Cave of the Mounds (August 2025)

Over labor day weekend, Tobias and I ventured to Cave of the Mounds. If you are not familiar with this cave, it is a national national landmark in western Dane County, Wisconsin–not too far from Mount Horeb.

The cave was discovered by accident in 1939 due to a blast of dynamite, and has been open for tours to the public since 1940 and earning its national landmark status in 1988. It started forming 2 million years ago and is the fifth-longest cave in Wisconsin and contains the oldest formations of all caves in the state.

I do not think I had been to the cave since being a little girl, and I was in the mood for some exploration, and being in awe of Mother Nature’s artistry. So we went, and of course I brought my DSLR.

When we booked our tickets online, we noticed that you can rent blacklights to take on your self-guided tour. Tobias owns one already, so we brought it along and it was incredible to see the bioluminescence from so many of the cave’s unique formations along with the lint from tourists’ clothing gathered on the cavern walls from over 80 years of tours.

Below are the photographs from this little adventure.