the hillside. Warm, moist air flowed out, signaling the existence of a cave. After several hours of crawling, they entered a pristine cavern.

Over the next four years, the discoverers explored the caves secretly and decided the cave’s extraordinary variety of colors and formations must be preserved. In 1978 Tenen and Tufts told the property owners, James and Lois Kartchner, about their amazing discovery. 

The cave’s existence became public knowledge in 1988 when its purchase was approved as an Arizona State Park. Extraordinary precautions have been taken during its development to conserve the cave’s near-pristine condition. 

Kartchner Caverns is also home to one of the world’s longest soda straw stalactites (21 feet 3 inches); the tallest and most massive column in Arizona, Kubla Khan (58 feet tall); the world’s most extensive formation of brushite moonmilk; the first reported occurrence of “turnip” shields; the first cave occurrence of “birdsnest” needle quartz formations; and many other unusual formations such as shields, totems, helictites, and rimstone dams.

A Special Night Sky

The Kartchner Caverns was one of the first state parks to be granted the “One Star at a Time” award and become a member of the Global Star Park Network. This award acknowledges the public stargazing events held at both parks to increase awareness of astronomy and the preservation of dark skies for future generations. The awards were presented by the StarLight Initiative, the One Star at a Time organization, and Astronomers Without Borders. The Global Star Park Network aims to protect night environments, educate the public, and improve human habitat.