Crawford State Park Heritage Site, State park in Pend Oreille County, Washington.
Crawford State Park Heritage Site is a protected area in Pend Oreille County spanning about 40 acres and home to Gardner Cave with its limestone formations and underground chambers. The cave features various types of rock formations spread across multiple levels, creating a complex underground landscape.
The site was named after William Crawford, who acquired the land in the early 20th century and initially developed it for timber extraction. The property was later transferred to Washington State and placed under protection.
The cave system has been a gathering place for visitors seeking to understand the forces that shape the earth below the surface. Guided tours introduce people to the silent world of stone formations and help them appreciate natural processes that took millions of years to create.
Visitors can only enter the cave through guided tours, so advance planning is necessary. The best time to visit is during the warmer months when tours are operating.
The cave maintains a constant, cool temperature year-round, making it a natural laboratory for observing geological processes. This stable underground space shows how water and time slowly reshape rock formations.
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