Wind Cave and Strange Sounds

After seeing amazing carvings in mountains it was time to find a place to sleep. I noticed on the map that there was another national park just south of my location and there was a fairly inexpensive campsite with wood! I got to the site, set up camp, and had a nice fire. Throughout the evening I kept hearing this strange noise. It's hard to describe, but I've never heard it before. At first I thought it was some kids playing with a weird toy, but the sound lasted into the night and started coming from the woods. I figured it was probably an animal, which I found out the next morning that it was indeed a bunch of elk. Apparently it is rutting season. After breaking camp I headed to the cave for a tour. They call it wind cave because it is usually at a different pressure then atmospheric pressure, so the few small natural openings into the cave exhibit a significant breeze. The man-made entrance to the cave has an airlock to preserve this natural pressure difference. This cave apparently has 95% of the world's "box work" which is a natural feature developed by carbonic acid dissolving limestone. The cave was cool, but I had my sights set on the Tetons, a day and a half's drive away.

Photos: Sunrise at Elk Mountain campground. A good example of box work. The next two are more cave photos.Read more