Post by L Roebuck on Jun 18, 2006 8:34:23 GMT -5
Carter Caves
Get a stalactite fix at state resort park
By Susan Reigler
sreigler@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
Frankly, the idea of walking into a dark, rocky hole in the ground has never been high on my list of entertaining activities. But a recent trip to Carter Caves State Resort Park has given me a whole new appreciation for Kentucky's underground sights.
Mammoth Cave National Park is wonderful, but it can get extremely crowded in summer. So if you need a stalactite fix but don't want to share it with the masses, check out one of the four guided cave tours at Carter Caves. (TIP: The least busy tours are the first ones in the morning.)
There are also caves available for self-guided explorations.
On my visit to Carter Caves, I took two of the four tours, each conducted by knowledgeable and enthusiastic young guides.
The entrance to X-Cave is just across the parking lot from the Welcome Center where you purchase tickets for the tours.
Jake Lewis, who said near the end of the tour that he is the great-great-grandson of the man who sold the park site to the state in the 1940s, had obvious pride and love for the wonders he was describing.
X-Cave was once two caves, but thanks to erosion, the passages now cross, hence the name. One passage is "live," meaning that water is still shaping the limestone.
Full Article:
www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060618/FEATURES05/606180344/1010/FEATURES
Get a stalactite fix at state resort park
By Susan Reigler
sreigler@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
Frankly, the idea of walking into a dark, rocky hole in the ground has never been high on my list of entertaining activities. But a recent trip to Carter Caves State Resort Park has given me a whole new appreciation for Kentucky's underground sights.
Mammoth Cave National Park is wonderful, but it can get extremely crowded in summer. So if you need a stalactite fix but don't want to share it with the masses, check out one of the four guided cave tours at Carter Caves. (TIP: The least busy tours are the first ones in the morning.)
There are also caves available for self-guided explorations.
On my visit to Carter Caves, I took two of the four tours, each conducted by knowledgeable and enthusiastic young guides.
The entrance to X-Cave is just across the parking lot from the Welcome Center where you purchase tickets for the tours.
Jake Lewis, who said near the end of the tour that he is the great-great-grandson of the man who sold the park site to the state in the 1940s, had obvious pride and love for the wonders he was describing.
X-Cave was once two caves, but thanks to erosion, the passages now cross, hence the name. One passage is "live," meaning that water is still shaping the limestone.
Full Article:
www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060618/FEATURES05/606180344/1010/FEATURES