Cathedral Caverns State Park
Phone: 256-728-8193
637 Cave Road
Woodville Alabama 35769
Cathedral Caverns | Grant AL | Marshall County Alabama
Cathedral Caverns State Park is an Alabama state park located in Grant Alabama, northern Marshall County, 7 miles southeast of the town of Woodville Alabama. The cave is located in Kennamer Cove, approximately 5 miles northeast of Grant.
The cave, originally named Bats Cave, was first developed as an attraction by Jay Gurley in the late 1950s. It was declared a National Natural Landmark in 1972.
Cathedral Cavern is a Karst cave with a large stalagmite forest covering approximately 3 acres. The caverns are approximately 11,000+ feet surveyed and explored cave with 8-foot-wide concrete walkways that are wheelchair accessible. The public portion of the cave extends approximately 3,500 feet and has some 2 miles of paths; another 2,700 feet extend beyond the end of the pathway. Formerly inaccessible areas beyond the paved walkway are now open as part of the “Wild Cave Tour.”
The cave system has laid claim to several world records though their accuracy has been disputed. Among the caverns’ notable features are:
- the widest entrance of any commercial cave in the world – 25 feet tall and 128 feet wide.
- the largest column in the world – Goliath, measuring 45 feet tall and 243 feet in circumference.
- the largest flow stone wall – 32 feet tall and 135 feet long.
- the most improbable formation in the world – a 3-inch-diameter stalagmite which rises at a 45-degree angle from a rock formation to the cave ceiling 25 feet above.
a Big Room, which is 792 feet long and 200 feet wide. - The Mystery River flows through the cavern. Due to limited outflow, the cave is subject to flooding after heavy rain.
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