Reviews of Crawford State Park Heritage Site (Park)

Bryce Morrison

It was a nice experience, having a tour of the cave. 30 people max per tour (for a good reason), so sign up early enough. Be aware that there is no cell phone signal within the park (even above ground), so you will need to bring $10 cash or an annual state park parking permit ($30), rather than paying by card over the phone. The cave is a steady 40 degrees Fahrenheit, so dress appropriately. The walkway leading up to the cave is paved, but very steep (maybe 30 degrees). There's also a steep walk back up in some parts of the cave, mostly near the entrance. I think the tour guide will be in the back of the line, so anyone hard of hearing might plan to walk in near the end.

Edward Wink

Great tour of the Gardner cave

Keith Goddard

I was told the tour was full for field trips but I was there early and no one else was so the tour guide gave me my own personal tour. Very professional and knowledgeable. Thank you I really enjoyed the cave and thank you for going out of your way to accommodate me with my short time frame.

Abraham Matelich

The cave tour is a must

Michael Finch

Nice park. Visit the cave.

Douglas Iverson

We had a great time from start to finish. The cave tour is a must see. Maybe it's not the biggest or most impressive cave however, you'll be in a sea as the guide tells stories and cracks dry jokes. I'll be going back!

Dustin Kelley

Pretty cool place never knew it was here in 20 years of living in the area. Very knowledgeable tour guide. Hope to be able to come back and bring people who would enjoy this.

Jake Stoke

My wife and I had a fantastic time visiting the Gardener Caves. Our tour guide (I forget her name but she's from Minnesota) was absolutely fantastic! In our group there were some very inconsiderate folks who insisted on talking when our tour guide was explaining things. As you can imagine, trying to listen to a guide speak inside a cave while others are talking is hard to do. However, our tour guide kept her calm and tried to project her voice to those of us who did want to listen to her and learn about the cave. I appreciate the effort she put into explaining the cave's history and geology while simultaneously 'tuning out' the rude people. She could have told the noisemakers to shut up but I don't think it is her job to tell adults to act like grown ups. Plus had she done that, the tour would have taken on a kindergarten vibe, which would have been a buzz kill for everybody. So in summary: cave is awesome; tour guides are top notch! Hopefully if you visit Gardener Cave your group will not have idiots that think it's cool to talk over your guide when you are trying to listen and learn.

sheila mccormick

So much fun and so neat. Our guide Aaron was amazing.

Nick Wise

Not sure if it was because I was first in line or my first time in a cave but it was one of the most educational, interesting and exciting things in nature. Tour gal was fun. Located in a densely forested area where you can walk if you choose to the Canadian border, pick a few huckleberry and hope no bears are hunting. 5 star for a fun family adventure. Just remember kids, " Dont tounch the walls of the cave."

Spokane Off-road Adventurers

Great walking area

Laci Duplessis

The park ranger that did the tour was the best! She was very friendly and knowledgeable

Michael Cleaver

Awesome place to hang out

Kimberly Tanner

Had a great and insightful tour of the cave!

Mike 21

It's just like the NF around it, but it's got a cave. Definitely worth a stop, cool area. Best part is the trail to Canada, you can stand in the US and pee into Canada without them being like "hey hoser please stop it eh!"

Heath Jameson

Gardner Cave and the Metaline area is a beautiful family-friendly area to enjoy and explore lots of beautiful campsites to enjoy I highly recommend

Jared Bennett

Very primitive but worth the visit. the caves were impressive and the hike to Canada worth it.

D otA

There are two reasons to come to Crawford: 1) Gardner Cave & 2) The U.S. Border. They are not "accessible". At all. I try to take my children there every year. It saddens me the amount of vandalism that occurred throughout the years before the tour became guided only, but the fornations are still worth viewing -- as early in the Spring as possible and late in the fall will display very different characters. They have picnic areas both at the trail head in a wonderful, peaceful cedar forest, and a table at the U.S./Canadian border a couple miles from the cave. The tours are first come, first serve by sign-up sheet. Definitely recommend taking the earliest tour in the day, otherwise you may miss out -- the signup roster fills quickly! The guide (usually only the one gal) is about the nicest and most accommodating person I've met. Knows a fair amount about the cave; definitely not an expert geologist, but does well enough to be very educational for youngsters. I've taken backpack babies in the cave without difficulty, and the border trek is likewise doable with youngsters. I also like to hit the Boundary Dam tour when up there, but while only minutes away (by car) the tour times conflict, and both stop their day at about the same time, So, again, if hitting both it is important to get there early afternoon (sign-up, jet and take dam tour, then back for cave, and then mosey on over to the border). The border is quite steep in places, but as long as your party is moderately healthy, it is a trivial jaunt. Good forestation and nearby mountain there, so you can have fun with kiddos guessing at the cause of the epic mow strip through the trees and off into the distance. All in all, a fun day trip for anyone coming from Spokane or N.Idaho.

Neil Christman

... Gardner caves a must place to visit Underground ...

Autumn Estes

If you have the chance you need to go. **Not assessable in my opinion. They may be able to accommodate you if you just need more time to climb the stairs. Call ahead!! Be 15 minutes early if it’s possible as there is a steep but doable hike before you get to the caves.** It's very cold, and most people need a jacket or sweater to stand the temps inside the cave. The tour lists fill fast, but you can call and ask to be put on the list if you have a very tight schedule. It is lighted and very steep and slippery inside. Gorgeous to see, but listen to your guide. They are very passionate on preserving as much of the cave as they can for the future. It's more aimed at adults and mature teenagers. If you have the luxury of a small group verse time go with the small group. It can get claustrophobic in the caves with a large group. Plus it's hard to hear the information they guide gives you.

Kristy Waller

On border of U.S. and Canada. You can have a foot in each country!!!!

Steven Greene

Fun neat little hike! Definitely worth the visit if your ever in the area!

Greg Berglund

Very interesting!

Jason S.

This place was awesome. We got to go on the Gardner Cave tour and did the hike to the Canadian border. The hike to the Canadian border is only about 30 min round trip and fairly easy. My girls thought it was cool that they could just walk into Canada. The cave tour was the best part of our visit though. It was so cool exploring and hear about all the different details from the park ranger. She did and awesome job at explaining everything and telling the back story of the cave. If you're ever in the area or looking for something to do, I highly recommend this trip. We drove 2 hrs for this and would do it again in a heartbeat.

Eileen Simpson

Let me tell you this is so fun!! We had the best tour guide ever we all learned a lot. Really worth going!!

Samantha McDougle

Gardner Caves is really awesome! Lots of wonderful geology!

Lynn Whitaker

QUICK VERSION: The cave tour is amazing! I highly recommend going. ANY PICTURE/VIDEO will not come close to the actual experience, go see it for yourselves! You will need to PAY to park unless you have a Discovery Pass. THINGS TO BRING: LED fllashlight, long sleeve shirt or jacket, close-toed shoes, camera- that's it. LESS IS MORE & you can't eat, drink or smoke inside the cave! RECOMMENDATIONS: Make reservations & arrive early. This is an AMAZING learning experience no matter your age! However, if you are claustrophobic or Afraid of the Dark you may want to be one of the last ones to enter the cave. The cave is lighted, but at the end the lights will be turned off for a moment & other forms of light will be used. Use the restroom prior to heading up for the tour. LONG VERSION/COMPLETE REVIEW: What brought me & my family to Crawford State Park was the cave that is located there for which tours are given to the public. The tour is free, but you need to pay to park. You can always just pay the $10 day use fee or for $30 get the Discovery Pass for the year. I highly recommend to make reservations. 25 people can sign up per tour. After going, I feel that 25 is too many... 15 would be optimal. Our group (me, my husband, our almost 4 yr old son, my sister, her husband & their 5yr old and 9yr old daughters & my dad) didn't make reservations. We had to wait 2 hours for the next available tour. This was a little difficult because we didn't pack a lunch (only a few snacks & 1 bottle of water per person) and because we had our young children who became bored after the first hour of waiting. There is limited parking available. The bathrooms are very clean & tidy; though you won't find automatic flushing toilets or other motion sensing amenities. I recommend that you use the bathroom prior to your tour as you won't want to male the hike to the cave twice. There is 1 covered & 7 uncovered picnic tables that I saw. The path that takes you to the cave is paved. However, it is not an easy path. It is a pretty steep incline that zigzags up the hill offering a few chances to sit & rest on the small benches along the path. Once you're at the top, there is an opportunity to get a drink of water from the spicket & to rest at the 1 picnic table provided. With up to 25 people per tour, you will most likely take your rest standing. From the outside, the cave looks like just another hole in the ground. If I came upon it prior to the state putting up the gate around it, there would be a 50/50 chance that I would have looked at it and thought "I wonder if that goes anywhere?" Your tour guide will tell you the story of how it was first discovered, so I won't spoil the that for you, all you need to know is from my point of view; we're pretty lucky to have the chance to explore it. The gate is locked until it is time to head into the cave. A metal staircase will lead you down into the cave. You CANNOT eat, drink or smoke while in the cave & you CANNOT TOUCH the cave walls as it causes wherever you touch to no longer be an active formation! I advise brining a long sleeve shirt or a jacket as the temperature inside the cave is about 39 degrees & flashlights for every member in your party. If you have LED flashlights those would be the ones to bring. Normal flashlights don't even compare to the tour guide's LED light- & trust me, you're going to want to look at different areas of the cave that your guide doesn't have their light pointed at at least once during the tour! Wear close-toed shoes & LESS if more here... at the end of the tour everyone must get on the platform for the last 5-7 minutes for the conclusion of the tour and then to head back out the way we came. Toes may get stepped on & space is limited, so the less you have the better for everyone. The formations are amazing and our guide was AWESOME!

Tiffany White

Awesome

carissa spray

Definitely good visit

Smirff_Vee Mays

Love the hiking fantastic experience

Heather Klaus

The tour guide is excellent, it's been the same gal, Erika for the last few years we have gone. She is passionate about the caves and it shows. The park is beautiful, the caves are magnificent and the all over experience is always worth the travel. A great family summer activity.

Brenda Guay

Really cool natural cave formation. Tour guide was very knowledgeable of the geology. Year round temperature of the cave is about 40°, so take a jacket along. Also a bit of a hike up to the entrance from the parking lot, good shoes are advised.

Rick Jones

During the summer, the 30-minute free guided tour of Gardner Cave is well worth the 5-10 minute hike up a somewhat steep paved path. Wear sturdy shoes and something warm; it's about 42 degrees in the cave. I recommend arriving 15-20 minutes early to sign up for the tour, because the size is limited (attendance at the 10am tour tends to be lowest). Parking is $10, unless you have the Washington Discovery Pass. Also consider the interesting and enjoyable free guided tour at nearby Boundary Dam (where Kevin Costner's "The Postman" was filmed). If you do the 10 am cave tour, you should have no problem taking the noon dam tour. In both cases, check the Internet to verify tour schedules.

cynthia therriault

My Daughter came from Idaho Falls and we traveled 2 1/2 hour to tour the Caves only to find out it was a first come first basis to get on the list for the tour so the 2:00 tour was full... the guide offered another tour at 3:00 instead of 4:00, but we had nothing to do to waist an hour ... plus that would make it that much later to head back home ....so the 3 of us ...plus 10 other people left disappointed.

Mike TwentyOne

Neat little cave and hiking trail.

Ed Boyer

Fun cave experience here.

David Britton

Toured Gardner Cave. Great guide Erica led us!

Alyssa Cummins

Wonderful place to take the kids

Serenity Robinson

This is a very small park right by the Canadian border ( you can hike to it from the park). The main draw of the park is the limestone cave. Lots of cool natural cave formations. You have to sign up for a tour, so show up early. As a bonus, there are two dams nearby on the pend oreille river that you can visit, and the drive up is beautiful.

Scumpkeese Jack

The cave was awesome. Guide was very knowledgeable about the cave. Very interesting history behind them too. My twin 3 yr. old daughter's loved it too. great for kids to learn. Nice little hike to it. Bring a sweater an a flashlight..

Dirk Wiggers

This was a fun and educational experience going on the Gardener Cafes tour, with the unique ability take a short hike to the Canadian border.

T C

Nice cave with a great guide.

Bryan Knecht

Never did know there was any caves. Fun little adventure for family and friends.

Varun M C

Guided tours are very informative.

Mike Linebrink

Great tour of the caves. Take the hike to the border.

MARK ZHOU

好, 非常好

lisa robertson

Great tour! Looking forward to going back.

Peter Shollenberger

Awesome staff, very accommodating, professional and funny!

Fawn RedBear

If you like caves you'll love this! The day was 95 and we were wishing we had coats down in the freezing cave! A really nice break from the heat. We were so happy to be able to catch the last tour of the day! The ranger was nice and informative. Pretty amusing too. There are some lovely surprises awaiting you if you take this tour. We will be back!

Adam Allred

Fantastic!

Carol McQuaid

Gardner Caves and Hickleberry picking..informative and fun.. Thanks to our guide Aaron.

Vincent Ng

It’s a cool place and good size cave to explore.

Carliny Sebastian

This is an amazing place I highly recommend it if you like adventures, whit a little bit of fun

Bryan Hermans

So Washington does have a limestone formation caverns. Gardner Cave is the geologic feature of Crawford State Park. Although downsized compared to grand caverns elsewhere, it exhibits good formations. Some very unique. Guided tours are well done also.

Alice Moran

The cave was amazing. The tour guide was incredibly smart. Bees were bad but that's normal for this time of year. Loved all the trails and shady picnic tables.