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CAVING IN THE OZARKS ---

A WHOLE NEW WORLD
DOWN BELOW

by B.W. Lusk

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Most of us think of Arkansas and the Ozarks as mountains of green forests, clear lakes & pristine rivers. But we don't generally realize there is another wilderness waiting to be discovered underground. Just below the surface (that we see as rolling hills, beautiful valleys, and fast-running streams), you will find another world -- an underworld. It's a world of limestone caves, waterways and habitat that never sees the light of an Ozark day.

North Arkansas has nearly 2,000 documented caves including eight commercial tour caves that are privately owned but open to the public. There is also one cave, Blanchard Springs Caverns, near Mountain View, that is operated by the U. S. Forest Service.

Caves are much like other 'living things'...they each come with their own story and it usually has something to do with the discovery of the cave. Often the storyteller will speak whimsically of ghost tales and the things that legends are born of. Other tales will include yarns of bygone days when the caves were used by desperados and criminals as hideaways from the law.

Visitors who are willing to venture beneath the surface will find cave creatures such as salamanders and blind trout; springs; subterranean streams, ponds and lakes; crystals, fossils, and dome pits that take on unusual formations; onyx; and the more familiar formations with unfamiliar names like stalagmites, stalactites, flowstone, sodastraw and helectite.

You will find each cave has its own personality. Many have been highlighted by an array of strategic illumination...creating lights and shadows on the surfaces that reveal a rainbow of colors. Through the years, these formations take their own strange paths that take on various shapes for us human visitors. These shapes, which begin to display their personalities over time, include cabbage heads, fern fronds, corkscrews and various other resemblances, such as the appearance of an onyx drapery being scaled by a white rat, a huge heart, various imagined fantasies and even an old-world Santa Claus.

A whole web site could be devoted to caves and there are some that do just that, but generally speaking for the purpose of this article, surfice it to say ‘there are a lot of interesting things going on down thar’ in the ground.

Although days of the week vary by season, some caves are open all year. Others only open from spring to fall. Most offer other attractions including guided tours, museums and gift shops and one even offers a reconstructed mountain village.

The more advanced spelunkers may want to find and explore on their own. However, most visitors will prefer the tamer caves. Both public and private cave operators charge admission fees to help defray the costs of operations and preservation efforts.

To get more information on caves in Arkansas' Ozarks, contact the individual caves or the local Chambers of Commerce in the areas where the caves are.
Cave telephone numbers include:
Bull Shoals Caverns, 870-445-7177 or 800-445-7177;
Hurricane River Cave, 800-245-2282 or 870-429-6200;
Mystic Caverns, 870-743-1739;
Blanchard Springs Caverns in the Ozark National Forest, 870-757-2211;
or you can click here to get a list of Chambers in the area.

All rights reserved. ©1998-2004 B.W. Lusk - May be used with written permission and reciprocal link to ShopTheOzarks.com. For more information, contact B.W. Lusk.