We were all still asleep when the alarm went off at 7:00 this morning. That is sleeping in for these kids so they must have been tired. Today is Father's Day so the kids gave Rodney his cards and gift. Happy Father's Day, Rodney!
We got ready, enjoyed our free hotel breakfast, and were on the road right on time at 8:30. Caleb enjoyed a Texas shaped waffle for breakfast. We won't be seeing any more of those for a while!
We drove in light rain until we got to New Mexico. We had forgotten that we would enter Mountain time zone and gain an hour today so we arrived at Carlsbad Caverns earlier than expected, which is good because we had a full day planned.
The drive from Lubbock to Carlsbad was mostly flat and spotted with very small towns. As soon as we entered the National Park, the landscape changed. We drove a 7 mile winding road up through the mountains until we reached the Visitor Center on top of a mountain. We ate our picnic lunch with a beautiful view. It was very windy, though, so we almost lost our lunches a few times!
Next up was the cave! I LOVE caves. I haven't been in many, but I am always game for a good cave tour. This one did not disappoint. It was AMAZING. I've never seen anything like it. If you're ever anywhere near Carlsbad, New Mexico, you MUST go to this cave.
There are two ways to get into this cave. If it were just Rodney and I, we would have hiked in through the Natural Entrance. Up until a few weeks ago, this was the only way in and out because the elevators have been out of service for some time. They are up and running again now so we saved ourselves an hour hike and 1.25 miles of walking. We didn't want the kids to already be burnt out and tired by the time we got into the cave.
We toured the Big Room and it lives up to its name. It was so big. And so quiet. Both kids were again very quiet and well behaved. The park ranger had instructed the kids to keep the parents in line and make sure we stayed close together. Caleb took this seriously and if I got even a few steps behind, he would say "Mom, how many times do I have to tell you? Stick together!" and he'd take my hand. I was happy to have Batman looking out for me.
My little spelunkers:
This is the Hall of Giants. The picture does not do it justice. None of the pictures do actually. These things were huge!
This is the Caveman formation. His profile is on the left side of the formation.
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| Close-up of the Caveman |
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| Crystal Spring Dome |
We spent about 2 hours touring the Big Room. The kids were so good and loved seeing everything. It was a great experience. When we finished the tour, we had to wait in line about 20 minutes to go back up in the elevator.
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| Line for the elevator |
We got cleaned up and had dinner before heading back to Carlsbad Caverns for the Bat Flight.
The Bat Flight was scheduled for 7:30 but we arrived early so the kids could turn in their Junior Ranger booklets. We picked them up this morning and they have been working hard all day to complete the tasks necessary to become a Junior Ranger. The Ranger looked over their books and Caleb told her that his favorite part of the cave was the popcorn formations.
Once the ranger approved their work, they took the Junior Ranger pledge.
Caleb took the pledge very seriously.
They were then given the choice between a plastic Junior Ranger badge or an embroidered patch. Both kids immediately picked the plastic badge, but we tried to talk them into getting the patch instead. Caleb changed his mind, but Morgan stayed strong with her original choice. Then she was mad at us for ruining for Junior Ranger experience by not liking her badge. She even gave us the silent treatment for a while. Her teenage years should be fun.
The Bat Flight takes place in a nice amphitheater with stone benches right outside the Natural Entrance. We got there early and chose seats about halfway up, but Morgan noticed there were seats open on the front row and suggested we move. Right after we moved down, the ranger came out and told everyone that her favorite seats are at the front in case anyone wanted to move before she started the program. Thanks to Morgan we already had the best seats!
The ranger started her talk at 7:30 and we were told that all electronic devices must be turned off from that point on and no pictures were allowed. When the bats began their exit from the cave, we were to remain seated and quiet so as not to disturb their natural behavior.
Around 7:45, someone said they saw bats starting to come out of the cave entrance. The ranger talk was immediately over and everyone went silent. The bats always come out of the cave in a corkscrew pattern in a counterclockwise direction. You never know what time they will appear or how many there will be or how long it will last. Tonight we saw bats coming out continuously for 30 minutes. It looked like a black tornado. There could have easily been over a million bats. We could even smell them. It sounded like a strong wind mixed with raindrops. Once they exited the cave entrance and canyon outside of it, they continued in group out into the night sky. Toward the end, I could see the black line of bats stretching as far as I could see. I can't even fathom how many bats we saw. Caleb later said that he counted them and there were four thousand million. But then he admitted he was just kidding, so who knows.
The sun was setting as we headed out of the park and we were treated to a beautiful almost full moon and sunset. The perfect ending to an enchanted evening.
Very cool! Another place on our to do list! Glad you are mapping it all out for us first :) We learned very quickly that the highlight of the day at that age was always the pool lol. Can't wait to follow along on the rest of the trip!
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