Buggytop Cave Trailhead — Attraction in Winchester

Moderate to strenuous hike. Slippery, very muddy trail 75% of the hike. Hiking shoes with ankle support highly recommend as the trail is ankle twisting, slippery rocks and tree roots 60% of the time. ~380’ elevation change. 1 hour 15 minutes hike out. 1 hour 15 minutes hike back. 2.25 miles out. 2.25 miles back. Mostly looking down at your feet the whole time so you don’t fall rather than looking at the decent tree scenery. Several dangerous if not deadly places you can slip and fall off path/ hillside. I’ve hiked 30-40 trails around the country and this is easily the worst trail conditions I’ve hiked. The cave and river at the end are the reward but I wouldn’t recommend this hike to anyone except must-see cave loving people wanting a really bad trail...

The entrance to the cave is spectacular, well worth the hike even if you don't go inside. The hike itself is moderate. Lots of rocks and roots but not a lot of elevation gain. The steepest section is the first 300 ft. It is possible to access Peter cave by going through Buggy Top cave. Once at BT, cross stream to the right side of cave, if you stay right and cross the pile of collapsed rocks you will come to a second entrance, climb out this entrance and Peter cave will be about 100 yards in...

My wife (55) and I (59) hiked the trail on July 20, 2019. We were about a half mile into our trek when it started raining, hard! The trail became a running creek in some places and we had to slow down on our descent to the cave because the rocks were very slippery. One misstep could have resulted in a severe injury. Once we got to the cave, the rain stopped and we enjoyed the breath-taking scenery. This is not a hike for young children or those with physical limitations. For us, it...