Caverns, caves around Barren Springs Sign

 This part of the trip was talked about for many days afterwards.  We had been scouring the sides of the road for these caves.  There was no sign and we had about given up.  Finally, we just needed to stretch our legs and ended up getting lucky.  There were all sorts of tunnels for us to climb through.

 

 

 Grumpy Grandpa had to leave early to watch the Michigan basketball game against South Dakota State (against who?) so he didn't get to have as much fun as the rest of us!

Cool Caves at Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park

I don't know if this is one of Montana's best kept secrets but it should be!  I'm so glad I found the brochure for this at the laundromat.  We might have camped here too but it was just too darn hot. 
This state park is only 120 miles north of Yellowstone's north entrance. 

The brochure says it's a 2 mile, 2 hour walk (it is especially with the talkative guide we had) with some stooping and bending required.  The trail to the cave entrance gains 300 feet in elevation.  Inside the caverns there are 600 descending stairs.  Bring a sweater for the 50 degree temperature in the cave. 

It goes without saying that the kids loved the cave.  Anytime they can stand in the dark and have flashlights make them happy.

 We certainly weren't expecting this cool of a cave.  It was a pleasant surprise.

To get out of the cave you go through this last tunnel that they had to carve out of the mountain.  You end up 300' lower than where you started. All in all it was a neat experience.

 

Hike: Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park
Trails Used:  Caves Trail

Distance: 1.07 miles (the brochure says 2 miles but my GPS was off inside the cave)

Difficulty: Moderate (hot walk to cave with 600 stairs to descend and stooping/sliding)
Overall average: 2.4 mph
Overall Time: 0 hrs, 26 mins
Total Ascent: 227 ft. (Brochure says 300 feet)