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Fantastic Caverns in Springfield Missouri is the America's only ride-through cave!
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FantasticCaverns
PRESS KIT
AN A N C I E N T
U N D E R G R O U N D
R I V E R T O O K A
W I N D I N G C O U R S E ,
C A RV I N G T H E
PAT H F O R
A M E R I C A’ S O N LY
R I D E - T H R O U G H C AV E .
A
FM I L D LY A C I D I C
R A I N WAT E R ,
C O N S I S T I N G
O F C A L C I U M
C A R B O N AT E ,
S E E P S S L O W LY
T H R O U G H
T H E C AV E R N S ’
C E I L I N G S
T O F O R M
S TA L A C T I T E S .
single drop of water sparkles on the tip of a
stalactite deep inside Fantastic Caverns. In time —
a few minutes, perhaps hours — the drop will fall,
leaving a tiny trace of limestone to be replaced by
another. This process, a blend of stone, water and
time, created the beauty visitors can see today.
antastic Caverns, America’s ride-through cave, lies beneath the rolling Ozarks hills
just north of Springfield, Missouri. The surrounding countryside doesn’t look like a
typical tourism area - rather than rows of roadside attractions and bumper to bumper
traffic, visitors traveling the quiet country roads are more likely to see a farmer cutting
hay or the neighborhood kids riding bikes. Once they reach the caverns, however,
they’ll be introduced to a unique underground world and its natural splendor.
Fantastic Caverns is a family-owned business. It was discovered in 1862 by a farmer - or
more precisely, by his dog, who crawled through an entrance. It wasn’t until five years later
that the first exploration took place: 12 women from Springfield, answering a newspaper ad
seeking explorers, ventured into the cave. Their names remain on the cave wall today.
Those first explorers had to use ropes and ladders to enter the then-uncharted cave. Access
to Fantastic Caverns is far easier today. Jeep-drawn trams carry visitors on the one-mile, 50
minute tour. No walking is necessary and the trams will easily accommodate wheelchairs,
making the tour convenient for older visitors, parents with small children, and physically
challenged individuals. The trams are reached by wheelchair accessible ramps.
A
FM I L D LY A C I D I C
R A I N WAT E R ,
C O N S I S T I N G
O F C A L C I U M
C A R B O N AT E ,
S E E P S S L O W LY
T H R O U G H
T H E C AV E R N S ’
C E I L I N G S
T O F O R M
S TA L A C T I T E S .
single drop of water sparkles on the tip of a
stalactite deep inside Fantastic Caverns. In time —
a few minutes, perhaps hours — the drop will fall,
leaving a tiny trace of limestone to be replaced by
another. This process, a blend of stone, water and
time, created the beauty visitors can see today.
antastic Caverns, America’s ride-through cave, lies beneath the rolling Ozarks hills
just north of Springfield, Missouri. The surrounding countryside doesn’t look like a
typical tourism area - rather than rows of roadside attractions and bumper to bumper
traffic, visitors traveling the quiet country roads are more likely to see a farmer cutting
hay or the neighborhood kids riding bikes. Once they reach the caverns, however,
they’ll be introduced to a unique underground world and its natural splendor.
Fantastic Caverns is a family-owned business. It was discovered in 1862 by a farmer - or
more precisely, by his dog, who crawled through an entrance. It wasn’t until five years later
that the first exploration took place: 12 women from Springfield, answering a newspaper ad
seeking explorers, ventured into the cave. Their names remain on the cave wall today.
Those first explorers had to use ropes and ladders to enter the then-uncharted cave. Access
to Fantastic Caverns is far easier today. Jeep-drawn trams carry visitors on the one-mile, 50
minute tour. No walking is necessary and the trams will easily accommodate wheelchairs,
making the tour convenient for older visitors, parents with small children, and physically
challenged individuals. The trams are reached by wheelchair accessible ramps.
O
S TA L A C T I T E S P O I N T C R A G G Y
F I N G E R S D O W N F R O M T H E
C E I L I N G S T O WA R D S TA L A G M I T E S
T H AT S T R U G G L E U P F R O M
T H E F L O O R S T O F O R M T H E
A M A Z I N G F O R M AT I O N S T H AT
S U R R O U N D T H E T R A I L O F
T H E J E E P D R AW N T R A M .
nce inside, tour guides explain the
origins of the cave and its formations,
including stalactites, stalagmites, columns,
soda straws, glistening flowstones, cave
pearls, and draperies, some of which are as
thin and translucent as fine china.
One of the early stops on the tour is
the Auditorium room, a vast natural
theater capable of seating several
thousand people. It has, in fact, held
many audiences in its time. From the
late 1950s to the mid 1960s, the cave
was home to a weekly live country music
show whose performers sometimes
included nationally known stars. The
Auditorium room also has been the scene
of symphony concerts and grand opera.
Tour guides make no attempt to give a
precise age of the cave or its formations.
It’s impossible, they say, because the water
flow and mineral deposits that formed the
cave have probably varied through the
ages. They will only estimate the cave’s age
as ranging from the tens of thousands to
the hundreds of thousands of years. The
exact age is known for only one formation
— a tiny stalactite that began growing
when a well driller’s bit accidentally pierced
the cave’s ceiling in 1941.
O
S TA L A C T I T E S P O I N T C R A G G Y
F I N G E R S D O W N F R O M T H E
C E I L I N G S T O WA R D S TA L A G M I T E S
T H AT S T R U G G L E U P F R O M
T H E F L O O R S T O F O R M T H E
A M A Z I N G F O R M AT I O N S T H AT
S U R R O U N D T H E T R A I L O F
T H E J E E P D R AW N T R A M .
nce inside, tour guides explain the
origins of the cave and its formations,
including stalactites, stalagmites, columns,
soda straws, glistening flowstones, cave
pearls, and draperies, some of which are as
thin and translucent as fine china.
One of the early stops on the tour is
the Auditorium room, a vast natural
theater capable of seating several
thousand people. It has, in fact, held
many audiences in its time. From the
late 1950s to the mid 1960s, the cave
was home to a weekly live country music
show whose performers sometimes
included nationally known stars. The
Auditorium room also has been the scene
of symphony concerts and grand opera.
Tour guides make no attempt to give a
precise age of the cave or its formations.
It’s impossible, they say, because the water
flow and mineral deposits that formed the
cave have probably varied through the
ages. They will only estimate the cave’s age
as ranging from the tens of thousands to
the hundreds of thousands of years. The
exact age is known for only one formation
— a tiny stalactite that began growing
when a well driller’s bit accidentally pierced
the cave’s ceiling in 1941.
HI S O L AT I O N F R O M L I G H T F O R T H O U S A N D S
O F Y E A R S H A S L E F T T H E C AV E ’ S S E V E R A L
A N I M A L S P E C I E S B L I N D A N D C O L O R L E S S ,
A S E V I D E N C E D B Y T H E O Z A R K S B L I N D
C AV E C R AY F I S H A B O V E .
owever old the cave and its formations are, it is clear that their creation took a
very long time, that they are irreplaceable, and that a moment’s carelessness or mis-
management could destroy them.Equally fragile are the species of wildlife that live in
the cave,which include several rare or endangered animals. Creatures such as the
Ozarks cavefish, the cave crayfish and the grotto salamander are tiny, white and blind,
having lost eyesight and body pigmentation after living in darkness for countless gen-
erations. Most live in the cave’s lower passage, an area inaccessible to visitors. But, they
have a direct link to the world above, and to us. Their food supply is washed down
from the surface via groundwater.
HI S O L AT I O N F R O M L I G H T F O R T H O U S A N D S
O F Y E A R S H A S L E F T T H E C AV E ’ S S E V E R A L
A N I M A L S P E C I E S B L I N D A N D C O L O R L E S S ,
A S E V I D E N C E D B Y T H E O Z A R K S B L I N D
C AV E C R AY F I S H A B O V E .
owever old the cave and its formations are, it is clear that their creation took a
very long time, that they are irreplaceable, and that a moment’s carelessness or mis-
management could destroy them.Equally fragile are the species of wildlife that live in
the cave,which include several rare or endangered animals. Creatures such as the
Ozarks cavefish, the cave crayfish and the grotto salamander are tiny, white and blind,
having lost eyesight and body pigmentation after living in darkness for countless gen-
erations. Most live in the cave’s lower passage, an area inaccessible to visitors. But, they
have a direct link to the world above, and to us. Their food supply is washed down
from the surface via groundwater.
hile viewing the colorful formations
along the well-lighted tour route, visitors
also learn about the relationship between
cave life, groundwater and people. Scheduled
tour stops include a brief video narrated by
a hydrogeologist — a scientist who studies
groundwater.
Although Fantastic Caverns is a small
family owned business, its owners realize
the cave’s system is delicate and they are tak-
ing several steps to protect it. Water quality is
monitored closely for pollutants. The jeep-drawn trams
are powered by clean-burning propane. And the trams, which touch the cave
floor only with their eight wheels, are less intrusive than the thousands of walking feet
that might pass through on any given day.
Future generations also are getting an introduction to caves and their ecological role.
Through the Fantastic Caverns Science Research Program, cave employees work with
area schools to help educate children about the environment.
Fantastic Caverns is an all-weather attraction open year ‘round. The temperature is
inside the cave hovers around a comfortable 60 degrees all of the time.
W
For Additional Information Contact:Kirk HansenPublic Information DirectorFantastic Caverns4872 N. Farm Road 125Springfield, Missouri 65803Phone: (417) 833-2010Fax: (417) 833-2042
60
60
65
160
13
13
160
44
44
WONDERS OF WILDLIFE
BASS PRO SHOPS
FA N TA S T I C C AV E R N S I S L O C AT E D I N
S O U T H W E S T M I S S O U R I N E A R T H E
E N T E RTA I N M E N T A N D AT T R A C T I O N S
O F T H E B R A N S O N -S P R I N G F I E L D A R E A .
Fantastic Caverns4872 NORTH FARM ROAD 125SPRINGFIELD, MO 65803
hile viewing the colorful formations
along the well-lighted tour route, visitors
also learn about the relationship between
cave life, groundwater and people. Scheduled
tour stops include a brief video narrated by
a hydrogeologist — a scientist who studies
groundwater.
Although Fantastic Caverns is a small
family owned business, its owners realize
the cave’s system is delicate and they are tak-
ing several steps to protect it. Water quality is
monitored closely for pollutants. The jeep-drawn trams
are powered by clean-burning propane. And the trams, which touch the cave
floor only with their eight wheels, are less intrusive than the thousands of walking feet
that might pass through on any given day.
Future generations also are getting an introduction to caves and their ecological role.
Through the Fantastic Caverns Science Research Program, cave employees work with
area schools to help educate children about the environment.
Fantastic Caverns is an all-weather attraction open year ‘round. The temperature is
inside the cave hovers around a comfortable 60 degrees all of the time.
W
For Additional Information Contact:Kirk HansenPublic Information DirectorFantastic Caverns4872 N. Farm Road 125Springfield, Missouri 65803Phone: (417) 833-2010Fax: (417) 833-2042
60
60
65
160
13
13
160
44
44
WONDERS OF WILDLIFE
BASS PRO SHOPS
FA N TA S T I C C AV E R N S I S L O C AT E D I N
S O U T H W E S T M I S S O U R I N E A R T H E
E N T E RTA I N M E N T A N D AT T R A C T I O N S
O F T H E B R A N S O N -S P R I N G F I E L D A R E A .
Fantastic Caverns4872 NORTH FARM ROAD 125SPRINGFIELD, MO 65803