Forestville Mystery Cave State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Forestville Mystery Cave State Park |
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A passage in Mystery Cave
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 Forestville Mystery Cave State Park
Location in Minnesota
Forestville Mystery Cave State Park
Location in the United States
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| Location | Fillmore, Minnesota, United States |
| Area | 3,170 acres (12.8 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,266 ft (386 m) |
| Established | 1941 |
| Governing body | Minnesota Department of Natural Resources |
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Forestville Townsite--Meighan Store
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Historic bridge to Forestville
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 Location in Minnesota
Location in the United States
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| Architect | Robert Foster; Felix Meighen |
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| NRHP reference No. | 73000976 |
| Added to NRHP | April 13, 1973 |
Forestville Mystery Cave State Park is a cool state park in Minnesota. It's special because it has two main parts: an amazing underground cave and a village called Historic Forestville. This village looks just like it did in the 1800s!
The Minnesota Historical Society helps run the historic village. Below the ground, you can explore Mystery Cave, which is the longest cave in Minnesota. The park is located between the towns of Spring Valley and Preston, Minnesota.
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Exploring Mystery Cave
This park is in an area called the Driftless Area. This means the land has a special shape called karst topography. It has lots of sinkholes (holes in the ground) and caves. Mystery Cave is about 5 miles (8.0 km) from the main park area.
The park covers about 3,170 acres (12.8 km2). You can go camping, learn about nature, and enjoy trails for hiking, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing. There are also cold water streams perfect for trout fishing.
Inside Mystery Cave, you'll see amazing rock formations like stalactites (hanging from the ceiling) and stalagmites (growing from the floor). There are also cool underground pools. The cave stays at a constant 48 °F (9 °C) (about 9°C), so it's always cool inside! The cave has over 13 miles (21 km) of passages spread across two layers of rock. Volunteers are still exploring and mapping it today.
How Mystery Cave Formed
About 450 million years ago, this area was covered by shallow seas. Over a very long time, layers of mud and ocean stuff piled up. These layers were pressed together to form different kinds of rock: limestone, shale, and sandstone. Today, these rock layers are about 1,300 feet (400 m) above sea level.
The cave itself formed more recently, between 500,000 and 1,000,000 years ago. Floodwaters slowly dissolved the limestone rock along cracks, creating the cave passages. Acidic rainwater also shaped the land above the cave, making thousands of sinkholes and other karst features in the county.
Amazing Wildlife
The park is home to many different animals. You might spot rare creatures like glacial snails and timber rattlesnakes. More common animals include deer, raccoons, beavers, two types of fox, mink, opossums, woodchucks, and four kinds of squirrels. If you listen at dusk, you might even hear coyotes howling!
Many different reptiles and amphibians also live here. At least 175 types of birds have been seen in the park. The South Branch of the Root River flows through the park and is full of fish like brown trout, brook trout, and rainbow trout.
Historic Forestville Village
The Minnesota Historical Society runs Historic Forestville as a living museum. This means it's set up to show you what life was like in 1899. People dressed in old-fashioned clothes act like they live there. They do daily activities in the general store, house, kitchen, farm, and barn. It's like stepping back in time!
Forestville used to be an important trading center in the 1800s. But then, in 1868, the railroad was built somewhere else, and the town started to get smaller. By 1890, a man named Thomas Meighen owned the whole village, including the general store. The people who lived there often worked for him and used credit at his store for their housing and supplies.
You need a separate ticket to visit Historic Forestville from the cave tours. The historic village is open from May through October.
