CMT Blog: Archive

Mammoth Cave has drawn tourists underground for more than 200 years – and lured Native Americans within its walls thousands of years before that. Today it's one of the most easily explored National Parks, even though there are still hundreds of untapped miles in the cave, lurking underneath the central Kentucky property. In fact, it's the world's longest known cave, and would still hold that rank even if the second-longest and third-longest caves were attached.

My friend and I arrived in the afternoon with tickets for the Violet City tour, named in honor of a previous owner of the cave. (Reservations are highly recommended, because summer tours fill up fast.) Led by an informative and witty tour guide, the three-hour tour carried us through enormous rooms, alongside ominous pits and up long staricases. No tight squeezes here – it's a very comfortable, spacious walk, if you don't mind being underground. Being so deep in the cave, we carried lanterns and investigated the old "hospital," where sick folks in the 1800s retreated to overcome consumption, encouraged by the even climate. I thoroughly enjoyed the "sunrise" and "sunset" at Star Chamber – and so did one of the great American authors, Ralph Waldo Emerson, when he paid a visit.

For a more casual tourist, the Mammoth Passage Tour is less than a mile, and takes just over an hour. Hardcore cavers are encouraged to try the Wild Cave Tour, which lasts six-and-a-half hours. To me, the Grand Avenue Tour is my next goal – a strenuous four-and-a-half hour hike with narrow canyons and underground hills. I'd like to go back in 2009, when a new museum and visitor's center opens in the park. By the way, if going underground isn't appealing, park options also include scenic drives, camping, hiking trails, boat rides, bicycling, boating, canoeing, fishing and horseback riding.