Wind Cave National Park Essay

Located in South Dakota on the south side of the Black Hills (“Wind Cave National Park”), Wind Cave National Park protects two worlds- one underground and one aboveground, sunlit environment. This park showcases a variety of wildlife and is home to one of the world’s longest and oldest caves. The “mission of Wind Cave National Park is to reserve and protect the natural resources” it encompasses ("A Brief History of Wind Cave National Park"). In 1903, then President Theodore Roosevelt declared Wind Cave become the 8th national park in the U.S. The newly established park was a part of the Civilian Conservation Corps that helped transform the park into what it is today. The men from the organization worked with the struggling park and modified
it into the park we see today ("Civilian Conservation Corps at Wind Cave"). With mild winters and warm summers, the park is open all year round (“Things To Know Before You Come”) and offers multiple programs and tours of the land and its geographical and geological features. It has ranger-guided cave tours, horseback riding, hiking trails, and Elk Mountain Campground. One of the sites that make Wind Cave National Park unique is the underground cave.
The Bingham brothers, Jesse and Tom, discovered it in 1881 when they heard a loud whistling sound coming from the natural opening of the cave (“Wind Cave National Park”). Currently, 143.16 miles of passages are mapped out. It is the “3rd longest cave in America and the 7th longest cave in the world” (“Cave / Karst Systems"). Strong winds go in and out of the cave due to changes in the barometric pressure inside and outside of the cave, hence how it got its name (”A Brief History of Wind Cave National Park”). Portions of the cave are close to 300 million years old making it one of the oldest caves in the U.S. Formed in the Madison Limestone formation, this grandiose cave is consistently 53 degrees and “relatively dry so it contains few stalactites and stalagmites” (“Wind Cave National Park”). However, the cave does house an abundant amount of rare calcite formations resembling irregular honeycomb known as boxwork. The boxwork projects from cave ceilings and walls and has a rusty color created in wafer-thin sheets (“Cave / Karst Systems"). In other areas, cave popcorn, flowstone, and frostwork are visible. Even though much of the cave has been discovered, exploration is
ongoing. Along with the unique attributes of the cave underground, the above world embodies great grassland and wildlife. The park is about 60% grassland and home to large bison population. Pronghorn antelope, mule deer, elk and prairie dogs can also be viewed in their natural habitat in the park (“Wind Cave National Park”). Wind Cave national park also has one of the few remaining intact prairies, about 28,000 acres. In the grasslands, prairies, and Ponderosa pine forest, a variety of botany, animals, and insects can be discovered. Wildflowers such as purple coneflowers, white sego lilies, and sunflowers can be viewed in this ecosystem as well (“Plants”). In addition to the long cave and grasslands, the park has geological landscapes that aid in telling people the story of the formation of this national park. The oldest rocks (schist and pegmatite) are located in the northwest part of the park. Schist is metamorphic rock that formed under heat and extensive pressure. Pegmatite is igneous rock that hardened from magma and hot liquids. It is mostly composed of “glassy-gray quartz, silvery micas, pink feldspar, and shiny black tourmaline” (“Geological Formations”). The younger sedimentary rocks are located southeast of the schist and pegmatite rocks. The newer rocks formed due to the” sea retreating and advancing causing sediments and various minerals to deposit in layers” (“Geological Formations”). Wind Cave National Park is home to multiple features and geological sites that cannot be replicated anywhere else. It was the first park created to protect an underground resource. With one of the longest caves that contain rare geological features such as boxwork and home to various wildlife species and botany, this national park is one of a kind.