Visitor programs at Jewel Cave National Monument near Custer are being modified during the next 10 days to allow for work on the elevator entrance.

From now through Friday, Oct. 26, scenic tours will be available at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The tours allow visitors to see the colorful - and rare - cave formations for which Jewel Cave is named and known. This half-mile tour is moderately strenuous, following a paved, lighted trail with more than 700 stairs and lasting about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Discovery talks will be available at 9:05 a.m., 10:35 a.m., 1:35 p.m., and 3:35 p.m. The discovery talk is a 20-minute introduction to the cultural and natural history of Jewel Cave. This modified program enters one room of the cave and involves traveling 120 stair steps. Both tours enter and leave the cave by elevator from the visitor center.

The cave temperature is 49 degrees. A light coat or sweater and sturdy walking shoes are recommended.

During the next 10 days, workers will remove a deteriorating wooden canopy built at the elevator in the 1960s. At that time, the open shaft caused unnatural cycles of freezing and thawing to occur in the cave and create an unstable condition in the rocks surrounding the opening. The canopy was installed to mitigate potential safety hazards from falling rock. Since that time, the environment in the cave has returned to normal and greatly reduced the potential for hazards.

The project is being funded from fees paid by visitors taking cave tours. Jewel Cave National Monument is able to retain all visitor fees for accomplishing special park projects.

For more information, contact Jewel Cave National Monument at (605) 673-2288 or go to www.nps.gov/jeca.