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What began as a simple ranch has become one of Texas’ most popular attractions after its discovery in 1960.
Natural Bridge Caverns opened to the public in 1964 after college students discovered a two-mile long cavern system on the property, Director of Communications Winter Prosapio told Community Impact.
“Now, we’re open 361 days per year,” Prosapio said. “The only thing that shuts us down is lightning.”
How we got here
There are two separate cavern systems that snake underneath Natural Bridge Caverns' property, called Hidden Wonders and Discovery Cavern. Within these systems are a myriad of cave rooms containing unique rock formations like stalactites and stalagmites, Prosapio said.
“Each cave room was found by drilling bore holes,” she said. “That’s how they find new cave rooms.”
A high adventure ropes course called Twisted Trails was constructed above the caverns in 2012, getting a refreshed look and current name in 2019, Prosapio said.
To make the caverns accessible for visitors, a moving staircase called BAT was installed to save guests from an uphill, 700-foot hike back to the surface, according to the Natural Bridge Caverns website.
BAT, which stands for belt assisted transport, is a system that was part of a 2023 expansion project which included the opening of a new tour at the Hidden Wonders cavern and a 5,700-square-foot underground ballroom for live music and concerts—the largest of its kind in Texas.
“We didn’t want people coming to see this beautiful place, then the last thing they remember is walking up endless stairs,” Prosapio said.
Activities to do
Now, the caverns have both above and underground attractions, from traditional cave tours to a corn maze .
“We’ve got cornhole, a corn maze and so many Instagrammable spots,” Prosapio said.
Aside from the caves and Twisted Trails, Natural Bridge Caverns also offers:
In the future, Prosapio said the caverns will continue to be explored and studied. Exploration teams are still studying and analyzing undiscovered portions of the cavern, with the most recent room being found in June 2022.
