Many caves require special skills to safely explore. Although several caves can be explored by walking/crawling or free-climbing, several more require technical rock-climbing skills involving rappelling and rope climbing, sometimes completely free of any rock wall contact, and sometimes up several hundred feet. To facilitate the safe exploration of these more difficult caves, EGI holds regular training classes in working with rope climbing and rappelling, commonly called vertical caving.

These training sessions are held on the surface, in a safe environment, under the guidance of a skilled safety and techniques instructor. We usually hold these training sessions from a bridge in Tucson, where the trainees can be closely monitored and guided. After becoming proficient in the basic skills of knot tying, rappelling, and rope ascending, along with how to handle various emergency conditions that may arise, the trainees are taken to a vertical cave to try out their newly-developed vertical skills for the first time underground.