Carlsbad, New Mexico

We have arrived in New Mexico. This is our 36th state in the last seven-and-half months of our travels. And a third time zone in the past week.

We visited the Carlsbad Caverns. Unlike most limestone caves that form when surface water flows through the cracks in the rock, these passageways in the Guadalupe Mountains are the rare product of sulfuric acid. Oil deposits mixed with the water table to create an aggressive chemical that dissolved holes in the subterranean limestone. As the mountains rose over a period of 20 million years, the caves dried out, revealing the wonders of Carlsbad.

This cavern has more than 30 miles of corridors and great chambers with massive stalagmites, stalactites and columns. We really wanted to go into the Bat Cave that serves as a summer home for the Mexican free-tailed bats, but these bats have migrated for the winter back to Mexico. In the summer months, there is a spectacular flight as these mammals fluttering out of the natural cave entrance as a thick whirlwind spiral of the mass of thousands of bats. This happens at dusk and can last 20 minutes to 2 1/2 hours. Then at dawn, they reenter in the same remarkable fashion.
The cave we did explore for two hours was the BIG ROOM, located 750 feet under ground. This cave is 600,000 square feet, the size of 14 football fields. It was very impressive and really breathtaking. It has a constant temperature of 56 degrees. As we toured the mile-and-a-quarter route, it became evident why Carlsbad Caverns is the prettiest of all caverns. It is a unique underground world.