MAY 29, 2013  CARLSBAD CAVERNS

This morning we finally completed plans to visit the Carlsbad Caverns as this was the main reason we came into the area.  It was a little cooler, high ninety's, when we started our drive to the Caverns.  The landscape from Artesia is mostly flat scrubland and it stayed that way until we got closer to the caverns as were still in the Chihuahuan Desert.   As neared the Caverns we entered into the Guadalupe Mountains and we started to climb.  The only change to the terrain was hills; it was still the scrubland that we had been driving through all day. 

We didn’t stop until we reached the Caverns and as we approached the parking lot we are glad we didn’t come down here on the holiday weekend.  The parking lot was full.  It’s nice to be retired.

When we entered the exhibit we got our first big surprise.  It is HUGE. I don’t know what I expected but it sure wasn’t this.  There are two ways into the caves, one is too take an elevator and the other is to walk in.  The 1 mile walk- in takes about I hour, it takes you along a steep winding grade that gradually drops 750 feet until you reach the main room. The elevator simply drops 750 feet into the main room.  We took the elevator. 

We decided just to do the main room which is called the Big Room Route.  It is also a 1 mile trek that usually takes about 1 hour, it took us over two hours.  No, it was not because we are old, it was because it was so beautiful, so unexpected. 

Entering the Caves 



It is Huge inside

Some of the pictures are okay but you cannot appreciate the expanse or beauty of the caves, it was surreal being there.    The size of the caves was astonishing and we were only in one part of them.  As we did the tour we learned that besides the Natural entrance and the Big Room Route there was another tour that took them down another 80 feet and could only be accessed via a guided tour by the Rangers.  It involved some pretty serious climbing so we abstained.   At one point we came to stopping point called “View of the lower Cave” and we realized that there was another cave under us.  Unbelievable!  We were unable to learn the size of the lower cave but we did learn that there are still exploring and discovering new sections of the caves.  No telling how big it is.

 




I'll take the Elevator, thank you

 

There is a spectacle that occurs daily right around dusk.  There is a cave that is not opened to the public called Bat Cave and the reason it is called Bat Cave, surprise, surprise, it is filled with bats.  Every night they come out to feed and they don’t come out one at a time, it is a mass exit and report pretty awesome.

I borrowed the next two pictures off of the internet.  I will give them back once you have looked at them.

The bats are what drew attention to the caves during the 1800’s by the first settlers to the area.  Exploration of the caves started a short time later.  The first tours to the caves were in 1915 by a cowboy named Jim White who was actually the man responsible for exploring most of the caves.  His tours started with a 170 foot decent in a bucket that was once used to haul bat guano from the cave.  I much preferred the elevator, thank you.

We left the Caverns and I can only encourage anyone who has not seen the caves to make a point of it.  Put it on your bucket list, you will not be disappointed.

We continued on with our day after having a late lunch by hiking up to an overlook which gave us a few of the beginning of the Guadalupe Mountains and our drive in.

 

 

We made one more stop to view a couple of old Indian Caves that were used for shelter prior to the arrival of the early American Settlers.  We took a few pictures of the caves and surrounding area.

We continued on and upon reaching the main highway we turned north and headed back to Artesia and the RV Park.  Tomorrow we are hoping to get out of the heat as we are driving to Ruidoso, NM which is at an altitude of 7000 feet.  It has to be cooler.  Please.