Carlsbad Caverns is a National Park in New Mexico. The main attraction of Carlsbad Cavern is the amazing cavern below ground. Above ground there are some amazing vistas on this desert land, amazing driving trails, and hiking trails. However, if you’re here for the main attraction, there are 2 main ways to get into this large cavern, walking the Natural Entrance Trail or taking the elevator down 750 feet into the cavern. We choose to walk down and then ride up. This cavern was an amazing, large cave that took our breathes away.

What we enjoyed most (I believe) is the fact that this is a self guided tour of the cave, you don’t need to be part of a large group all staying together that is timed with a set path. You can walk at your own pace and see what you do or do not want. The cavern does not have the normal closed in feeling that is common when exploring caves – the spaces were wide open and amazing. The aptly named “Big Room” has a 1.25 mile trail that is fairly flat. The most challenging part of the cavern for us was walking down the natural entrance trail which is a 1.25 mile trail that is a steep downhill path. There are parts that level off to rest your legs and ankles, but we were definitely not brave enough to try that hike out. Luckily for us, there is an elevator that you can take out (or in) from the cave to save that hike.

This was definitely one of my favorite caves that I’ve been to in the United States.

–lunarsword