We (or should I say, I) have been feeling restless, so we made a day trip over to Mammoth Cave National Park to mark another one off our list (#23 out of 63)!
Our first stop was to nearby Buc-ee's in Smith Grove, KY to stock up on snacks for the day! We then continued on to Mammoth Cave. Mammoth Cave is actually free to enter, however the cave tours cost money. It became a national park in 1941. We pulled into a small parking area to hike Sloan's Crossing Pond Trail. This trail is a 0.4 mile leisurely hike along a boardwalk. The cicadas were so loud when we were here! We saw a turtle swimming through the foliage. There were many bullfrogs along the edge of the pond, and we tried to look for the culprit each time we heard a croak. When scanning for frogs, I just happened to catch sight of a water snake catching some sun on a log. We watched him try to slither away from us and got some decent videos. We continued through the forest boardwalk, enjoying the trees and ferns. We spotted a crow in the trees. There was another one nearby who was alerting everyone of our presence. This was such a peaceful stroll around the pond.
We continued down the main road towards the Visitor Center. We shopped for some souvenirs (I always have to get a magnet and an ornament). Behind the Visitor Center is a lodge with restaurants. We didn't walk into this building (currently under construction), but I think it will be a really nice addition when it is all completed. We walked down a hill towards the historic cave entrance. We passed several trails on the hill, but there are many trails under renovations at this time. We walked down to the River Styx Trail, which unbeknownst to us, is also under renovations. We continued down another path to the edge of the Green River. This site is where the ferry boats used to drop off visitors wanting to visit the caves. After this hike (the hill isn't that steep, but it is very long), we drove back out of the main parking lot to the campground store to get some drink and ice cream to cool off. We walked into the nearby open grass area to get some pictures of the historic trains.
We made our way back to the Visitor Center. We walked through the exhibit area to learn about the history of the caves, just how big this area is, and the wildlife in the caves. The caves currently have over 400 miles mapped out, with another estimated 600 miles of unexplored areas. This is the largest cave system in the US. We read about the enslaved men who were the original tour guides, including Stephen Bishop, who learned to read and write from the wealthy visitors who came through the area.
Our cave tour was the Gothic Avenue Tour. I highly recommend researching all of the tours to decide which is best for you. I would also highly recommend buying tour tickets ahead of time; they sell surprisingly fast (this tour was sold out on the day we got there). The hill to the cave entrance was probably the most difficult part, but there are narrow spaces and stairs inside the cave tours as well. This tour was 1.7 miles long for a two hour tour with about 170 steps (per NPS website, I didn't count them). The cave is around 54 degrees, so bring a sweatshirt or jacket! The stairway into the cave was the largest. Once inside, the initial entryway has short ceilings, but it is a wide and level area. The first section is the Rotunda. This room was so massive! There were circle features on the ceilings, showing how the water swirled in this area to create the room. There is a pit in the middle where enslaved men used the sand to create gunpowder and bullets for the War of 1812. There are cut trees along the side of the room that were also used for this process. They were still in such perfect condition. It was really amazing to think about how old the trees were, and how they were left there to preserve history. We continued into the cave seeing stalactites (including black stalactites), stalagmites, columns, etc. We saw the spot where Edwin Booth (John Wilkes Booth's brother) recited Shakespeare, where a preacher stood to share his sermon, where Jenny Lind (the Swedish Nightingale) sat and sang, where the enslaved tour guides would use candles to burn visitors' names on the ceiling to earn some extra money, and many other features. I thought this tour was a wonderful choice, and it wasn't very difficult of a walk other than the entrance stairs.
When we make a return visit, I would definitely like to explore more hiking trails. We would also love to do a different cave tour just for some variety. Overall, we had a wonderful day trip! Between the scenery, the animals, the science, the history, and the massive caves, this national park definitely has something for everyone!
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