Mammoth Onyx Cave
Our sixth and final cave. I love how different all of these caves were! This one was located in a zoo, which I know is NOT cool but, man, I couldn’t resist the chance to pet a sleepy kangaroo! Bonus wallaby!
Tag Archives: kentucky
Hidden River Cave
Ah, another pretty window cave opening. This was really different from the other caves we saw. It’s gotten flooded so many formations are covered in mud. The tour guide told us it’ll be a beautiful cave in a few thousand years. Hahaaa. It was very dark and we went in with flashlights- the lights are […]
Onyx Cave
Another gorgeous limestone show cave! This is a vertically formed cave with intricate cave corals. The main attraction for me was the “waterfall wall,” I loved thinking of it as having a “melted candle look.” Lots of tight spaces and steps in this one- I got a bit of vertigo and felt my stomach turn. […]
Crystal Onyx Cave
Another stunning, privately-owned show cave. I am a huge fan of mashups between natural wonder and man-made kitsch so I was all about the fiberglass animals, aliens and dinosaurs. I loved “cave coral” being called “popcorn,” and a flowstone described as “butterscotch pudding.” We also had a moment at the end where we sat with […]
Diamond Caverns
Our first wet cave! As opposed to a dry cave system like Mammoth, Diamond Caverns had all the shimmering, snotty, drippy, intricate formations I always imagined in caves. There are no diamonds down there; the name comes from glittery calcite. I loved the names for different stalactites- “curtains” or “drapery” for wavy, fabric-fold-like formations resulting […]
Mammoth Cave
Jessica and I got to see six caves in one and a half days. This was our first and the name is no lie! Mammoth Cave National Park is about 80 square miles, with more than 365 miles mapped (so far) of a five-level cave system. I’d love to go back and see more when […]
