Over the years I've visited caves throughout the Midwest in Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, South Dakota and Tennessee, but never the granddaddy of all caves, Mammoth Cave, which I just visited on my way home from Florida.
I had cut my Florida kayaking trip short and headed home because torrential rains had left the rivers of Florida's Panhandle too swollen to safely navigate. Outfitters weren't putting people on the rivers. So, I decided to stop in Kentucky on the drive home and tour Mammoth.
It comes by its name honestly. When you walk into the immense, cavernous -- no pun intended -- rooms that you encounter as you enter the cave through the historic entrance, they are indeed mammoth; as large as any cave room that I've seen. That was how they were described by journalists in the early 1800s that saw the cave, and the name stuck.
You quickly learn that these immense rooms are just a small part of this elaborate cave. With over 360 miles of caverns that have been mapped out so far, it is at least three times the length of the next known largest cave in the world, and they are still discovering and mapping new passages each year.
The second longest cave in the world is located somewhere in Siberia, I believe. The third longest is Wind Cave in the Black Hills of South Dakota, which I have toured. It's about 106 miles long, and they are still discovering new passages there as well.
Mammoth is not only the largest known cave in the world; it has the distinction of being the oldest touring cave. Formal guided tours were started here in 1816, which is just four years after we defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans in the war of 1812. Saltpeter, a key ingredient in the formation of black gun powder, was mined from the cave to help our fledgling country win that battle. That helped put the cave on the map.
It remained in private ownership for the next 125 years and a prime tour attraction. Other caves sprang up around it during that time, which competed for the tour dollar and started an era in eastern Kentucky known as The Cave War Period. Many of those caves were later found to be an extension of Mammoth Cave and eventually brought into the fold when it became a National Park in 1946. Some of the entrances used for today's tours are left over from that era when they were thought to be separate caves.
The earliest known use of the cave dates back 4,000 some years ago when during the Archaic period Native Americans used the cave. Later they apparently mined the minerals and crystals that they found in the cave for medicinal purposes and food preservation. Mummified remains of these early cave users have been found in Mammoth Cave; although you won't find any on display or see any remains in the cave.
The most famous "mummy," found by guides in 1935 over two miles into the cave, was believed to have died around 17 B.C., according to archeologists. A six-and-a-half-ton rock had fallen on him.
The Kentucky National Park Commission formed in 1928 began buying up land to form the future national park, and the CCC, just like in Michigan, was brought in to clear the land of old buildings, put up new ones and assist in forest restoration. It's one of our smallest national parks with only 50,000-some acres above ground, but the jewel of the park -- the extensive cave system -- lies underground, making it one of most unusual park systems.
In spring, summer and fall there are numerous trails for hikers and mountain bikers to follow, and the Green River, available to canoe or kayak, flows through the heart of the National Park. But this time of year the attraction is the cave.
There are a variety of cave tours that continually rotate. Tours range in time and difficulty. The Historic Tour enters through the original entrance, which has been used since 1816, and offers glimpses into past use some 4,000 years ago. It's short, barely over an hour, and easy walking.
The New Entrance Tour takes you down to the third level of the cave, 200-some feet below ground. There are five levels in the cave. The Violet City Lantern Tour illuminated only by primitive lights that you carry, provides a taste of what early cave visitors encountered. The Grand Avenue Tour, a real hike, travels over four miles underground, providing a good glimpse into this mammoth underground complex.
There's also a Wild Cave Tour if you want to get into some real spelunking.
"You get down and dirty, crawl through narrow passages and feel like a mole," quipped one of the park rangers that guided my New Entrance Tour.
They even have a tour just for kids, the Trog Tour, limited to children ages 8-12, where they get down and dirty. They crawl through passages even smaller than those on the Wild Cave Tour. It's a great introduction to caving for kids, and they love it, according to the rangers.
The nice thing I found out about visiting Mammoth this time of year is that you don't need to reserve a tour time ahead of your visit. During spring, summer and fall it's highly recommended that you either go online or call ahead to reserve a tour time. While there were maybe 15 to 20 people on one of my tours; it was just the guide and myself on the other tour.
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