"Sea Lion Caves is a privately owned wildlife preserve and bird sanctuary (since 1932) centrally located just 11 miles north of Florence on the beautiful and rugged Oregon Coast. Sea Lion Caves is proud to be part of the Oregon/Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve helping to protect the local marine animals and marine environment," the official website says.

"Sea Lion Caves is America’s largest sea cave and the year-round home of the Steller sea lion, but sea lions are not always in the Cave. They are wild animals and we are not a zoo. These protected animals come and go as they please, as is their nature. Winter months will usually find hundreds of sea lions in the Cave and when spring arrives, breeding and birthing time, the sea lions will move from the Cave to the rookery areas (the rock ledges out in front of the Cave) and will remain there through the summer

"Winter months will usually find hundreds of sea lions in the Cave and when spring arrives, breeding and birthing time, the sea lions will move from the Cave to the rookery areas (the rock ledges out in front of the Cave) and will remain there through the summer."

"Sea Lion Caves is a connected system of sea caves and caverns open to the Pacific Ocean in the U.S. state of Oregon. They are located 11 miles (18 km) north of Florence on U.S. Highway 101, about midpoint on the 400 miles (640 km) of Oregon Coast. In this area, Highway 101 follows a steep and undeveloped seascape 300 feet (91 m) above sea level. Human access to the caves is through a gift shop building," the Wikipedia says.

"The cave system is at sea level and the ocean continually washes into the main cavern which has a floor area of about 2 acres (0.81 ha) and a vaulted rock dome about 125 feet (38 m) high. Southward from the main chamber, a low passage runs 1,000 feet (300 m) to a sea level opening. This corridor is flooded at high tide and free of water at low tide. The western entrance is a short, high passage through which the ocean washes at all tide levels. At the north, a third entrance is about 50 feet (15 m) above the ocean which serves as an elevated observation area where the entire cave system and its wildlife are visible.

"Sea Lion Caves is one of the great sea caves of the world, and currently ranks 10th among the world's longest sea caves. With a measured length of 1315 feet, it is the longest in the United States. A comparable cave is the undeveloped Painted Cave on Santa Cruz Island, California, which is 1227 feet long."

"Sea Lion Caves is the size of a football field, with a 125-foot natural rock dome. It is the only mainland rookery of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in the contiguous United States and is home to about 200 cows, yearlings, and immature bulls. The males sometimes weigh over a ton and can be seen posturing to scare off rivals for their harems of up to 24 cows," The Oregon Encyclopedia says.

"Until the late 1950s, the State of Oregon paid a bounty on sea lions. One hunter collected the annual limit of $10,000 for several years running. Now they are protected as endangered species, but many fishermen are unhappy with this designation, claiming that the sea lions present an unfair competition in the salmon business.

"By 1981, the cave was realizing a gross income of over one million dollars. The cave attracts over 200,000 persons annually, who can ride the elevator or take a steep downhill walk to view the coastal cliffs and the several kinds of gulls and cormorants that nest there. The attraction is open seven days a week, except Christmas, and employs about forty-five people. Clanton withdrew from the partnership in 1934 and Roy A. Saubert stepped in. Members of the Saubert and Jacobson families have owned and operated the property ever since (the Houghtons withdrew in 2006)."

"The fall and winter seasons may be the best time to visit the Sea Lion caves as barking Steller sea lions, and some of their California seal friends, lounge inside the cave’s natural 12-story underground amphitheater. During the spring and summer, sea lions breed and typically stay on the rocks outside the caves," the River House Florence says.

"Since 1932, Sea Lion Caves has been a privately-owned wildlife preserve and bird sanctuary. It’s not a zoo. From the visitor’s center, you will enjoy expansive ocean views where visitors often see gray and humpback whales, orca, and dolphins at different times of the year.

"There are more than a dozen kinds of birds that make the area home. From the visitor’s center at the top of the cliff, it’s just a short outdoor walk to the elevator that takes you 208 feet down through solid rock and into the sea lion’s cathedral."

"America’s largest sea cave, Sea Lion Caves is a privately owned wildlife preserve and bird sanctuary that is the year-round home of the Steller sea lion," the Travel Oregon says.

"Sea Lion Caves is not a zoo, so the protected marine animals come and go as they please. There are times when the sea lions leave the caves entirely, usually in the late fall. SLC plays an important part in Oregon’s Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve helping to protect the marine animals and their environment."

"The Florence Sea Lion Caves were first opened to the public in 1932, and an elevator was added in 1961 to take visitors down 208 feet to the viewing area. It's an odd feeling, taking an elevator deep underground, but that's nothing to the amazing sight that greets you when you get down there," the Pacific Coast Highway Travel says.

"From the elevator you walk along a passage, where there are displays about the sea lions. This takes you to a dark area, where there are holes in the rock looking right inside the world's largest sea cave. And the cave is just filled with sea lions. Some of them are only a few feet away, seemingly unaware of the visitors there in the semi-darkness. You're asked not to use flash photography, so as not to disturb the animals.

"The cave was formed about 25 million years ago, but was only discovered in 1880. Made of basalt rock, it is as high as a 12-story building and covers an area the size of a football field."

Photos: Facebook/Sea Lion Caves

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