We headed off to the Carlsbad Cavern this morning, unfortunately we were delayed by about 45 minutes due to an accident, it looked like a van was passing on a hill in a “No Passing” zone. Two ambulances headed into Carlsbad while we were waiting so there were injuries, hopefully though they weren’t real serious. It always makes me feel sick when we come upon something like that.
When we got to the caverns we were totally blown away by the size and beauty of the “Big Room”, it is the size of 14 football fields and absolutely gorgeous. We have toured 3 other caves over the years but today was the most spectacular, it leaves you feeling very humble and knowing that there has to be a greater being to create something so beautiful and inspiring. The “Big Room” is a self guided tour and we rented an audio tape which explained the major sites along the 1.5 mile walk through the cave.
We took an elevator down 750’ to start our tour; we could have entered by the natural entrance and taken about 1 hour to walk down 800’ to start the tour, but passed on that one and took the easy way down! The cave is decorated with stalactites, stalagmites and thousands of other formations that began over 500,000 years ago. Where water dripped slowly from the ceiling, soda straws and larger stalactites appeared, water falling onto the floor created stalagmites. Sometimes a stalactite and stalagmite met and formed into a column, then there are draperies which were hung where water ran down a slanted ceiling.
A Stalagmite
One of the Views
Stalactites and Stalagmites
Neat Formations
Love the Shapes
Some of the features we saw were the Bottomless Pit, Giant Dome, Rock of Ages, Caveman, Totem Pole and the Painted Grotto – all fascinating structures. We took a lot of pictures but it is very hard to get good photos and do justice to the majestic beauty of this cave. There is a Ranger guided tour of the “Scenic Rooms” which is on our to-do list for another time when we visit this area.
On the way home we picked up a few groceries and fed the truck, then when we got home I did laundry. Needless to say we dined at the fashionable hour tonight! What is left of this evening will be spent doing my bog and seeing if I got any pictures worth posting. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to the mystery of tomorrow.
1 comment:
If you have time while you're in Carlsbad go to see the flume. It's interesting and it's pretty down by the river.
The caverns were beautiful!
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