Wind Cave National Park

Wind Cave National Park, near Hot Springs, South Dakota, ranks the second on our list of the most beautiful caves in the United States. The cave was the first cave in the world to be conserved as part of a national park when it opened in 1903. The cave is thought to have been historically referenced in Lakota Sioux legend and was found by Europeans in 1881, gaining its name from the cave's constant atmospheric pressure breathing.

It is now known as the world's densest cave system, with over 140 miles of mapped tunnels showing sites like the Post Office and Elks Room formations. Above ground, the park contains the biggest protected mixed-grass prairie section in the United States, as well as a number of paths with views of the adjacent Black Hills.

Location: 26611 US Highway 385, Hot Springs, SD 57747

Phone: 605-745-4600