The amazing scenery didn't let up until the end...

Mammoth Cave National Park has quickly become a family favorite. Close enough to be a quick weekend trip away, this unique National Park encompasses the longest known cave system in the world...some 400+ miles once you add up all the caverns and passageways (this is over twice as long as its nearest competitor!). Mammoth Cave was visited by humans long before it ever received its park status...Native American artifacts which date back centuries have been found within many parts of the cave. The first Europeans didn't arrive until the closing years of the 1700's and within 40 years tours were being offered. Competition between land owners grew as owners vied for tourist dollars culminating in the so-called "Kentucky Cave Wars" of the early 20th Century to the detriment of both the caves and visitors alike. Thankfully, in 1926, Mammoth Cave came under the protection of the National Park Service.

This was our second tour to the park as a family, the first of which was a year prior. On our first visit we took in the Historic Tour which, as the name implies, hits on many of the historic cultural aspects of the cave. This time it would be the Domes and Dripstones Tour, a 2-hour walk through some of the most visually dramatic portions of Mammoth highlighted by massive tunnels and dripstone formations, including the famous 'Frozen Niagara' formation. As flash photography and tripods are forbidden and there is very little opportunity to stop and set up a shot most of the pictures in this album are blurry at best. Even so, I felt it still gives a decent glimpse at the incredible beauty of this portion of the cave. So, off for our second tour...it definitely won't be our last!!!

7-10-2014

Mammoth Cave National Park - Domes & Dripstones Tour

Family photo op at one of our favorite National Parks...
The tour began with a 10-minute bus ride to the "New Entrance" of Mammoth Caves which was created in 1921 when a local entrepreneur, seeking to lead his own cave tours, blasted an entrance into the bottom of a sinkhole...
The first portion of the tour found us descending a long flight of twisting stars between rather narrow walls...
Erie lighting allows the visitor frequent glimpses of the surrounding cave walls...
Continuing down...by the time the path flattens out we will have descended 250 feet beneath the surface...
Unique patterns have been etched into the walls by many thousands of years of water erosion...
Nearing the bottom, we descended into this giant pothole...
Crossing a giant chasm, the immensity of the cave began to present itself to us...
Weaker layers of limestone collapsed after the waters receded leaving only the strongest layers to support the roof of the tunnel. As erosion no longer takes place in these parts of the caves we were told there was no longer any concern of collapse...
The first lengthy stop on the tour took place at a set of benches 250-feet beneath the surface in a spot known as "Grand Central Station". Here the guide explained more about the history of the cave and how it was first opened to visitors...
A closer look at the unnaturally flat ceiling of the cave...
From Grand Central Station the trail began to ascend again and the rock walls pressed in close...
Huge boulders like this choked many potential tour routes in the early days of cave tours so guides would hire men to blast openings to allow better access...
Here again you can clearly see the numerous layers of limestone and the great blocks they eventually broke off into...
Yet another high, flat ceiling...
The second stop the guide announced we would soon be entering the portion of the cave with the most dramatic formations. Pointing upward she drew our attention to the first, tiny, stalactites hanging from the ceiling...
More fissures in the limestone walls...
If you notice, the ceiling in this shot has a distinct green hue. This is due to algae growth. Algae is not native to the caves but rather has been carried here on the clothes of tourists at which point the light shining on the walls allows it to grow. The park service is currently taking steps to limit its growth, including installing different types of light bulbs...
As we neared the drapery room the walls of the tunnel surrounding us showed more and more evidence of the water which used to flow through them...
Arriving at the "Drapery Room", the location of the most dramatic formations yet found in Mammoth Cave...
Descending onto the Drapery Room, formations of every shape and size covered the cave from floor to ceiling...
Stovepipe-type formations in the Drapery Room...
Even the ceiling far above us was a kaleidoscope of shapes and colors...
The Drapery Room, in all its wonder...