Longhorn Caverns

Today we spent some time at Longhorn Caverns State Park. Luckily, it was only 6 miles from Inks Lake! All of us enjoyed the history and it was helpful to have our very own geologist with us! We learned that the caverns were formed over thousands of years by the dissolving and cutting action of water on the limestone bedrock of the area. Fossil remains show that many Ice Age animals once occupied the cave. Maggie was delighted to find out elephant remains have even been found there! She was also pleased to find out that the Comanche Indians (remember her video she made for a school project?) were the first to use the cavern. They came in about 400 years or so before anyone else did. In more recent history, the cavern was used as a Confederate stronghold where gunpowder was manufactured in secret during the Civil War. Ian loved the history lesson! The cavern is also rumored to have been the hideout of Sam Bass, a legendary Texas outlaw. The tour took about an hour and a half and we enjoyed every minute of it.