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Wind Cave National Park– an Introduction
The Wind Cave National Park of South Dakota is one of the adventure destinations in United States. The U.S national park is located at a distance of 16 kilometers to the north of the town of Hot Springs situated in western part of South Dakota. President Theodore Roosevelt established this national park in U.S and it was the seventh U.S.A National Park. Wind Cave is also the first cave to be officially designated as a national park in the world. The cave bears exquisite displays of calcite formation, which is more precisely known as box work. It is said that the Wind Cave comprise approximately 95 percent of box work found in the entire world. There are several other unique facts about Wind Cave and they happen to be the frostwork of the cave, the three dimensional maze shape of it, which makes it the densest cave system in the world. The Wind Cave is currently been considered as the fourth longest cave system in the world but still every year few additional miles of the cave are discovered making it lengthier. The Wind Cave National Park also consists of the largest mixed grass prairies in United Stated exiting till date.
Visiting Wind Cave National Park
A visit to the Wind Cave National Park should be planned carefully, so that one should not miss out any of the wonderful options to be enjoyed in the picturesque national park. Avail a guided tour of the Wind Cave in the morning and keep the afternoon free for exploring the prairies and forests on the Scenic Drive along the park. The longer Candlelight and wild Cave tours should be kept aside for the next day.
Camping: The Elk Mountain Campground is the principal campground of Wild Cave National Park and comprises 75 campsites. It is located at a distance of about one mile from the visitor center. If you bear a park pass then there are chances that you might avail up to 50% discount in the campsite. The campsites generally offer the basic services and facilities. Running water is offered only during peak tourist seasons and not throughout the year.
Guided Tours: The guided tours of Wind Cave National Park mainly include cave tours. They are all guided by the rangers. The tours generally start from the visitor center.
Opening Hours
Although the Wind Cave National park is open almost throughout the year but there are changes in timing of the opening and closing hours of the visitor center at different seasons. Here is the schedule for the current year.
Visitor Center:
June 11 - August 16, open daily from 8:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
August 17 - September 7, open daily from 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
September 8 - September 26, open daily from 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
September 27 - October 17, open daily from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
October 18, 2009 - Early April 2010, open daily from 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
How to Reach
Air: The Rapid City Airport is the nearest airport to Wind Cave National Park.
Road: Rapid City is the nearest city to the park lying at a distance of about 74 miles. The ways to be taken are US 16 and US 16 A. The S.Dak. 87 south takes you to a route which offers beautiful view of Mount Rushmore. The road is not suitable for RV and trailers and takes you along the Needles Highway leading you through the Custer State Park to the northern entrance of the Wind Cave National Park. The route that offers a faster access is S. Dak. 79 south from the Rapid City to Hot springs and then turning to US 385 to the southern entrance of the park.
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