About this city
Also known as: Gateway to Oregon Caves
Perched beautifully in the forested Illinois River Valley of southern Josephine County, Cave Junction is a historic small town celebrated nationwide as the official gateway to Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve. Established in the 1930s at the junction of the Redwood Highway and the mountain cave pass road, the community originally thrived around commercial logging and localized gold panning. The town landscape presents a classic, uncommercialized Siskiyou mountain wilderness aesthetic, surrounded by ancient old-growth forests and untamed wild rivers. Today, Cave Junction coordinates a unique rural economy that blends its heavy timber roots with eco-tourism, organic specialized agriculture, and world-class subterranean exploration, serving as a sanctuary for outdoor adventurers.
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Practical Tourism Metadata
Suggested stay: 1–2 days
Go deep underground to view rare marble caverns and pristine limestone formations on a guided tour at Oregon Caves National Monument. Hike the scenic, rugged cliff paths or launch a raft along the wild Illinois River. Stay in an eccentric, elevated cabin at the Out'n'About Treehouse Treesort.
