The bat cave: check out Pinnacles' new draw

There's a new reason to visit Pinnacles National Monument: Bear Gulch Cave, a tunnel-like jumble of boulders formed by thousands of years of water erosion, reopened to visitors last year. A crowd-pleaser for years, the cave was closed in 1998 in order to protect its residents: a colony of Townsend's big-eared bats. In 2004, the National Park Service installed a system of gates to protect the roosting bats. But during periods in October and March when the bats leave their home, the entire cave opens up for viewing.

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INFO: Bear Gulch Cave ($5 per vehicle; www.nps.gov/pinn or 831/389-4485) is on the east side of Pinnacles N.M. at 5000 State 146, 43 miles southeast of Gilroy via State 25.

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