The Mitchell's Caverns, within the Mitchell Caverns Natural Preserve, are a trio of limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 caves, located on the east side of the Providence Mountains

Providence Mountains

The Providence Mountains are found in the eastern Mojave Desert of San Bernardino County, California, U.S. The range reaches an elevation of at Edgar Peak and is home to the Mitchell Caverns Natural Preserve in the Providence Mountains State Recreation Area, and the Mojave National...

 at an elevation of 4300 ft (1311 m), within the Providence Mountains State Recreation Area

Providence Mountains State Recreation Area

The Providence Mountains State Recreation Area is located in the Providence Mountains, within the Mojave National Preserve in San Bernardino County, California...

. They are located in the Mojave Desert

Mojave Desert

The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...

, at the north-western end of Essex Road, off of Interstate 40

Interstate 40

Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...

 (Needles Freeway) in San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...

.

Geology

The caverns were created during the Pleistocene

Pleistocene

The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....

 epoch

Epoch (geology)

An epoch is a subdivision of the geologic timescale based on rock layering. In order, the higher subdivisions are periods, eras and eons. We are currently living in the Holocene epoch...

, when ground water with a high carbonic acid

Carbonic acid

Carbonic acid is the inorganic compound with the formula H2CO3 . It is also a name sometimes given to solutions of carbon dioxide in water, because such solutions contain small amounts of H2CO3. Carbonic acid forms two kinds of salts, the carbonates and the bicarbonates...

 content ate into the surrounding marble

Marble

Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...

 and sedimentary limestone. Stalactites, stalagmite

Stalagmite

A stalagmite is a type of speleothem that rises from the floor of a limestone cave due to the dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate. This stalagmite formation occurs only under certain pH conditions within the underground cavern. The corresponding formation on...

s, and other cave formations

Speleothem

A speleothem , commonly known as a cave formation, is a secondary mineral deposit formed in a cave. Speleothems are typically formed in limestone or dolostone solutional caves.-Origin and composition:...

 were formed from calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the formula CaCO3. It is a common substance found in rocks in all parts of the world, and is the main component of shells of marine organisms, snails, coal balls, pearls, and eggshells. Calcium carbonate is the active ingredient in agricultural lime,...

 left by dripping mineral water. For many years the caves were thought to be "dead", that is, the formations were no longer growing. However, recent studies have found some signs of life.

History

Numerous paleological and archaeological finds have been made in and around the caverns. Scientists have found the remains of several prehistoric animals, including a sloth

Sloth

Sloths are the six species of medium-sized mammals belonging to the families Megalonychidae and Bradypodidae , part of the order Pilosa and therefore related to armadillos and anteaters, which sport a similar set of specialized claws.They are arboreal residents of the jungles of Central and South...

. The caverns were a sacred place for the Chemehuevi

Chemehuevi

The Chemehuevi are a federally recognized Native American tribe enrolled in the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the Chemehuevi Reservation. They are the southernmost branch of Paiutes.-Reservation:...

 Indians, and a number of tools and fire pits have been found. The Chemihuevi knew the caves as "the eyes of the mountain" due to their easily spotted dual entrances located near the top of the mountain.

The caverns are named after Jack Mitchell, who owned and operated the caves from 1934 to 1954 as a tourist

Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

 attraction and rest stop for travellers on neaby U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...

. Mitchell also held mining rights to the area and dug several prospect holes and tunnels, some of which are still visible.

The area became a state recreation area in 1956. The surrounding lands became a part of the National Park Service

National Park Service

The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...

 Mojave National Preserve

Mojave National Preserve

Mojave National Preserve is located in the Mojave Desert of San Bernardino County, California, USA, between Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. The preserve was established October 31, 1994 with the passage of the California Desert Protection Act by the US Congress...

 in 1994, but the caves are still owned and operated by the state.

Cavern tours

The "Tecopa" (named for a Shoshone

Shoshone

The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....

 Indian chief) and "El Pakiva" (Devil's house) caves are connected by a man-made tunnel and are open to guided tours led by California State Park

California Department of Parks and Recreation

The California Department of Parks and Recreation, also known as California State Parks, manages the California state parks system. The system administers 278 parks and 1.4 million acres , with over of coastline; of lake and river frontage; nearly 15,000 campsites; and of hiking, biking, and...

 rangers. The "Winding Stair" cave is considered dangerous and is closed to the public, though it is occasionally used for training cave rescue

Cave rescue

Cave rescue is a highly specialized field of wilderness rescue in which injured, trapped or lost cave explorers are medically treated and extracted from various cave environments....

teams. These caves are the only limestone caves in the California State Park system. Mitchell Caverns tours can be reserved via online reservations information.

External links

• Official Mitchell Caverns Natural Preserve website
• Mitchell Caverns Preserve Map
• Official Providence Mountains State Recreation Area website
• Mitchell Caverns Geology

----