The lower level of the visitor center at Wind Cave National Park houses a museum containing samples of various cave formations found in Wind Cave. Journals and maps created by Alvin McDonald are also displayed along with the history of cave exploration, development, and protection.
Alvin McDonald was still a teenager when he arrived at the cave in 1890. He spent the next three plus years systematically exploring the first 8 to 10 miles of the cave before his death at age 20 due to typhoid. It would be another 70 years before additional exploration expanded the known length of the cave system from 10 miles to over 140 miles.
We visited the park in August 2017.
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| Part of the large lower exhibit room |
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| Boxwork |
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| Calcite Popcorn |
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| Gypsum Flowers |
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| Gypsum Needles |
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| Calcite Ice |
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| Branching Helictite |
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| Frostwork |
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| Thick Helictite |
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| Soda Straw Stalactite |
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| Fossilized Coral |
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| Geode with Dogtooth Spar Interior |
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| Boxwork sample for touching |
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| How boxwork forms |
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| Alvin McDonald systematically explored Wind Cave using a ball of string and a candle |
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| McDonald's journal |
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| Early cave tour |
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| Men from the Civilian Conservation Corps built the concrete stairs and installed electric lights in the cave |
Entry to Wind Cave National Park is free. Cave tours require a fee of $10 to $30 per adult depending on the tour. Prices are reduced for children and seniors. Tickets for the current day tours are sold at the visitor center on a first-come, first-served basis.
The park website is https://www.nps.gov/wica.
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