Bridal Cave & Thunder Mountain Park

Now that Spring is on the horizon we are gearing up and getting excited about travel season kicking off. If you're looking for fun things to do in Missouri , The Missouri Travel Guide has a plethora of information for everything you need to know about traveling in Missouri. This year, our Lake of the Ozarks attraction is honored to be selected as the cover photo for the 2020 Official Missouri Travel Guide! Read on to learn more about the Missouri Travel Guide and read the official press release! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (Camdenton, MO) Steve Thompson General Manager of Bridal Cave states “We were pleasantly surprised to hear the announcement that Bridal Cave was selected to not only be on the front, but also the back, of the first ever wrap around cover for the statewide travel guide. In addition, to the best of our knowledge, no other Missouri Cave has been featured on the cover of this publication.” For years, Missouri has been unofficially nicknamed as “The C...

Missouri has an abundance of caves which gives us our name, "The Cave State!" With 18 show caves and over 6,950 wild caves, it's no surprise that we got that nickname. Caves come rich with history and are such a great way to have fun with your family getting back to nature. Today our family attraction at the Lake of the Ozarks would like to share with you some of the great Missouri Show Caves to add to your bucket list! #1 Bridal Cave Of course, if you've never been to our cave at the Lake of the Ozarks you'll want to add it to the top of the list! Bridal Cave is one of America's most scenic caverns due to its formation packed cave. You'll be hard-pressed to look in any direction and not find gorgeous draperies, soda straws, huge columns, stalactites, and stalagmites! Bridal Cave is located in Camdenton at the beautiful Lake of the Ozarks! In addition to a great cave to visit, Bridal Cave is also a popular and unique place to get married! Bridal Cave...

Our Lake of the Ozarks family-fun attraction isn't the only cave tour to enjoy in Missouri. Last week our blog, Show Caves to Visit in Missouri - Part 1 , featured eight exciting caves full of natural wonders in addition to Bridal Cave. This week's blog continues that look with seven more show caves that help to give our state it's nickname of "The Cave State."   Round Spring Cave (photo from www.visitmo.com)  Round Spring Cave This cave is a part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, one of our national parks located in Van Buren. During the summer months, park rangers take up to 15 people at a time on this 2-hour, somewhat strenuous cave tour.  Current River Cavern (photo from www.cavspringpark.com)  Current River Cavern Also in Van Buren, you will find the cave formerly known as "Big Spring Onyx Cavern." There is a year-round stream flowing through the tour passage below the boardwalk, and after heavy rains there is a beautiful sma...

Bridal Cave can be found in the middle of Missouri, aka " The Cave State. " We've talked about the "Show-Me-State's" other nickname before, and discussed the reasons that Missouri earned it. (There are  18 show caves  located in our state, and  6,950 wild caves !)  Today, our Lake of the Ozarks cave tour has decided to share the spotlight with some of the other show caves in Missouri. Cave exploring is an excellent winter activity due to the fact that you can experience nature and the great outdoors, but in a sheltered and climate-controlled way. If you couldn't decide on a good New Year's resolution for 2017, why not make yours trying to visit every show cave in this blog series? January is a great time to get started!  Bridal Cave Bridal Cave We figured that a good place to start would be our very own Lake of the Ozarks family attraction . Located in Camdenton, we have been rated as one of the most scenic cave tours in America! Tours le...

One tour through Bridal Cave may give you the "caving bug." No, that's not some type of illness, but the desire to see more of the beauty that you have witnessed inside of our Lake of the Ozarks attraction . As long as you have a guide, they will make sure that you stay safe. If you choose to explore a cave on your own, there are things that you need to be aware of so that you do not get lost or hurt.  "Spelunking" is the term that is used to describe the hobby of exploring wild caves. By "wild," we mean non-commercial caves where there is no set trail or guide to take you through it. To make sure that you enjoy your caving experience and get out of it safely, use the following tips. Never Go Alone You should never attempt to explore a cave alone. They are easy to get lost in, and there are lots of ways to get hurt. The buddy system is your best bet. Groups of four or more are ideal. That way if someone does get hurt, one caver can stay with t...

Have you ever been stuck in a meeting at work, looking out the window, daydreaming about being outside instead of stuck indoors? Well, the Missouri Caves Association (MCA) solved that dilemma for their members by holding their meeting in the lakeside pavilion at Bridal Cave & Thunder Mountain Park .  The MCA's annual fall meeting was held outdoors amidst the natural beauty of our scenic Lake of the Ozarks attraction on October 5, 2016. Owners and operators of showcaves from across Missouri and Arkansas were given a behind the scenes tour of the entire operation here.  After the in-depth tour, the entire group gathered in the pavilion for a delicious lunch provided by The Butcher Shop in Camdenton. Following the meal, the meeting took place overlooking the breathtaking Lake of the Ozarks.  Our lakeside pavilion is available for use for company meetings or picnics at no cost when a group tour of Bridal Cave is booked along with the reservation. If yo...

Our state's official nickname is "The Show Me State," but Missouri is also referred to often as "The Cave State" because it contains more caves than any other state.   Bridal Cave is only one of many caves found throughout Missouri. Our Lake of the Ozarks attraction is 1 of 18 Show Caves that are open to the public for tours.  In addition to those, there are also 6,950 Wild Caves in Missouri. Map courtesy of the Missouri Caves Association website A Show Cave is a cave that is open to the public for tours.  Often they possess features like constructed trails and lighting to make tours easily accessible. Wild Caves are not so easy for the general public to make their way through, and sometimes impossible.  Exploring these caves can be extremely dangerous and should only be done by a trained professional. Show Caves are actually considered to be one of Missouri's first tourist attractions.  Public lantern tours began in the early 1800's. ...