Not only above ground are the Ozarks stunning, but underground throughout the mountains are some of the most awe inspiring views you will ever set eyes on: the caverns. When I was a child, late summer weekend nights we would venture out to the hills finding the tiniest of openings through which to belly crawl into caves of all sizes from grand chamber rooms to tiny moonshiner hold outs, exploring, admiring, with a reverence for our homeland, cautious not to touch or damage anything we saw and leave everything just as we found it. Those adventures gave me my love of cave exploration and were no doubt an integral part of building my desire for adventure and my caution when venturing into sacred spaces only to photo and preserve, never to damage. (If you’ve never been in a cave, they are alive all around you. You should never touch anything unnecessarily.) Also, as a side effect, it gave me my lack of fear of both the dark and bats.
Today, there are still thousands of openings throughout the Ozarks unknown to tourists (if you find one, do not go in it for very obvious, very dangerous reasons) but there are a handful open for tours, most privately owned. Josh had never gotten to see any of the Ozark caves so we stopped at War Eagle just outside of Eureka Springs on our ride home. War Eagle Cavern is the Devil’s Gap cave, historically important for being a mainstay to the local Native tribes, its proximity to Pea Ridge Civil War Battlefield and use as a hide out for the Confederates, its role for moonshiners from whence it gained its name, and for its place in the Depression as a shelter for folks in need. While I am not partial to the private ownership of caverns, it is nonetheless pure inspiration and the tours are well guided by people who care deeply about the history and maintenance of the cave. Jerry in particular is a highly knowledgeable and remarkably friendly tour guide. Wait for his tour if you go.
Dharma Anchor 
Superb! I am a caver (or ‘spelunker’ as you call them in the US), and the caves of the Ozarks are famous throughout the world – and justifiably so…how I would love to cave there…wonderful!
You should. I’ve seen caves in many places but ours are still some of the most impressive to me for sheer mileage and relatively wild state.
It’s been years since I’ve gone caving (love that bumper sticker), but I remember it well. I’m so impressed with your photography! In a cave! The B&W really show the different tones, don’t they?
Thank you 🙂 Definitely. I love effect the strong contrast of black and white has on texture heavy photos.