Carlsbad Cavern Side Trip- Well Worth it!

 In our effort to bypass Dallas (too much traffic and pouring rain made us rethink our travel route) we chose to drive a little out of our way to Carlsbad, NM. After spending the night in the state park at Brantley Lake and enjoying a beautiful sunset...



we decided to take a little side trip to the famous caverns not expecting them to be all that spectacular. Boy were we wrong! The ranger convinced us to walk the 2.5 miles down into the cavern to get the full experience and we're so glad we took his advice.




In the spring, summer, and early fall hundreds, maybe even thousands of bats come swarming out of the cavern at dusk to go find food bringing it back to young ones back in the cavern. Apparently it's a sight to behold and people come from miles around to sit in this amphitheater and watch this event. Unfortunately we were here the wrong time of year to see the bats but we were here the perfect time of year to avoid the crowds!


As we journeyed down into the caverns, we couldn't believe our eyes. At every turn there were even more jaw dropping stalactites, and stalagmites of varying sizes and shapes. These pictures do not do justice to the magnitude of the space.














So worth the trip if you ever have the chance.






  








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