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TOP 25 CAVES/CAVE TOURS IN THE UNITED STATES


Big Room, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico Caverns of Sonora, Texas Left Hand Tunnel guided tour, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

Welcome to Bigroads.com's guide to the best caves & cave tours in the United States!

There are approximately 150 caves in the United States that are open to the public for tours. These "show caves" can be found in nearly every major region of the country, and they are sometimes located in places that you may not expect.

We have put together a highly-opinionated list of what we believe to be the top 25 caves in the United States. It is not an easy task to pick the best caves out of a pool of about 150, so this web-page will forever be a work-in-progress as we travel & visit more caves across the country.

This list is sorted alphabetically by state (and not by rating or quality). This list also purposely excludes the following: (a) shelter caves; (b) ice caves; (c) lava tubes; (d) man-made caves; and (e) historic mines.

Take note that due to humidity levels, the cave will often feel 5-15 degrees warmer to you than the cave's official temperature that we have indicated below. We have also indicated those caves that offer "wild" or "adventure" tours, which typically require you to wear a headlamp and maybe even get a bit dirty as you hike, crawl, and/or scramble your way through an undeveloped section of cave. If you are claustrophobic or mobility-impaired, you may want to avoid these more aggressive types of cave tours.

Author/Contributor: Greg Parsons

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STATE CAVE NAME # OF
UNIQUE TYPES OF
CAVE TOURS OFFERED
ARE ANY "WILD"
CAVE TOURS OFFERED?
TYPICAL
CAVE TEMP
(°F)
TOWN / CITY / PARK
Arizona KARTCHNER CAVERNS STATE PARK three yes 70 degrees Benson
Arkansas BLANCHARD SPRINGS CAVERNS eight yes 58 degrees Fifty Six
Colorado GLENWOOD SPRINGS CAVE two yes 52 degrees Glenwood Springs
Florida FLORIDA CAVERNS STATE PARK one no 65 degrees Marianna
Indiana MARENGO CAVE one no 52 degrees Marengo
Kentucky MAMMOTH CAVE NATIONAL PARK three yes 54 degrees Mammoth Cave National Park
Montana LEWIS & CLARK CAVERNS STATE PARK two yes 50 degrees Three Forks
Nevada LEHMAN CAVES four yes 50 degrees Great Basin National Park
New Mexico CARLSBAD CAVERNS NATIONAL PARK one no 56 degrees Carlsbad Caverns National Park
New York HOWE CAVERNS three yes 52 degrees Howes Cave
Ohio OHIO CAVERNS four yes 54 degrees West Liberty
Oregon OREGON CAVES NATIONAL MONUMENT two no 44 degrees Cave Junction
Pennsylvania INDIAN ECHO CAVERNS two no 52 degrees Hummelstown
South Dakota JEWEL CAVE NATIONAL MONUMENT two yes 49 degrees Custer
South Dakota WIND CAVE NATIONAL PARK two yes 53 degrees Wind Cave National Park
Tennessee FORBIDDEN CAVERNS one no 58 degrees Sevierville
Tennessee RACCOON MOUNTAIN CAVERNS four yes 60 degrees Chattanooga
Tennessee TUCKALEECHEE CAVERNS two no 58 degrees Townsend
Texas CAVERNS OF SONORA two no 72 degrees Sonora
Texas INNER SPACE CAVERN five yes 72 degrees Georgetown
Texas NATURAL BRIDGE CAVERNS three yes 70 degrees San Antonio
Utah TIMPANOGOS CAVE NATIONAL MONUMENT two yes 45 degrees American Fork
Virginia GRAND CAVERNS & FOUNTAIN CAVE two yes 54 degrees Grottoes
Virginia LURAY CAVERNS one no 54 degrees Luray
West Virginia LOST WORLD CAVERNS five yes 52 degrees Lewisburg

Big Room, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico
Big Room, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

XX
Caverns of Sonora, Texas

XX
Left Hand Tunnel guided tour, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

XX
Grand Caverns, Virginia

RUNNER-UPS: CAVES ALMOST GOOD ENOUGH TO MAKE THE TOP 25 LIST

Here are a list of other great caves in the United States that we considered for the top 25 list above. Let us know if you think there are any other caves of this quality that we should be considering, either for this "runners-up" list or for the above top 25 list itself (email = gparsons66 @ hotmail.com).

STATE CAVE NAME TOWN / CITY / PARK
Alabama CATHEDRAL CAVERNS STATE PARK Woodville
Arizona COLOSSAL CAVE MOUNTAIN PARK Vail
Arizona GRAND CANYON CAVERNS Peach Springs
Arkansas COSMIC CAVERN Berryville
Arkansas HURRICANE RIVER CAVE Harrison
Arkansas MYSTIC CAVERNS Harrison
Arkansas ONYX CAVE PARK Eureka Springs
Arkansas WAR EAGLE CAVERN ON BEAVER LAKE Rogers
California BLACK CHASM CAVERN Volcano
California CRYSTAL CAVE Sequoia National Park
California LAKE SHASTA CAVERNS Lakehead
California MERCER CAVERNS Murphys
California MOANING CAVERN Vallecito
Colorado CAVE OF THE WINDS Manitou Springs
Indiana BLUESPRING CAVERNS Bedford
Indiana INDIANA CAVERNS Corydon
Kentucky DIAMOND CAVERNS Park City
Kentucky HIDDEN RIVER CAVE & AMERICAN CAVE MUSEUM Horse Cave
Kentucky LOST RIVER CAVE & VALLEY Bowling Green
Kentucky ONYX CAVE / CRYSTAL ONYX CAVE Cave City
Minnesota FORRESTVILLE / MYSTERY CAVE STATE PARK Preston
Minnesota NIAGARA CAVE Harmony
Missouri MARVEL CAVE Branson
Missouri BLUFF DWELLER'S CAVERN & BROWNING MUSEUM Noel
Missouri BRIDAL CAVE & THUNDER MOUNTAIN PARK Camdenton
Missouri FANTASTIC CAVERNS Springfield
Missouri FANTASY WORLD CAVERNS Eldon
Missouri JACOB'S CAVE Versailles
Missouri MARK TWAIN CAVE COMPLEX Hannibal
Missouri MERAMEC CAVERNS Stanton
Missouri ONONDAGA CAVE STATE PARK Leasburg
Missouri SMALLIN CIVIL WAR CAVE Ozark
Missouri TALKING ROCKS CAVERN Branson West
New York SECRET CAVERNS Howes Cave
North Carolina LINVILLE CAVERNS Marion
Pennsylvania LAUREL CAVERNS Farmington
Pennsylvania LINCOLN CAVERNS AND WHISPER ROCKS Huntingdon
Pennsylvania LOST RIVER CAVERNS Hellertown
Pennsylvania PENNS CAVE Centre Hall
South Dakota RUSHMORE CAVE Keystone
Tennessee BRISTOL CAVERNS Bristol
Tennessee CUMBERLAND CAVERNS McMinnville
Tennessee DUNBAR CAVE Clarksville
Tennessee LOST SEA ADVENTURE / CRAIGHEAD CAVERNS Sweetwater
Texas CASCADE CAVERNS Boerne
Texas CAVE WITHOUT A NAME Boerne
Virginia ENDLESS CAVERNS New Market
Virginia NATURAL BRIDGE CAVERNS Natural Bridge
Virginia SHENANDOAH CAVERNS Shenandoah Caverns
Virginia SKYLINE CAVERNS Front Royal
Washington GARDNER CAVE Metaline Falls
West Virginia SENECA CAVERNS Riverton
Wisconsin CAVE OF THE MOUNDS Blue Mounds
Wisconsin CRYSTAL CAVE Spring Valley

WIKIPEDIA'S LIST OF U.S. CAVES: Wikipedia's U.S. Caves

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