- Show cave
-
Show caves — also called tourist caves, public caves, and in the United States, commercial caves — are caves that are managed by a government or commercial organization and made accessible to the general public, usually for an entrance fee. Unlike wild caves, they typically possess such features as constructed trails, guided tours, lighting, and regular opening hours.
"Show cave" has inconsistent usage between nations, with many countries tending to call all caves which are open to the public show caves. However there are many caves which are not developed (no trails, no light, no tours) but are visited by very many people. This kind of cave is often called a semi-wild cave. Access may involve anything between an easy stroll and dangerous climbing. Most cave accidents happen in this kind of cave, as visitors often underestimate the difficulties and dangers.
History
The oldest show cave in the world is Postojna Cave in Slovenia, with the first record of a cave tour in 1213. Other early show caves are Jasovská Jaskyna in Slovakia with inscriptions from 1452 and the Sontheimer Höhle in Germany which was reportedly visited by Herzog Ulrich von Württemberg on 20 May 1516. In 1668 the first authorized cave guide of the world started guiding Baumannshöhle in the Harz in Germany.
The development of electric light enabled the illumination of show caves. Early experiments with electric light in caves were carried out by Lieutenant Edward Cracknel in 1880 at Chifley Cave, Jenolan Caves, Australia. In 1881 Sloupsko-Šošùvské Jeskyně, Czech Republic, became the first cave in the world with electric arc light. This light did not use light bulbs, but electric arc lamps with carbon electrodes, which burned down and had to be replaced after some time. The first cave in the world with electric light bulbs as we know them today was the Kraushöhle in Austria in 1883. But the light was abandoned after only seven years and the cave is today visited with carbide lamps. In 1884 two more caves were equipped with electric light, Postojna Cave, Slovenia, and Olgahöhle, Germany.
Notable show caves
- Buchan Caves, Victoria, Australia
- Cango Caves, Oudtshoorn, South Africa
- Cave Without a Name, Boerne, Texas, United States
- Caverns of Sonora, Sonora, Texas, United States
- Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, United States
- Craighead Caverns in Tennessee, United States
- Cuevas del Drach (Dragon Caves) on Majorca island, Spain
- Dan yr Ogof in Powys, Wales
- Eisriesenwelt, Austria
- Frasassi Caves, Ancona, Italy
- Grotta Gigante, Trieste, Italy (the largest show cave in the world)
- Grottes de Han, Belgium
- Howe Caverns in New York, United States
- Ingleborough Cave, England
- Jeita Grotto, Lebanon
- Jenolan Caves in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia
- Kartchner Caverns State Park near Bisbee, Arizona, United States
- Laichinger Tiefenhöhle, Schwäbische Alb, Germany
- Lamprechtsofen, Austria
- Luray Caverns in Virginia, United States
- Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, United States
- Mark Twain Cave, near Hannibal, Missouri, United States
- Ohio Caverns in Ohio, United States
- Postojna Cave, Postojna, Slovenia (the largest cave system in Slovenia and the birthplace of speleobiology)
- Reed Flute Cave (Lúdí Yán), Guilin, Guangxi, China
- Seven-Star Cave (Qīxīng Yán), Guilin, Guangxi, China
- Škocjan Caves, Slovenia (a UNESCO World Heritage Site)
- Stump Cross Caverns, England
- Vilenica Cave, Slovenia (the oldest show cave in Europe)
- Vjetrenica Cave, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Waitomo Caves, New Zealand
- Wonder Cave, San Marcos, Texas, United States
- Wookey Hole Caves, Somerset, England
External links
- National Caves Association (US)
- showcaves.com world show caves directory
- ShowCaves.gr Show Caves of Greece directory
- Show Caves at the Open Directory Project
- United States show caves directory, with state maps
Cave topics and lists by country Main topics Speleology • Speleogenesis • Karst • Speleothem • Painting • Conservation • Caving • Cave survey • Caving equipment • List • Caves by countryTypes and
formationAnchihaline cave • Cave-in • Cenote • Foiba • Glacier cave • Ice cave • Lava cave • Ley tunnel • Mine (Exploration) • Pit cave • Sea cave • Show cave • Subterranean river • Sump • Underground lake • VugList (Africa) Algeria • Angola • Benin • Botswana • Burkina Faso • Burundi • Cameroon • Cape Verde • Central African Republic • Chad • Chagos • Comoros • Congo • DR Congo • Côte d'Ivoire • Djibouti • Egypt • List of caves in Equatorial Guinea • Eritrea • Ethiopia • Gabon • Gambia • Ghana • Guinea • Guinea-Bissau • Kenya • Lesotho • Liberia • Libya • Madagascar • Malawi • Mali • Mauritania • Mauritius • Mayotte • Morocco • Mozambique • Namibia • Niger • Nigeria • Réunion • Rwanda • Saint Helena • São Tomé and Príncipe • Senegal • Seychelles • Sierra Leone • Somalia • South Africa • South Sudan • Sudan • Swaziland • TAAF • Tanzania • Togo • Tunisia • Uganda • Western Sahara • Zambia • ZimbabweList (Americas) Anguilla • Antarctica • Netherlands Antilles • Antigua and Barbuda • Aruba • Argentina • Bahamas • Barbados • Belize • Bermuda • Bolivia • Brazil • Canada • Cayman Islands • Chile • Colombia • Costa Rica • Cuba • Dominica • Dominican Republic • Ecuador • El Salvador • Falkland Islands • Greenland • Grenada • Guadeloupe • Guatemala • Guyana • French Guyana • Haiti • Honduras • Jamaica • Martinique • Mexico • Montserrat • Nicaragua • Panama • Paraguay • Peru • Puerto Rico • St. Barthélemy • St. Kitts and Nevis • St. Lucia • St. Martin • St. Pierre and Miquelon • St. Vincent and the Grenadines • Suriname • Trinidad and Tobago • Turks and Caicos Island • United States (AR) • Uruguay • Venezuela • British Virgin Islands • US Virgin IslandsList (Asia) Afghanistan • Armenia • Azerbaijan • Bhutan • Brunei • Burma • Cambodia • China • Cyprus • Egypt • Georgia • India • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Japan • Jordan • Kazakhstan • North Korea • South Korea • Kuwait • Kyrgyzstan • Laos • Lebanon • Malaysia • Maldives • Mongola • Nepal • Oman • Pakistan • Palestine • Philippines • Qatar • Russia • Saudi Arabia • Singapore • Sri Lanka • Syria • Taiwan • Tajikistan • Thailand • Eest Timor • Turkey • Turkmenistan • United Arab Emirates • Uzbekistan • Vietnam • YemenList (Europe) Albania • Andorra • Armenia • Austria • Azerbaijan • Belarus • Belgium • Bosnia and Herzegovina • Bulgaria • Croatia • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia • Faroe Islands • Finland • France • Georgia • Germany • Gibraltar • Greece • Hungary • Iceland • Ireland • Italy • Kazakhstan • Kosovo • Latvia • Liechtenstein • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Macedonia • Malta • Moldova • Monaco • Montenegro • Netherlands • Norway • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Russia • San Marino • Serbia • Slovakia • Slovenia • Spain • Sweden • Switzerland • Turkey • Ukraine • United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales)List (Oceania) Australia (NSW, WA) • Cook Islands • Fiji • Guam • Indonesia • Kiribati • Marshall Islands • Micronesia • Nauru • New Caledonia • New Zealand • Northern Mariana Islands • Palau • Papua New Guinea • French Polynesia • Samoa • American Samoa • Solomon Islands • East Timor • Tuvalu • Vanuatu • Wallis and FutunaCategories:- Show caves
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.