Penn's cave is NOT the source of the ground water flowing from Big Spring because . . .

1. There are no underground flow pathways connecting Penn's Cave and the Big Spring.  Large solution openings in the intervening limestone would be required to convey 12 million gallons per day of ground-water flow.
2. The ground water which forms the lake within Penn's Cave cannot flow uphill to cross the ground-water boundary of the Spring Creek Watershed.  Ground-water boundaries are the highest elevation of ground water, just as surface-water boundaries are the highest topographic elevations.  Return to the Quiz.

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