点评:Wind Cave was our 39th National Park visit. We love them all!
Wind Cave is almost a “two in one” experience, because above ground are the beautiful prairie and forest hikes, and below is the namesake cave.
As for the cave - we took both tours offered - The Garden of Eden and The Natural Entrance. Both are very good, led by rangers who are knowledgeable about the geography, geology, and human history of Wind Cave.
We enjoyed the Natural Entrance tour a bit more, only because we saw so much more of the cave during that tour. It is almost all walking, with only a few stops along the way. You cover a lot of cave ground in that tour, where the Garden of Eden Tour felt relatively short, as far as distance walked.
Note: Even if you have toured lots of caves before, as we have, Wind Cave is known for its very rare “box-like” formations. We had never seen these before in any of the many caves
we’ve toured. Really cool!
Above ground beauty - We hiked the Prairie Vista Trail which is steep at the start, but levels out nicely. It truly gives you the feel of the “wide open prairie” with lots of whispering prairie grass swishing as you go. We also hiked the Rankin Ridge Trail, which is totally different. That one climbs up through a Ponderosa Pine Forest and gives sweeping forest canyon views at the summit.
We also drove the scenic loop road through the park, which offers many pull offs with informational signs and beautiful views. Go slow! There’s lots of wildlife to see along the way - including the buffalo who tromped right across the road in front of us!
We thoroughly enjoyed our day and a half at Wind Cave NP, and highly recommend it!
翻译:风洞是我们第39次造访国家公园。我们爱极了!
风洞几乎是“二合一”的体验,因为地上是美丽的草原和森林徒步路线,地下则是与其同名的洞穴。
至于洞穴本身,我们参加了两个行程——伊甸园和自然入口。这两个行程都非常棒,由熟悉风洞地理、地质和人文历史的护林员带领。
我们更喜欢自然入口的行程,只是因为那次行程让我们看到了更多洞穴。行程几乎全程步行,沿途只有几站。那次行程覆盖了大片洞穴,而伊甸园的行程就步行距离而言感觉相对较短。
注意:即使你像我们一样已经游览过很多洞穴,风洞也以其非常罕见的“盒状”构造而闻名。我们之前在游览过的众多洞穴中从未见过这种构造。
真的很酷!
地上美景——我们徒步穿越了草原远景步道 (Prairie Vista Trail),这条步道起步陡峭,但之后逐渐平缓。它真正让你感受到“广阔草原”的魅力,一路上,草原上的草儿沙沙作响,发出沙沙的声响。我们还徒步穿越了兰金岭步道 (Rankin Ridge Trail),这条步道的景色截然不同。它穿过一片黄松林,在山顶可以一览森林峡谷的壮丽景色。
我们还驾车沿着风景优美的环路穿过公园,沿途设有许多停车点,并配有指示牌和美丽的景色。放慢速度!沿途可以看到许多野生动物——包括在我们面前横穿马路的野牛!
我们非常享受在风洞国家公园 (Wind Cave NP) 度过的一天半,强烈推荐!