- Updated with new information since originally published.
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Summary and Frequenly Asked Questions:
- Missouri, especially the Ozark Mountain area, is known as the Cave State – it has 6,000 explored caves.
- Except for Riverbluff Cave, all other caves are popular tourist attractions and many serve as locations for concerts, weddings (popular at Bridal Cave), and other events.
- Caves are particularly popular during hot Missouri summers when entering a cave with permanently cool temperatures is a big part of the pleasure of visiting them.
- While most of the caves are explored on foot, some, like Fantastic Caverns, offer jeep-pulled trolleys for tours.
The caves have been used historically by the native peoples as homes and sanctuaries, and later as hiding places for outlaws such as Meramec Cavern. They were used as speakeasies during the Prohibition, which is true for Fantastic Cavern, and have served as sources of minerals. Today, they are enjoyed by thousands of visitors for their unsurpassed natural beauty and fascinating geological formations thousands of years old.
More Missouri cave info
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