Boyden Cave
Encyclopedia
Boyden Cave is karst
cavern located in California
's Giant Sequoia National Monument
, along the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway
, and just west of Kings Canyon National Park
. Regular tours of the cave are given by a licensed guide company between April and November. It is a magnificent cavern with many varieties of natural speleothems, including rare "shield" formations. Boyden Cave or Boyden Cavern is located in the deepest canyon of the United States, the 8200 feet (2,499.4 m) deep Kings River Canyon. The cave entrance lies beneath the 2000 feet (609.6 m) high marble walls of the famous Portals of the Kings, near the Kings River
.
The tour includes the Pancake Room, a stalactite
group called the Upside Down City, and a flowstone
formation called Mother Nature's Wedding Cake. In the Bat Grotto bats spend summer days sleeping. The Drapery Room contains curtains
, soda straws and helictites. The tour ends at a small subterranean stream. 0.63 miles (1 km) of the cave have been mapped.
The limestones in and around Boyden Cave host a unique endemic flora made up of carbonate-adapted plants. These include the rare species Boyden Cave gilia
(Gilia yorkii) and the monarch goldenaster
(Heterotheca monarchensis).
Karst topography
Karst topography is a geologic formation shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite, but has also been documented for weathering resistant rocks like quartzite given the right conditions.Due to subterranean drainage, there...
cavern located in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's Giant Sequoia National Monument
Giant Sequoia National Monument
The Giant Sequoia National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the southern Sierra Nevada in eastern central California. It is administered by the United States Forest Service as part of the Sequoia National Forest and includes 38 of the 39 Giant Sequoia groves that are located in the...
, along the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway
California State Route 180
State Route 180 is a state highway in California, United States, which runs through the heart of the San Joaquin Valley from Mendota through Fresno to Kings Canyon National Park, with an unbuilt segment defined west to Paicines....
, and just west of Kings Canyon National Park
Kings Canyon National Park
Kings Canyon National Park is a National Park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Fresno, California. The park was established in 1940 and covers...
. Regular tours of the cave are given by a licensed guide company between April and November. It is a magnificent cavern with many varieties of natural speleothems, including rare "shield" formations. Boyden Cave or Boyden Cavern is located in the deepest canyon of the United States, the 8200 feet (2,499.4 m) deep Kings River Canyon. The cave entrance lies beneath the 2000 feet (609.6 m) high marble walls of the famous Portals of the Kings, near the Kings River
Kings River (California)
The Kings River is a major river of south-central California. About long, it drains an area of the high western Sierra Nevada and the Central Valley. A large alluvial fan has formed where the river's gradient decreases in the Central Valley so the river divides into distributaries...
.
The tour includes the Pancake Room, a stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
group called the Upside Down City, and a flowstone
Flowstone
Flowstones are composed of sheetlike deposits of calcite formed where water flows down the walls or along the floors of a cave. They are typically found in "solution", or limestone caves, where they are the most common speleothem. However, they may form in any type of cave where water enters that...
formation called Mother Nature's Wedding Cake. In the Bat Grotto bats spend summer days sleeping. The Drapery Room contains curtains
Flowstone
Flowstones are composed of sheetlike deposits of calcite formed where water flows down the walls or along the floors of a cave. They are typically found in "solution", or limestone caves, where they are the most common speleothem. However, they may form in any type of cave where water enters that...
, soda straws and helictites. The tour ends at a small subterranean stream. 0.63 miles (1 km) of the cave have been mapped.
The limestones in and around Boyden Cave host a unique endemic flora made up of carbonate-adapted plants. These include the rare species Boyden Cave gilia
Gilia yorkii
Gilia yorkii is a rare species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common names Boyden Cave gilia and monarch gilia. It is endemic to Fresno County, California, where it is known from only one location in the southern Sierra Nevada...
(Gilia yorkii) and the monarch goldenaster
Heterotheca monarchensis
Heterotheca monarchensis is a rare species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common name monarch goldenaster. It is endemic to Fresno County, California, where it is known from only one location near Boyden Cave in the Kings River Canyon. It grows in the limestone cliffs of this...
(Heterotheca monarchensis).