Skip to content

Exploring the Underground World of Boyden Cavern

Kings Canyon National Park in California doesn’t usually get the recognition it deserves compared to its famous neighbors, Sequoia and Yosemite. We were exploring these parks last weekend and found one of its hidden gems. We’re fascinated with caves so we couldn’t pass up a visit to this underground wonder and it was one of our weekend highlights.

Boyden Cavern sign

Surveyors discovered the cave in the late 1800s. J.P. Boyden, a logger and namesake of the cave, looked for the cavern and explored it extensively. He lived inside the cave for 10 years while working at nearby Hume Lake. He was getting the cave ready for public tours but died of hypothermia before completion. Can you imagine living in a cave for that long?

We drove down the twisty, scenic road of the stunning Kings River Canyon towards the canyon floor. At 8,000 feet (2.43 km) deep, this is the deepest canyon in the United States. Yes, even deeper than the mighty Grand Canyon.

King's Canyon highway

The cavern is located under the “massive” 2,000 feet (610 m) high marble boulders known as Kings Gates with its parking area by a gorge. It is right off the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway road and along the Kings River. Although, this isn’t part of the National Park system but privately owned.

Kings Canyon with kids

Our tour started on a short but steep, uphill walk along a scenic paved trail to the cavern’s entrance from the gift shop shack. It’s such a beautiful climb along the Kings River with the roaring river as background sounds we don’t usually hear.

Boyden Cavern pathway

This definitely looked less touristy with only this gate separating us from the cave. Its main passageway is 1,000 feet (305 m) long with only 750 feet open for public tours. The other 250 feet is open for exploration but requires crawling and a lot of scrambling. Though, it will probably make for some great adventures.

Boyden Cave gate

The cave is a constant 55 °F (13 °C) but felt warmer at times. We followed the paved paths into the caves which were well-lit with handrails. Our guide was an enthusiastic young lady who started pointing out diverse natural formations right away.

Boyden Cavern with kids
The cave is thought to be about 100,000 years old and carved out of marble. This cavern is part of a longer Church Cave system that was about five miles long. It’s hard not to be impressed with stalactites, stalagmites and other rock formations that have thousands of years of geologic history tied to them.

Boyden Cavern formation

Our guide pointed out popular formations like The Pancakes. Can you see stacks of pancakes with syrup dripping over it?

Boyden Cavern pancake

Nearby was a group of stalactites called the Upside Down City. If you look close enough, you can envision a collection of skyscrapers hanging from the rock.

Boyden Cavern upside down city
One of the most impressive areas was the Drapery Room. These were stalactites that resembled hanging curtain drapes. It was amazing to see how they almost looked like they were painstakingly ironed.

Boyden Cavern Drapery room
We were strongly warned not to touch any of the formations including numerous signs throughout the cave. This was still a living cave with formations continuously growing. Once these formations are touched, chemicals from our body make them stop growing.

Boyden Cavern draperies
It was also sad to see that some prospectors and construction workers felt the need to tear off some of the drapery stalactites and other formations as souvenirs. Much to my kids’ disappointment, we didn’t see any bats during our visit despite there being a Bat Grotto here for the bats to sleep.

Boyden Cavern souvenir

We loved the flowstone formation called Mother Nature’s Wedding Cake or also their Christmas Tree.

Boyden Cavern Mother nature wedding cake

It was beautiful and a popular spot for pictures.

Boyden Cavern Wedding cake

This was supposed to resemble a bacon strip. Do you see it?

Boyden Cavern

We found plenty of popcorn and cauliflower like formations throughout the cavern. It was also interesting how many of them seemed to resemble food.

Boyden Cavern popcorn formation

One of our unforgettable moments was when the guide turned off all the lights to experience total darkness. It was a bit eerie during the 5-10 seconds of absolute blackness. She probably would have left it on longer but a toddler in our group started to cry. So, be warned if you’re planning to take anyone afraid of the dark in here.

It was a way for us to relate to how Mr. Boyden may have experienced this cave when his lantern went out while exploring. He found his way out by following the flow of the riverbed. My kids actually enjoyed this little exercise which was surprising considering they sleep with night lights on.

Boyden Cavern with kids
As we were finishing our 45 minute tour, one of the workers came to tell us that the “adventure trail” was now open for those who wished to go out of the cave in a more challenging journey. Of course, we didn’t hesitate to go this way. We were the first group of the season to go on this trail.

Boyden Cavern adventure path

We followed the dry riverbed path that was below the main visitors path and how we entered. This stream bed was darker and required a lot more scrambling and being agile in some areas. My kids loved it.

Boyden Cavern adventure path

It was a tight squeeze in some areas but made for a fun and much better journey back to the entrance. Please don’t hesitate to take this alternate route out. We ended up back at the cavern entrance after climbing some steps. It wasn’t that much longer than the regular paved trail but made the tour more memorable.

boyden Cavern adventure trail

We visited the extensive Carlsbad Caverns National Park last year. This wasn’t as awe-inspiring or diverse but this cave felt more intimate, peaceful and less touristy. Boyden Cavern was easily accessible, has a shorter tour and much less crowded than the more popular Crystal Cave in Sequoia National Park. It was an interesting tour and the formations were captivating. Visit Kings Canyon National Park but make a stop here to marvel at the underground formations.

Kings River

Visiting Boyden Cavern Basics and Tips

  • Tickets sold on cavern site and not at Kings Canyon Visitor’s Center (18 miles away)
  • Cost: Adults $14.95 / Children (ages 3-12) $7.95
  • Picnic benches and pit restrooms are available along with gift and snack shop before the cavern entrance along the parking lot. Tickets can be purchased at the gift shop.
  • Reservations for cave tours are not required, unless you have a group of 15 people or more.
  • Tours leave approximately every hour on the hour daily from April to mid-November.
  • Varying levels of rappelling and canyoneering tours are available for half and full days. Reservations are necessary.
  • Caverns are not wheelchair accessible.
  • Children are not allowed to be carried in backpacks. Only babies in front facing slings are allowed.

Do you like exploring caves? What are your favorite ones?

[stextbox id=”black” bgcolor=”b0c4de”]  If you liked this post, please get the latest posts and updates free.  Follow me on Twitteror Facebook.  Thanks! [/stextbox]

Pin it for later!

BOYDEN CAVERN California

31 thoughts on “Exploring the Underground World of Boyden Cavern”

  1. Wow! Great to see those pictures. We have not been in a couple of years and after seeing this…… I think we need to make a trip up to take the tour!

  2. Definitely my kind of place to explore. The Caves are so impressive, so much like the ones I explored in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam :).

  3. Mary, I love your photos, and it sounds like I would enjoy the caves…but it looks a little claustrophobic….I might not be able to do it. I’m such a wimp!

  4. Wow!! I can’t believe I lived in California for over a decade and didn’t know this place existed!! I MUST find a time to visit this now when I’m back in CA. How gorgeous is the drapery?! I can’t believe nature made formations like that!

  5. I love to visit caves and one time took a boat ride down a river inside a cave in the Dordogne region of France. I’d definitely include this on a visit – and I too love anything that doesn’t scream tourist.

    1. That’s great to hear, Leigh. The Dordogne cave sounds so enchanting with a boat ride down. We’re trying to do more less touristy places lately. It’s become such a hassle fighting for parking, lines, photo spots, etc.

  6. This is so unreal. I have never been in a cave before, read about those formations in school (they are limestone, right?) but seeing them in person must be very exciting! A great tour Mary, Thanks for taking us all along!

  7. ACK!! You’re totally right, missed this when I was traveling west-usa. Did go to Yosemite and Sequoia, but gave this a miss. Oooooh, how I was wrong!! So thanx for sharing these gorgious pics.

    PS. Found you through #SundayTraveler

  8. I would have taken the alternate route as well, Mary.
    I’m surprised that this cave didn’t have bats. But I’d be happy. I’m not normally afraid of them but you never know when they’re going to fly out and that always makes me jump.
    Caves are such fascinating places to explore.

  9. How cool, those drapes are so stunning. I love how you guys just said yes and headed off onto the other trail – so great you al have the travelling spirit. And even greater to see YOU in a photo for a nice change :) BIG THANKS for linking up with us for #SundayTraveler – hope to see you again next week!!

  10. I love exploring caves – they’re one of my favorite things to do while traveling! Those are amazing photos and a wonderful cave. Is that natural light coming through from the ceiling in some shots, or did they install lights in many of the areas? I know in some caves you are not allowed to take photos, so it is nice you were able to here. Some of it almost looks like snow or icicles! Very cool!

  11. Spectacular photos. I lived south of San Fransisco for 15 years and never knew this was here. Too bad. Boyden looks like a great place to visit.

    Visiting from Travel Photos Monday

  12. Hi Mary, thanks for introoducing me to another wonder of nature that I’ve never heard about. It surely looks mnore intimate than Carlsbad but the formations are still amazing. I like the pancake, drapery and wedding cake formation. It’s always fascinating to see things sculpted by nature. I would have also taken that fun alternate exit route as well. Thanks for taking me along on another fun family trip. Lovely photos.

  13. Very cool! I like how people imagine all those different food formations in the rock. All the explorers must have been hungry when naming these things! Once you said what they looked like I could immediately see it. I especially like the wedding cake and the drapery room. It looks so realistic!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.