Located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Mount Rushmore towers over the many visitors to its historic base. But underneath these 60-foot high faces, deep within the bowels of the Black Hills, are some of the oldest caves in the United States.
“These caves display more boxwork than any other in the world. They also form some of the largest concentrations of passageways in the world,” according to the official South Dakota tourism website. All of the caves in the Black Hills are limestone caves. International students can see a variety of rare formations from dogtooth spar crystals to stalactites.
Eight Black Hill Caves are open to the public and two are part of the National Park Service, Wind Cave National Park and Jewel Cave National Monument.
Wind Cave stretches over 100 miles long and was the first cave to be designated as a National Park. It contains the world’s largest concentration of boxwork. Above ground is a wildlife sanctuary of 28,295 acres for antelope, bison, elk, and prairie dogs, among other animals.
Jewel Cave National Monument is the second-longest cave in the world at over 150 miles discovered. Admission is free unless you want a guided tour.
If you decide to study in South Dakota, you will have the chance to spend the day exploring these caves. Jewel National Cave Monument is in Custer which is about an hour from Rapid City. Rapid City is home to several colleges and universities including National American University and The School of Mines and Technology. Black Hills State University is about an hour away in Spearfish.
Just six miles from Mount Rushmore is the Rushmore Cave. At Rushmore Cave international students in South Dakota can take scenic cave tours, go spelunking or soar 700 feet down the mountainside on the new Soaring Eagle Zipline. At the end of a cave tour is the Big Room, famous around the area as one of the largest decorated cavern rooms with stalactites dangling from its ceilings and walls.
There is plenty of exploration for an international student planning to study in South Dakota!