Darkness, Bats, and A Whole Lot of People: A Self-guided Tour of Carlsbad Caverns

Free! Do you have any idea how excited I was to explore Carlsbad Caverns National Park? Not only is Carlsbad an active cave, and one that has a giant roost of bats living in it, but you can actually explore this cave on your own!!! One of the few caves that I've ever been to that actually doesn't require a guide to explore, Carlsbad has two entrances that allow you to choose a hike depending on your experience level. You can go down to the cave via elevators located in the visitor's center, dropping you right into the center of the developed cave and leading to two shorter hikes, or for those who want to be in a cave but not walk, you can hang out at the underground consession stand and watch the throng of people passing by. Your other option to visit the cave is entering via the natural entrance, a giant hole on top of the mesa high above the surrounding plains. The natural entrance is paved and descends swiftly via tight switchbacks into the twilight zone of the cave where enough natural light still penetrates to allow moss and lichen to grow and the occasional bird or mammal to live. Further on, you round a corner and the sunlight is gone. Instead, dim yellow lights illuminate your path and some of the more interesting formations of the cave.

Walking at your own pace, you can pass others and leave them behind if they're moving slower than you. Many people who attempt the natural entrance turn around before long; they're either afraid of heights or afraid of the dark, or perhaps both. It isn't an easy hike, with steep downhill paths dimly lit and slick with dripping water, but it is more than worth the effort if you can get over the natural human fear of darkness. Fascinating, fantastic formations in every hue loom out of the gloom, waiting to be noticed. If you go too fast, you miss it. If you're worried about your footing or your hand holds, you miss it. If you relax and look around, you see more than you thought possible. Even in the dry desert environment above ground, water drips from the ceiling and the walls, creating and growing those famous cave formations everyone knows. White gypsum is common throughout the cave, catching the occasional flashlight and sparkling in response. Reds, greens and tans can be seen, iron and copper coloring the minerals over thousands of years. Signs of people are everywhere, not including the others sharing the dim path with you. Stalactites broken off a hundred years ago still look like they were ripped from the ceiling yesterday. Columns show signs of graffiti, despite the efforts of park rangers and volunteers. Trash litters the most popular trails, gum wrappers and sucker sticks and the occasional plastic water bottle, accidentally dropped from a pocket or purposefully tossed aside. Sometimes there are sad prices to pay for popularity and ease of access.

My journey, of course, started at the natural entrance. Hiking quickly, I passed several families trying to persuade their young children to follow them down into the darkness. Every time I passed somebody complaining that it was too dark or too wet or too high up, I wanted to stop and say "well, duh." I mean, it's a cave, what did you expect? But I didn't, passing them quietly and putting as much distance between them and myself as possible. Still traveling deeper into the earth, I soon reached the consession area and the "Big Room" of the caverns. Ringed by a paved path, the Big Room is the most easily accessed part of the cave, and accordingly the most busy. I would have kicked myself if I had skipped exploring it, but I have to confess that I moved faster than I should have. I still took tons of pictures though!

After completing my circuit around the Big Room, I briefly contemplated waiting for an hour in a line of people to take the elevator back to the surface. After a short rest and some orange juice from the consession stand, I decided to hoof it back out the way I came in. This time, I traveled up almost the whole way, breathing quickly but not puffing like the others who decided to hike back out too. Leaving them behind, I powerwalked my way past thinning crowds of people, until only occasionally I would pass someone walking in the opposite direction. They closed the natural entrance shortly after I started my hike out, as it was getting close to evening and the bat flight. I was one of the last people out of the natural entrance, and I did it in half the time it took me to hike into the cave. There's no slowing me down when I'm on a mission!

Once on the surface, I checked out the giftshop and bookstore in the visitor's center, then headed off on my own to find a quiet place in the shade to sit down and relax. I wanted to see the bat flight, where the bat colony rises out of the cave every evening to start their nightly foraging, so I wandered back toward the natural entrance and the amphitheatre that circles it halfway. Sitting alone in the shade, I pulled one of the few luxury items I carry with me, and started to read. Eventually, slowly, the seats around me began to fill as what felt like everybody who had been inside the cave that day came back to watch the bats. More than one thousand people filed into the seats, sitting on all available surfaces and waiting expectantly for the ranger who was going to be talking to us, and of course, the bats themselves. The ranger started her bat talk, and after about half an hour a sudden hush fell on all 1000+ people as the first bats were sighted, circling up and out of the cave. Thousands of bats slowly issued from the cave in a spiral, gaining speed and altitude as the the sun settled below the horizon. I sat there, silently enthralled, until it was impossible to see the little bats against the darkening sky. I left slowly, driving the winding road back down the mesa toward the rear of the exodus of people from the park, thinking about the next time I can get into a cave. Exploring Carlsbad on my own was awesome, and I appreciate the park service for allowing self-guided tours of the cave. Next time I do go to a cave, I'm taking a spleunking tour into the most remote part of the cave that can be reached. And if I can find any more bat flights, you can count me in!