Touring the Carlsbad Caverns

I'm happy to report that Uma and I survived the really high winds that swept through SE New Mexico yesterday and through to early this morning!  Even with her nose pointing into the wind, there were times went Uma the VRRV was rocking!

I woke to a nice sunrise:

Spent about 5+ hours touring the caverns today.  I elected to do the hike to the bottom self tour.  It's quite the place I must say!  There were other folks checking out the caverns as well but it wasn't crowded at all.

You transit through a touring trap location called Whites City as you turn onto NM Highway 7 to cruise the 7 miles to the national park:

The "Natural Entrance" to the caverns is about 1/4 mile or so from the visitor center.  You can also just take the elevator down at the visitor center to the lowest levels and hike your way back up.

I decided to let gravity help me along the way.  The caverns were apparently discovered back in the day when people saw swarms of bats flying out in the evening.

Not sure when these flights happen, I'm sure they're seasonal.  The place has an amphitheater for the viewing of these bats:

you can see the cave opening

It's quite the series of hairpin turns on the path down into the caverns.  Pretty nicely laid out and good grip on the surface of the path.  

It sure felt more than 1.25 miles to me, but then again, I also did the "Big Room" loop as well.

I brought my tripod and still, some of the shots just didn't come out in focus!   Still, I must warn you that plenty did come out...standby for stalactite overload.  Once my eyes adapted to the darkness, I didn't need my flashlight at all to navigate the path.

Temple of the Sun

A nice reflection in one of several small pools

The Silent Bell (I think)

The Chinese Theater

These caverns are the most extensively festooned with stalactites and stalagmites that I've seen!  Well worth a visit!  The pictures make the place look like it was lit up but it was really just spot lighting used throughout.  I just used long exposure settings throughout.  Just enough light, mostly, once your eyes adapt to make sure you can see the path and the sights.

Started at 9:35 AM (you do need reservations) and was back at camp by 2:00 PM.  I was bushed and rested the rest of the day away.

Learned a couple of things the hard way:  

Though the caverns are reported to maintain a temperature of 56°F (13°C), they feel warmer the deeper you go.  I had layered up to ride over there on my TW200 in 32°F (0°C) temperatures and found I had to shed layers about 1/3 of the way into the routes. 

Could have been because I was warm and slightly sweating; but I got a bit dehydrated over the course of the tour and was feeling slightly dizzy at the end.  I'm thinking perhaps the caverns can also dehydrate one, so bring water!  There were water fountains at the end, by the elevators, otherwise you have to bring it.

So nice having the elevators to take you back up the 750 feet you just went down into the caverns!