Wind Cave National Park
After a scenic drive through Custer State Park, we arrived at the Wind Cave National Park. It’s the world’s fourth largest cave. They estimate that only about 25% of the actual cave has been explored. So it has the potential to be the largest. It is known for containing the most boxwork out of any known cave in the world. It is also the most complex 3D rectilinear maze cave in the world.
They have a variety of guided tours available. We chose the Fairgrounds Cave Tour because you get to see more of the cave on this one than any other. At one point in the tour, our guide turned off the lights. She then lit a candle to show us how one of the first explorers, Alvin McDonald saw the cave. Wow!
If your really feeling adventurous, you can take the Candlelight Tour of Wind Cave. This strenuous two hour tour covers about a mile of rugged trail in a less developed, unlighted area of the cave. Each participant carries a candle bucket to illuminate the cave just like the early explorers. Next time we are going to try this one.
The other tour that sounded fun was the Wild Cave Tour. This 4 hour tour introduces people to basic, safe caving techniques. Participants get to explore the cave away from developed trails. If you go on this tour, wear old clothes and gloves, as much of the trip will be crawling! Jennifer really wants to go on this one!
