Between
the spring of 1999 and the spring of 2004, a number of significant
discoveries were made in Wind Cave that have cave management implications.
During this time, the length of the Wind Cave survey was extended
from 80.5 miles to 111.4 miles. These discoveries were made during
the on-going exploration, survey, and inventory of undocumented
passages in Wind Cave. Much of this survey was conducted in the
interior sections of the cave. Some of these discoveries were made
in newly discovered passages entered for the first time, while others
in passages that were originally explored up to 100 years previously,
but never surveyed. Many of these discoveries were made by volunteers
participating in the Wind Cave survey project.
- Iron fixing
filamental bacterial strands – which are spider web like
fossils mineralized with iron oxide, were discovered in the Historic
Section
- Phantom
Lake – the 1st major lake (200-feet long by 6-feet deep)
found outside of the Lakes Section
- Root 89
– an old filled-in entrance & source of stream-worn
bones in the Chamber of Lost Souls was discovered near the Natural
Entrance
- Major trend
– of cavern development was delineated and the complexity
of the cave illustrated by survey in the interior of Wind Cave,
resulting in new theories on how the cave formed
- Flexible
boxwork - made out of a clay mineral, possibly sepolite, was first
found in the Southern Comfort Section
- Romanechite
- a manganese oxide mineral produced by weathering, was found
in a paleokarst pocket in the Western Fringe Section
- Iron oxide
pseudomorphs after pyrite – were found in paleokarst pockets
in the Historic Section
- Manganese
deposit – nearly ½” thick and covering a 1’
x 2’ area, was found in the Historic Section and named “The
Manganese Stop”
- Shallowest
cave passage – which receives immediate water intake after
heavy rains, was found 5-feet below the sidewalk in Wind Cave
Canyon
- Rio Colorado
– found in the Southern Comfort Section, was only the 2nd
area in the cave found to have running water and the first area
outside of the Lakes Section
- Air exchange
- with the surface was found in several domes located underneath
drainages, suggesting that the cave is a lot “leakier”
than previously thought
- Gypsum rope
– estimated to be 14” long, was found in the Historic
Section in a room that was named the Golden Rope Room
- Seismic
Hall – was determined to have zebra rock lower in the Madison
Formation than any other place previously known in the cave
- Hobsons
Bypass – a major airflow route between the Historic and
Club Room Sections of the cave, was discovered
- Roots -
were found in two domes along the north edge of the cave, both
located near the surface
- Woodrats
– were discovered in the Hades area in the Historic Section,
which is located 80-feet below the surface on the north boundary
of the cave and a long way from the nearest entrance
- Profusely
decorated area – named the Rio Colorado, was found in the
Southern Comfort Section
- Alvin McDonald
signatures – were documented at several previously unknown
sties in the Historic Section
Wind
Cave Temperature Fluctuation Study |
|