Tag: Yucca Creek

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Junction Room Crystal Cave Sequoia National Park

After passing Emerald Pools and continuing to follow Yucca Creek within Crystal Cave in Sequoia National Park (CA), you soon come to Junction Room. This is the first large room that you come to in Crystal Cave, and as the name indicates, is a junction room that you will eventually come back to during the tour of Crystal Cave. The room is distinctive from the large rectangular rock formation in the center of the room:

Junction Room in Crystal Cave at Sequoia National Park

In addition to being the junction area of the cave, Junction Room also has a nice display of soda straws and popcorn cave formations:

Junction Room in Crystal Cave

Yucca Creek also flows directly through Junction Room:

Yucca Creek flows through Junction Room in Crystal Cave

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Yucca Creek Crystal Cave Sequoia National Park

The water that flows through Crystal Cave in Sequoia National Park (CA) is Yucca Creek which flows into Cascade Creek. As soon as you move into the entrance of Crystal Cave and pass through the spiderweb gate, you can here the gurgling of Yucca Creek as it passes through the cave:

Yucca Creek in Crystal Cave Sequoia National Park

Yucca Creek also reveals that Crystal Cave is a rare marble cave (only about 5% of the caves in the world are marble caves) like at Oregon Caves National Monument and the river bed reveals the marble of Crystal Cave:

Marble exposed in Yucca Creek Crystal Cave

Yucca Creek is evident well into the cave even after passing Emerald Pools:

Yucca Creek in cave

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Cascade Falls Crystal Cave Sequoia National Park

About three-fourths of the way down the trail to get to the entrance of Crystal Cave in Sequoia National Park (CA) you will come to the Cascade River and Cascade Falls. The Cascade River runs just outside Crystal Cave (not through it — Yucca Creek runs through Crystal Cave and empties into the Cascade River) and has a number of short falls that can be seen as you descend down the path which offer wonderful photo opportunities.

Cascade Falls near Crystal Cave

Middle section of Cascade Falls in Sequoia National Park

Cascade Falls near Crystal Caves in Sequoia National Park

The hike down the Crystal Cave trail to the cave entrance takes about 10 – 15 minutes, but you may want to add more time in so that you can spend some time taking photos along the way without being rushed.