Carlsbad Caverns National Park

As I descended into the depths of Carlsbad Caverns, the word that kept popping into my mind was "otherworldly." Another description of the cave comes from Will Rogers: "the Grand Canyon with a roof on it." No matter the words, the cavern is a wonder to behold. Dim photos of the weird calcite formations and voluminous underground space capture but a fraction of its grandeur.

Park visitors can choose to enter the cave either by way of its gaping natural entrance and a lengthy, downward-sloped hike or take an elevator 750 feet below the surface directly to the Big Room, the largest known underground room in the Western Hemisphere equivalent in area to about fourteen football fields. (The world's largest underground room is in Borneo.)

I made it to Carlsbad Caverns National Park a stroke past 3 p.m. last Sunday. My timing was fortuitous because the natural entrance closes at 3:30. I started my expedition into the cave just before they locked the gates. The descent into the huge space eroded by ancient seas is dark, slippery, and steep but marked by plenty to see.

Well-known formations like stalactites, hanging tight to the ceiling, and stalagmites that might one day reach it decorate the gloom. Lesser known formations such as draparies, soda straws, flowstones, cave pearls, popcorn, and helectites also encrust the cavern's floors, walls, and ceiling.

The descent to the Big Room leads past a wide assortment of wonders: Devils Spring, Whales Mouth, Iceberg Boulder, and the Boneyard to name a few. The Big Room itself features many more: Twin Domes, Giant Dome, Bottomless Pit, and Rock of Ages. I spent about an hour and a half exploring the cave and then had to wait another hour or so for an elevator ride back to the surface.