Wind Cave National Park EarthCache
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Wind Cave National Park is located in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota, on Rt. 385 between Custer and Hot Springs, SD.
Wind Cave National Park protects one of the longest, most complex maze-cave systems in the world and Ranger guided cave tours are available year round.
The Wind Cave area has been protected since 1903, when it became a national park. Regarded as sacred by American Indians, the cave was not found by settlers until 1881, when two brothers, Jesse and Tom Bingham, heard a loud whistling noise. The sound led them to a small hole in the ground, the cave's only natural opening. That wind, which gave the cave its name, is created by differences between atmospheric pressures in the cave and outside.
The cave contains an extensive network of passageways containing very rare boxwork formations; also popcorn, frostwork, and other delicate, irreplaceable features. About 60 million years ago, the forces that uplifted the Rocky Mountains also uplifted the modern Black Hills, producing large fractures and cracks in the overlying limestone. Over millions of years, water moving slowly through those cracks dissolved the limestone to produce the complex maze of the cave's passages.
The process of cave formation exposed some of the most prominent features in Wind Cave -- the boxwork --thin, honeycomb-shaped structures of calcite that protrude from the walls and ceiling. Although Wind Cave has few stalactites and stalagmites, many unusual formations and a variety of minerals are found in the cave. The complex geology of the cave, the profusion of boxwork, and the variety of minerals make Wind Cave a world-class cave.
There is much more to Wind Cave National Park than its underground geological wonders. A diverse mix of wildlife, including, bison, pronghorn, and prairie dogs, lives in the 28,295 acres of rolling grassland, pine forests, hills, and ravines that make up its sunlit upper layer.
The easiest way to reach the cache coordinates is through the visitors center, down the stairs and out through the side door. If the visitors center is closed please take the paved pathway around the RIGHT (South) side of the building. Please do not climb over and down the embankment.
Hours & Info: The Visitor Center is open daily year-round, except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and News Years Day. Hours are: 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM Sept. thru May; 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM June, July & August. Call 1-605-745-4600 for daily tour schedules.
To log this cache as a "found it" you must do the following:
. E-mail us (EVA-Duo through our profile) with the correct answer to the following question: How thick is the Paha Sapa Limestone layer? The answer will be found on a sign on the path leading to the natural cave entrance hole.
and if you wish:
. Post (to your found log) a photo of you or members of your team at the natural cave entrance hole which is at the posted cache coordinates.
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)