A
N ANCIENT
UNDERGROUND RIVER TOOK A WINDING COURSE,
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 .
Fantastic Caverns PRESS KIT
A
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.
F
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,
M I L D LY
ACIDIC
R A I N WAT E R ,
they’ll be introduced to a unique underground world and its natural splendor. CONSISTING
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
OF CALCIUM C A R B O N AT E ,
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.
S E E P S S L O W LY THROUGH
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
T H E C AV E R N S ’ CEILINGS
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.
TO FORM S TA L A C T I T E S .
A
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.
F
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,
M I L D LY
ACIDIC
R A I N WAT E R ,
they’ll be introduced to a unique underground world and its natural splendor. CONSISTING
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
OF CALCIUM C A R B O N AT E ,
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.
S E E P S S L O W LY THROUGH
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
T H E C AV E R N S ’ CEILINGS
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.
TO FORM S TA L A C T I T E S .
O
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
S TA L A C T I T E S
flow and mineral deposits that formed the
FINGERS DOWN FROM THE
cave have probably varied through the
POINT CRAGGY
C E I L I N G S T O WA R D S TA L A G M I T E S
ages. They will only estimate the cave’s age as ranging from the tens of thousands to
T H AT S T R U G G L E U P F R O M
the hundreds of thousands of years. The
THE FLOORS TO FORM THE
exact age is known for only one formation
A M A Z I N G F O R M AT I O N S T H AT
— a tiny stalactite that began growing
SURROUND THE TRAIL OF
when a well driller’s bit accidentally pierced the cave’s ceiling in 1941.
T H E J E E P D R AW N T R A M .
O
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
S TA L A C T I T E S
flow and mineral deposits that formed the
FINGERS DOWN FROM THE
cave have probably varied through the
POINT CRAGGY
C E I L I N G S T O WA R D S TA L A G M I T E S
ages. They will only estimate the cave’s age as ranging from the tens of thousands to
T H AT S T R U G G L E U P F R O M
the hundreds of thousands of years. The
THE FLOORS TO FORM THE
exact age is known for only one formation
A M A Z I N G F O R M AT I O N S T H AT
— a tiny stalactite that began growing
SURROUND THE TRAIL OF
when a well driller’s bit accidentally pierced the cave’s ceiling in 1941.
T H E J E E P D R AW N T R A M .
H
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 mismanagement 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-
I S O L AT I O N
FROM LIGHT FOR THOUSANDS
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
erations. Most live in the cave’s lower passage, an area inaccessible to visitors. But, they
ANIMAL SPECIES BLIND AND COLORLESS,
have a direct link to the world above, and to us. Their food supply is washed down
AS EVIDENCED BY THE
from the surface via groundwater.
C AV E C R AY F I S H A B O V E .
OZARKS
BLIND
H
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 mismanagement 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-
I S O L AT I O N
FROM LIGHT FOR THOUSANDS
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
erations. Most live in the cave’s lower passage, an area inaccessible to visitors. But, they
ANIMAL SPECIES BLIND AND COLORLESS,
have a direct link to the world above, and to us. Their food supply is washed down
AS EVIDENCED BY THE
from the surface via groundwater.
C AV E C R AY F I S H A B O V E .
OZARKS
BLIND
W
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 13
groundwater.
44 160
Although Fantastic Caverns is a small 13
family owned business, its owners realize
WONDERS OF WILDLIFE 44
the cave’s system is delicate and they are tak-
BASS PRO SHOPS 65
ing several steps to protect it. Water quality is 60
monitored closely for pollutants. The jeep-drawn trams
160
60
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.
F A N TA S T I C C AV E R N S
I S L O C AT E D I N
SOUTHWEST MISSOURI
NEAR THE
Through the Fantastic Caverns Science Research Program, cave employees work with
E N T E R TA I N M E N T A N D AT T R A C T I O N S
area schools to help educate children about the environment.
OF THE
BRANSON-SPRINGFIELD
AREA.
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.
For Additional Information Contact: Kirk Hansen Public Information Director Fantastic Caverns 4872 N. Farm Road 125 Springfield, Missouri 65803 Phone: (417) 833-2010 Fax: (417) 833-2042
Fantastic Caverns 4872 N O RT H F A R M R O A D 125 S P R I N G F I E L D , MO 65803
W
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 13
groundwater.
44 160
Although Fantastic Caverns is a small 13
family owned business, its owners realize
WONDERS OF WILDLIFE 44
the cave’s system is delicate and they are tak-
BASS PRO SHOPS 65
ing several steps to protect it. Water quality is 60
monitored closely for pollutants. The jeep-drawn trams
160
60
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.
F A N TA S T I C C AV E R N S
I S L O C AT E D I N
SOUTHWEST MISSOURI
NEAR THE
Through the Fantastic Caverns Science Research Program, cave employees work with
E N T E R TA I N M E N T A N D AT T R A C T I O N S
area schools to help educate children about the environment.
OF THE
BRANSON-SPRINGFIELD
AREA.
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.
For Additional Information Contact: Kirk Hansen Public Information Director Fantastic Caverns 4872 N. Farm Road 125 Springfield, Missouri 65803 Phone: (417) 833-2010 Fax: (417) 833-2042
Fantastic Caverns 4872 N O RT H F A R M R O A D 125 S P R I N G F I E L D , MO 65803