| Wind Cave National Park | |
|---|---|
 Skyway Lake | |
  Wind Cave Location in South Dakota Show map of South Dakota Wind Cave Location in the United States Show map of the United States | |
| Location | Custer County, South Dakota, US |
| Nearest city | Hot Springs, South Dakota |
| Coordinates | 43°33′23″N103°28′43″W / 43.55635°N 103.47865°W /43.55635; -103.47865 |
| Area | 33,847 acres (136.97 km2)[1] |
| Established | January 9, 1903[2][3] |
| Visitors | 448,405 (in 2020)[4] |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
| Website | Wind Cave National Park |
 .jpg) |
| SouthwesternSouth Dakota |
|---|
| Sculptures |
| Geologic and natural history |
| Mountains |
| Caves |
| Forests and wildernesses |
| Lakes |
| Long-distance trails |
| Scenic byways |
| Historic sites |
Wind Cave National Park is anational park of the United States located 10 miles (16 km) north of the town ofHot Springs in westernSouth Dakota. Established on January 3, 1903[3] by PresidentTheodore Roosevelt, it was the sixth national park in the U.S. and the firstcave to be designated a national park anywhere in the world. The cave is notable for itscalcite formations known asboxwork, as well as itsfrostwork.[5] Approximately 95 percent of the world's discovered boxwork formations are found in Wind Cave.
Wind Cave is one of the best known examples of abreathing cave. The cave is recognized as the densest cave system in the world, with the greatest passage volume per cubic mile. Wind Cave is the seventhlongest cave in the world with 154.2 miles (248.16 km) of explored cave passageways (as of 2021[update]) and the thirdlongest cave in the United States, though it is only the second longest cave inCuster County, South Dakota behindJewel Cave.[6] Despite the close proximity, no connection has ever been found between Wind Cave and Jewel Cave and most geologists believe the caves are not connected.[7] Above ground, the park includes the largest remaining natural mixed grassprairie in the United States, as well as the southern terminus of theSouth Dakota Centennial Trail.
The passages of the cave are said to "breathe" as air continually moves into or out of them, equalizing theatmospheric pressure of the cave and the outside air. When the air pressure is higher outside the cave than inside it, air flows into the cave, raising the cave's pressure to match the outside pressure. When the air pressure inside the cave is higher than outside it, air flows out of the cave, lowering the air pressure within the cave.[8][9] A large cave such as Wind Cave with only a few small openings will "breathe" more obviously than a small cave with many large openings.
Rapid weather changes, accompanied by rapid barometric changes, are a feature of western South Dakota weather. If a fast-moving storm was approaching on the day the Bingham brothers found the cave, the atmospheric pressure would have been dropping fast, causing the cave's higher-pressure air to rush out all available openings, creating the wind for which Wind Cave was named.
TheLakota,Cheyenne, and otherNative American tribes who traveled through and made camps around the area were aware of the cave's existence, as were early Euro-American settlers, but there has been no recorded evidence discovered that anyone actually entered it.[10]
The Lakota (Sioux), an indigenous people who live in theBlack Hills region of South Dakota, spoke of a hole that blew air, a place they considersacred as the site where they first emerged from the underworld where they had lived before thedemiurgecreation of the world.[10] Originally called Washun Niya, Wind Cave played an important role in the traditions and culture of the Lakota people.[11] The fables of these people tell the story of Tokahe, the first human to emerge from the cave, symbolizing an emergence from the underworld. His story and presence at Wind Cave is an important part of Lakota history, and heavily influences their origin story.
Wind Cave and other areas throughout the Black Hills were important to the native people in other ways beyond spirituality. Nicknamed, euphemistically, as a "supermarket," the areas surrounding the cave provided abundant resources for native survival. Often during the winter seasons, such areas served as ideal spots for camps; much of the game they hunted preferred the shelter provided by the cave and made these areas ideal to become Lakota settlements and hunting grounds.[12]
The eventual dispossession of the Lakota people followed the consistent history of dispossession of indigenous peoples across the country. In 1851 aTreaty was formed at Fort Laramie, entering the tribe into a legal relationship with the U.S. government.[13] AnotherTreaty of Fort Laramie in 1868 redefined and reduced the borders of Lakota land within the Black Hills.[13] Article two within that treaty allowed for forts to be built within Lakota land and in 1874 GeneralGeorge A. Custer began surveying the land and mistakenly reported a significant presence of gold, despite the geologist on his team of surveyors saying there were no quantities of substance.[13] Miners then began to invade the hills in search of gold, which was against the treaty with the Lakota people, though the government did little to punish such offenses. In 1875 the Lakota title to the land was deemed invalid due to their lack of structural development and supposed "wasting" of the land.[13] When theDawes Act was passed in 1877, the site was opened to settlers and effectively sealed the dispossession of the Lakota from their ancestral lands.[13]
The first documenteddiscovery of the cave bywhite Americans was in 1881, when the brothers Tom and Jesse Bingham heard wind rushing out from a 10-inch (25 cm) by 14-inch (36 cm) hole in the ground. According to the story, when Tom looked into the hole, the wind exiting the cave blew his hat off of his head.[8]
From 1881 to 1889, few people ventured far into Wind Cave. Then in 1889 the South Dakota Mining Company hired Jesse D. McDonald to oversee their mining claim on the cave site. The South Dakota Mining Company may have hoped to find valuable minerals, or it may have had commercial development of the cave in mind from the start.[14]
No valuable mineral deposits were found, and the McDonald family began developing the cave for tourism. Jesse initially hired his son Alvin (age 16 in 1890) and, beginning in 1891, Alvin's brother Elmer, to explore and help develop the cave.[15] Alvin fell in love with the cave and kept a cave diary.[16] Others who worked at Wind Cave and helped explore it between 1890 and 1903 include Katie Stabler, Emma McDonald (Elmer's wife), Inez McDonald (Emma and Elmer's daughter), and Tommy McDonald (brother of Elmer and Alvin).[10]
By February 1892 the cave was open for visitors;[17] the standard tour fee was apparently $1.00[18] (equivalent to roughly $30 in 2021). Tourists explored the cave by candlelight on guided tours. These early tours were physically demanding and sometimes involved crawling through narrow passages.
Like the nearbyJewel Cave National Monument, currently the third longest cave in the world,Herb and Jan Conn played an important role in cave exploration during the 1960s.[19]
The park is in anunincorporated area ofCuster County.[20] The closest municipality isHot Springs, inFall River County.
Wind Cave National Park protects adiverse ecosystem with eastern and western plant and animal species. Wildlife that inhabits this park includeraccoons,elk,bison,coyotes,skunks,badgers,ermines,black-footed ferrets,cougars,bobcats,red foxes,minks,whooping crane,pronghorn andprairie dogs. TheWind Cave bison herd is one of only four free-roaming and genetically pure herds on public lands in North America. The other three herds are theYellowstone Park bison herd, theHenry Mountains bison herd inUtah, and on Elk Island inAlberta, Canada. The Wind Cave bison herd is currentlybrucellosis-free.[8]
The black-footed ferret and whooping crane are on the endangered species list.[21][22] The whooping crane population in Wind Cave National Park is considered a non-self-sustaining wild population.[22]
| Climate data for Wind Cave, South Dakota (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1990–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 69 (21) | 69 (21) | 77 (25) | 89 (32) | 92 (33) | 102 (39) | 105 (41) | 101 (38) | 103 (39) | 89 (32) | 76 (24) | 66 (19) | 105 (41) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 57.5 (14.2) | 57.7 (14.3) | 69.3 (20.7) | 77.3 (25.2) | 84.6 (29.2) | 91.8 (33.2) | 96.0 (35.6) | 94.7 (34.8) | 91.3 (32.9) | 79.7 (26.5) | 67.2 (19.6) | 56.9 (13.8) | 97.7 (36.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 39.7 (4.3) | 40.7 (4.8) | 50.0 (10.0) | 57.7 (14.3) | 66.4 (19.1) | 77.4 (25.2) | 84.7 (29.3) | 83.6 (28.7) | 76.2 (24.6) | 61.4 (16.3) | 48.4 (9.1) | 39.4 (4.1) | 60.5 (15.8) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 27.2 (−2.7) | 28.1 (−2.2) | 36.8 (2.7) | 44.3 (6.8) | 53.7 (12.1) | 63.8 (17.7) | 70.7 (21.5) | 69.2 (20.7) | 61.2 (16.2) | 47.7 (8.7) | 35.9 (2.2) | 27.4 (−2.6) | 47.2 (8.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 14.8 (−9.6) | 15.5 (−9.2) | 23.7 (−4.6) | 30.9 (−0.6) | 40.9 (4.9) | 50.1 (10.1) | 56.6 (13.7) | 54.9 (12.7) | 46.2 (7.9) | 34.0 (1.1) | 23.4 (−4.8) | 15.4 (−9.2) | 33.9 (1.1) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −9.6 (−23.1) | −8.3 (−22.4) | 1.2 (−17.1) | 14.6 (−9.7) | 26.0 (−3.3) | 37.6 (3.1) | 45.8 (7.7) | 42.8 (6.0) | 31.5 (−0.3) | 15.1 (−9.4) | 1.5 (−16.9) | −7.2 (−21.8) | −18.2 (−27.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −30 (−34) | −32 (−36) | −20 (−29) | 1 (−17) | 15 (−9) | 30 (−1) | 38 (3) | 31 (−1) | 23 (−5) | −2 (−19) | −15 (−26) | −27 (−33) | −32 (−36) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 0.45 (11) | 0.70 (18) | 1.07 (27) | 2.32 (59) | 3.74 (95) | 3.29 (84) | 3.01 (76) | 2.30 (58) | 1.53 (39) | 1.55 (39) | 0.71 (18) | 0.53 (13) | 21.20 (538) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 6.3 (16) | 7.1 (18) | 9.6 (24) | 7.8 (20) | 0.9 (2.3) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.2 (0.51) | 2.1 (5.3) | 4.4 (11) | 7.5 (19) | 45.9 (117) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 4.5 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 9.4 | 11.2 | 11.4 | 9.7 | 8.5 | 6.3 | 7.0 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 87.7 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 3.9 | 4.9 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 23.1 |
| Source: NOAA[23][24] | |||||||||||||
Throughout the years, thegreat plains have seen a considerable rise in temperature. Being that Wind Cave is located in the great plains, these temperature rises have already started to affect the park and the area around it.[25] The averagetemperature rise across the plains has been two degrees Fahrenheit, with some areas seeing increases as high as five degrees Fahrenheit.[25] This trend is projected to causedrought like conditions in the area.[25]
Several roads run through the park and there are 30 miles (48 km) of hiking trails on the surface. The park had an estimated 656,397 visitors in 2018.[4] More than 109,000 people toured the cave itself in 2015, the most since 1968 before cave tours were limited to 40 people each.[26]
The Wind Cave visitor center features three exhibit rooms about thegeology of the caves and early cave history, the park's wildlife and natural history, and the work of theCivilian Conservation Corps in the park.
Elk Mountain Campground, located in aponderosa pine forest, is about 1.25 miles (2.0 km) from the visitor center. The campground has 75 sites for tents and recreational vehicles and is open year-round with campfire programs offered in the summer and limited services available in the winter.[8]
The three levels making up the Wind Cave system are located in the upper 76 m of theMississippianPahasapaLimestone. Deposited in an inland sea,chert,gypsum, andanhydritelenses within the limestone are evidence of high periods of evaporation. When sea levels dropped at the end of the Mississippian,dissolution of the limestone formed a Kaskaskia paleokarst terrain, complete with solutionfissures,sinkholes, and caves. Thus, anunconformity exists between this limestone and the overlyingPennsylvanian Minnelusa Formation. These red sands and clays filled in cavities. Those cavities not filled in were coated indogtooth spar. Subsequent deposition of thePermian Opeche Shale,PermianMinnekahta Limestone,TriassicSpearfish Formation, andTertiaryWhite River Group followed.Paleocene andEocene erosion removed these overlying sediments, in the area of the caves, down to the Minnelusa.Geologic uplift started during theLaramide Orogeny, which lowered the water table, draining the cave system and enlarging it. Today the water level is 150 m below the surface, which amounts to a drop of 0.4 m every 1000 years.[27]
Boxwork was first noted in Wind Cave. These calcite fins were once cracks filling gypsum and anhydrite. Calcite-gypsumpseudomorphs are common. The releasedsulfuric acid weakened the bedrock, allowing it to weather faster than the calcite. The resultant intersecting fins form open chambers and protrude from the surrounding bedrock by amounts ranging from 0.6 to 1.2 m. Lower levels of the cave have boxworks mixed with frostwork andcave popcorn.Helictite bushes were also first discovered in Wind Cave.Moonmilk is found on many surfaces, whilecalcite rafts are found in the lower levels of the cave system.[27]: 18, 20–21
During the2020 Democratic Party presidential primarydebate on December 19, 2019, candidate SenatorAmy Klobuchar referenced the Wind Cave as part of an attack on fellow candidate MayorPete Buttigieg, who had hosted a campaign fundraiser in a purported wine cave. Klobuchar remarked, "I came here to make a case for progress, and I have never even been to a wine cave. I’ve been to the Wind Cave in South Dakota, which I suggest you go to."[28] South Dakota public figures, including the state's RepresentativeDusty Johnson, used it to promote tourism to Wind Cave National Park.[29]
The cave is featured in Dan Jorgensen's novelAnd the Wind Whispered.
Wind Cave Natl Pk
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