Hi there!

So first, to be clear, to get the best experience during your visit to Jewel Cave National Monument, you will want to sign up for a paid Jewel Cave tour.

But one thing you can do on your own above ground while at the Jewel Cave National Monument park is take a walk to the natural cave entrance!

Maybe you don’t want to do a Jewel cave tour for one reason or another.

Or maybe you end up showing up to the Jewel Cave visitor center too late and arrive to sold out tickets. Consider this your backup plan!

Or, maybe you do a Jewel Cave tour that doesn’t take you to the natural entrance, then this is another thing to do at Jewel Cave National Monument while you’re there!

Going to the natural cave entrance will allow you to experience Jewel Cave in a small but worthwhile way in a short time.

That is, walking to the cave entrance on your own can be an idea if you won’t be doing the historic lantern cave tour. Because you will go to the natural cave entrance on that tour… although maybe you still want to check of the Jewel Cave entrance on your own without other people around!

I went to the Jewel Cave natural entrance both during a cave tour and on my own, and this is what you need to know! The path to the cave entrance definitely felt different without all the people!

How to see Jewel Cave on your own without a tour above ground

In short, hike part of the Canyons Trail! (Not to be confused with Hell Canyon Trail located nearby in Black Hills National Forest.)

The Canyons Trail in Jewel Cave National Monument is a 3.5 mile loop, so doing the whole trail is always an option. The National Park Service recommends giving yourself 2-4 hours to hike whole loop, and it is called an easy to moderate hike.

But if you’re looking to do something that doesn’t take as much time, then taking a walk along the Canyons Trail to the natural entrance of Jewel Cave is also an option!

You can walk to the cave entrance on your own without a tour.

You just won’t be able to actually go into the cave without a tour. (It is gated and locked. You won’t be able to get in.)

But going to the cave entrance is still a cool thing to see. And if you have made the effort to drive out to Jewel Cave National Monument, then in fact it would be worthwhile to see!

You might give yourself a total of 30 minutes to walk to the cave entrance, look around, and then walk back.

Where to start the Canyons Trail to hike to the natural entrance

If your goal is to see the Jewel Cave natural entrance only with the shortest hike possible, then you will want to park at the Historic Area. The Historic Area is located a couple minutes drive from the visitor center. There are signs that you can follow to the Historic Area.

Otherwise, if you’ll be hiking the whole loop, then you can start at either the Historic Area or the Jewel Cave Visitor Center. The Historic Area will be the less crowded spot to start from.

You will find a bathroom and drinking water at both the Historic Area and the Visitor Center.

You’ll find picnic tables at both too for your post-hike snack or lunch!

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Jewel Cave closing time

Note that the hours of Jewel Cave in the Historic Area are from 9am to 4:30pm, and the hours of the Jewel Cave Visitor Center are from 8am to 5pm.

There are gates that close, so you will want to be out of the parking lot by the closing time.

If you plan on starting the hike in the late afternoon, check current hours before you go to Jewel Cave and confirm the hours when you’re there so your car won’t be locked in!

Jewel Cave National Monument is on mountain time.

Hiking the Canyons Trail from the Historic Area

Here’s a bit of what you’ll see hiking the Canyons Trail from the Historic Area of Jewel Cave National Monument!

So once you have parked the car in the Historic Area, you can locate the cabin, and then start walking that way!

This is also a picnic spot with views near the cabin.

And then once you’re near the cabin, you can look for the Canyons Trail sign to continue the path to the Jewel Cave natural entrance!

It’s a paved path all the way to the natural entrance.

And then shortly you will come to an opening in the canyon wall. You can take a look around, and then you’ll keep walking to the cave entrance.

And then you will see the Jewel Cave entrance!

You can see some small “jewels” at the cave entrance too.

Although it’s best to just look, and not touch, so that these “jewels” do not lessen their appearance over time with everyone touching them.

Then once you’ve had a look around, you can continue on the Canyons Trail…

Or you can head back the same way you came!

And that’s a bit about hiking the Canyons Trail to the Jewel Cave natural entrance!

More for Jewel Cave and beyond:

• Things to do in Jewel Cave National Monument
• Things to do in Wind Cave National Park
• Things to do in the Black Hills of South Dakota

HAPPY SEEING THE NATURAL ENTRANCE OF JEWEL CAVE!