What Is Mammoth Cave National Park?
Mammoth Cave National Park preserves the world’s longest known cave system and the terrain above it!
What Makes It Beautiful?
Mammoth Cave is full of possibilities, from vast cave formations to an underground river to a host of 366 animal species and 1,325 plant species! On my tour, I didn’t see much of any of that! The Domes and Dripstones tour was a dim, narrow trek up and down stairs with only one formation room, so that’s what I’m going to focus on.
The Frozen Niagara dripstone formation is a final stop on a lot of tours, because it is the most ornate and accessible formation, but what really caught my attention was the grander entrance into that room. After wandering through tunnels that had been scraped clean of speleothems, this vast room around the everflowing Showerbath Spring that drops in from the ceiling, feels like a lost world of pools and stalactites that appears and disappears in the blink of an eye! To me, that was the highlight of beauty on my tour, though I know there’s so much more to see in this mammoth-sized national park!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Pay the tour fee to help maintain trails, signs, structures, and other visitor services!
- Volunteer at Mammoth Cave National Park!
- Donate to Mammoth Cave National Park!
- Be a responsible visitor! Remember the old adages: Pack out what you pack in! Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints!
How Do I Get There?
1 Mammoth Cave Parkway
Mammoth Cave, KY 42259
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit the Park?
The park is open 24/7, but the visitor center’s hours vary by season! In spring, it’s open from 8:00 AM until 6:00 PM, in summer from 8:00 AM to 6:30 PM, in fall from 8:00 AM until 6:00 PM, and in winter from 8:30 AM until 4:30 PM!
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