![\"\"](\"http:\/\/cowlesmountain.com\/Travels\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/WindCave0001.jpg\")
<\/a>We arrived early and decided to check out Wind Cave.\u00a0\u00a0 Bought some tour tickets and headed into a very cool crevice at 5 pm (54 degrees cool), felt real nice on a 95 degree day.\u00a0\u00a0 It was a very interesting cave. \u00a0So far ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/cowlesmountain.com\/Travels\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/WindCave0010.jpg\")
<\/a>they have explored over 147 miles of it.\u00a0 They speculate there may be up to a thousand miles left to explore.\u00a0 There are lots of stairs and low ceilings. \u00a0I can’t imagine how hard it was to get concrete all the way in there to make the walkways, but it was carried on people’s backs in tire tubes. \u00a0 \u00a0 And they don’t spend much on electricity,\u00a0 pretty dark down there.\u00a0 The ranger had to pass out flashlights at one point due to the lights going out completely. \u00a0 You cannot believe how dark it gets in a cave 200′ below the surface.<\/p>\nJust prior to getting into the cave, we got to experience why it was called Wind Cave.\u00a0 As far as they know, there is only one natural opening into it.\u00a0\u00a0 It’s a small hole in the rock about 15″ in diameter.\u00a0 There was a stiff breeze blowing out the hole while we were there, maybe 20 mph, and cooler than what blows out of your air-conditioner at home.\u00a0\u00a0 It all revolves around the air pressure. \u00a0When there is a storm coming (low pressure) it is really blowing out the hole, and when it’s beautiful outside (high pressure) the hole is like a big vacuum cleaner. \u00a0 There was a big thunderstorm brewing when we got there, so we got to experience the big outbound wind.<\/p>\n We left Devils Tower before 9 am this morning for Custer, South Dakota. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Mt. Rushmore is the main attraction in the hills, but there is also the Crazy Horse memorial, which is a work in progress; then there is Deadwood; Custer State Park; and the two big caves,\u00a0 Jewel and Wind Cave. … <\/p>\n<\/a>They had the most amazing formations in there.\u00a0\u00a0 These box lattice like things, \u00a0I’ve never seen anything like it, never even in pictures. \u00a0The ranger explained it’s only found in 7 caves in the world, and this cave has 90% of all the structures found so far. \u00a0 They explained them as if there was a brick wall and all the bricks were removed, leaving just the mortar.\u00a0\u00a0 If they were done by a brick layer,\u00a0 they should find another occupation as they were at all angles.\u00a0\u00a0 And there wasn’t even one stalactite or stalagmite, like I had seen in the only other cave I have been too,\u00a0 Luray Cavern. \u00a0Went there as a kid on vacation with my parents. \u00a0It was somewhere in Virginia.\u00a0 This is a dry cave, so it was very different than what I remembered from back then.<\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"