In 1953, the property was sold to Lester B. Dill and Lyman Riley. The boat trips were discontinued because of safety concerns, but the docks inside of the cavern were kept and can still be seen today, along with a replica of the boats used for entering the cave. Dill had been in the business of caverns from a young age and had operated both the Fisher and Mushroom caves at Meramec State Park. He had also been responsible for the developing of the Saltpeter Cave into the now heavily commercialized Meramec Caverns. Riley, a retired teacher, had worked at both Meramec Caverns and Onondaga Cave.