One half of one percent.
That's how much of the Mammoth Cave system you see in a two hour tour. Mind blowing when you stop to think about it.
The historic cave tour (there are several different tours you can take) starts normally enough, with a large gaping hole in the ground inviting you to step inside.
We been to several caves over our lifetimes and other than the sheer enormity of this place what struck us most was the lack of stalactites and stalagmites here. This is because much of Mammoth Cave is dry, lacking the water necessary to form these standard cave icons.
And let me tell you, the name may be Mammoth but some of the passageways are not. Of particular amusement was Fat Man's Misery a snug, windy path which turns into Tall Man's Agony. Also appropriately labeled.
Historical graffiti is all over the place here. What else can one expect from a place that has been a tourist attraction since 1816. Back in the day, before becoming a national park in 1941, you could tip your tour guide to let you write your name in the smoke from the candle you were holding for light. (left photo)
In the mid 1800s a man named Stephen Bishop used to give 16 plus hour cave tours. This sounds both exhilarating and exhausting all at once. They probably still only saw a small fraction of this behemoth.
What goes down, must come back up. In our case, this involved a few flights up a fire escape tower offering a couple of rather spectacular views of nearby formations.
If you time your tours rights, you could spend hours wandering Mammoth Cave, it's not the only site to see in this area. In fact, the neighboring towns have built a number of family friend attractions of their own to keep the tourists occupied.
We chose the Lost River Cave and Valley underground river tour.
In the 1930s this grotto would have been an amazing place to visit as it was a night club playing Jazz music. Although the steps to reach the grotto at that time were questionable at best since they descended down one of the cliffsides without a railing.
Can you image it?
Today, it's jointly owned by the Western Kentucky University and a non profit, which explains the grad students as guides. Weddings and other events are still held here but with a much safer entry route.
The river running through this cave system has been dammed to keep it at 3 ft. Any lower and the boats would touch bottom.
Much higher and us tourists would not be able to bend over enough to make it under the 50 feet or so of low ceiling leading into the larger chambers beyond.
I'm pretty sure there is a school where all tour guides are taught to use bad puns. I'm not complaining, our guide did a great job and the outing was a success. Just observing.
There is something strange about floating through a cave. A surreal calmness shared with a a sense of wonder you might say.
The Lost River Cave and Valley includes a free Halloween walk. Who can refuse this? The haunted trail was a light hearted end to a day filled with new experiences and delight.
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