Wind Cave National Park

Wind Cave National Park, in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota, protects one of the longest and most complex cave systems in the world — a labyrinth of more than 150 mapped miles of passages beneath a rolling prairie. The cave is world-famous for its ‘boxwork,’ a delicate honeycomb of thin calcite fins found in greater abundance here than anywhere else on Earth.

Named for the wind that rushes in and out of its small natural entrance as air pressure changes, the cave is sacred to the Lakota people, who regard it as the place of emergence of the Lakota and the bison. Above ground, the park preserves one of the country’s most pristine mixed-grass prairies, where bison, elk, pronghorn and prairie dogs roam. A rare underground world above a living prairie, Wind Cave is a treasured natural icon of South Dakota.

The cave is explored on ranger-guided tours (from easy walks to the strenuous, lantern-lit and crawling caving tours) that wind past the famous boxwork formations — the only way to enter. Above ground, the park offers prairie and forest hiking trails, abundant wildlife watching (bison, elk, pronghorn, prairie-dog towns), scenic drives, camping and stargazing. The boxwork-filled cave tours and the prairie wildlife are the signature draws. The combination of a world-class cave and a pristine wildlife-rich prairie makes Wind Cave a uniquely two-worlds destination.

The cave is a cool, constant temperature year-round and tours run in all seasons (most frequently in summer, when reservations help). Above ground, late spring through fall is best for the prairie, wildlife and hiking, with summer bringing active wildlife (and heat and storms) and fall the elk rut and golden grasses. Winter is quiet and cold above ground. Summer and fall for the prairie and wildlife, and any season for the cave, are the highlights — reserve cave tours ahead and watch for wildlife at dawn and dusk.

Wind Cave is sacred to the Lakota people, who hold it as the site of emergence — the place from which the Lakota and the bison came into the world — making it a profoundly significant place. The cave entered American records when settlers felt the wind at its entrance in the 1880s, and it became the first cave in the world to be designated a national park, in 1903. The park later helped restore bison to the prairie. Wind Cave National Park preserves this sacred cave, its rare formations and its pristine prairie, a treasured icon of South Dakota.

Wind Cave formed in ancient limestone of the Black Hills, dissolved by groundwater into an extraordinarily dense three-dimensional maze of passages — one of the most complex caves known. Its signature boxwork — thin, intersecting fins of calcite that project from the walls and ceilings like a honeycomb — formed as calcite filled cracks in the limestone and the surrounding rock later weathered away, leaving the durable fins; the cave holds the world’s greatest known concentration of it. The soluble limestone, the dissolving groundwater and the calcite boxwork created this rare cave.

Above the cave, Wind Cave protects abundant prairie wildlife — one of the few genetically important bison herds, along with elk, pronghorn, mule and white-tailed deer, coyotes, and large prairie-dog towns (home also to the endangered black-footed ferret), with raptors and grassland birds, while bats use the cave. The pristine mixed-grass prairie and ponderosa pine support a rich community. Wind Cave offers superb wildlife watching above ground — bison, elk, pronghorn and prairie-dog towns — alongside its underground wonders, especially at dawn and dusk.

Wind Cave protects both a rare cave ecosystem and one of the most pristine remaining mixed-grass prairies in the country — a grassland of native grasses supporting bison, elk, pronghorn and prairie dogs (a keystone species), grading into ponderosa-pine forest in the Black Hills, with bats using the cave. The intact prairie and its keystone species are increasingly rare and vital. Protecting the cave and its formations, the bats, and the pristine prairie and its wildlife sustains both the ecology and the wonder of Wind Cave, above ground and below.

Wind Cave holds a sacred place in Lakota culture — the site of emergence of the Lakota people and the bison — and a treasured place among the icons of South Dakota: the world’s first cave national park, home to the greatest known concentration of rare boxwork, set beneath a pristine prairie roamed by bison. The cave and the prairie embody both profound spiritual meaning and natural wonder. Wind Cave is a cherished natural and cultural icon of South Dakota and the Black Hills.

Wind Cave National Park is in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota, off U.S. 385 between Hot Springs and Custer, about an hour from Rapid City and adjacent to Custer State Park. There is no entrance fee, but cave tours require tickets and (especially in summer) reservations. The visitor center offers tours, exhibits, prairie and forest trails, a campground and scenic drives. The cave is cool (bring a layer) with stairs and, on some tours, tight passages. Check the National Park Service for tour times, reservations and conditions before visiting.

The National Park Service protects Wind Cave’s rare formations, its bats and its pristine prairie. Visitors help by never touching the delicate boxwork and formations, following white-nose-syndrome screening to protect bats, staying with cave tours, keeping a safe distance from bison and wildlife above ground, staying on trails to protect the prairie, packing out everything, and following all rules. The fragile boxwork, the bats and the pristine prairie are sensitive. Protecting them sustains both the ecology and the wonder of Wind Cave, below ground and above.

Cave tours involve many stairs, cool temperatures and (on some tours) tight, crawling passages — wear sturdy shoes and a layer, choose a tour matching your fitness, and tell rangers of concerns; some tours are not for those with claustrophobia or mobility limits. Above ground, keep a safe distance from bison (large, fast and dangerous) and elk, watch for rattlesnakes, and prepare for prairie heat, sun and sudden storms. Respect the cave terrain, the cool damp footing, the bison and wildlife, and the prairie weather.

Cave entry is by guided tour only, with tickets and (in summer) reservations required. Never touch the boxwork or formations, and follow white-nose-syndrome screening (no gear from other caves). Above ground, keep at least 100 feet from bison and elk and do not feed wildlife. Stay on trails (open hiking is allowed but respect closures). Camp only in the designated campground or with a backcountry permit. Pets are restricted to developed areas. Drones are prohibited. Pack out all trash. Check the National Park Service for tour reservations and rules before visiting.

Custer State Park just to the north, the town of Hot Springs (with its mammoth fossil site) to the south, Mount Rushmore, Jewel Cave National Monument, the Crazy Horse Memorial, and the rest of the Black Hills lie near the park. The southern Black Hills define the region. Wind Cave anchors the southern Black Hills, a centerpiece of a South Dakota adventure, easily combined with Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, Jewel Cave and the town of Hot Springs.

Reserve a cave tour ahead (especially in summer) and choose one matching your fitness — from easy walks to see the famous boxwork to strenuous caving tours — and wear sturdy shoes and a layer for the cool cave. Don’t touch the delicate formations. Give equal time to the surface: drive the park roads and hike the prairie for bison, elk, pronghorn and prairie-dog towns (keep your distance from bison). Combine your visit with adjacent Custer State Park and the rest of the southern Black Hills.