It's travel day again Sunday (Dec. 1) and like our other recent travel days, we don't have far to go. We are heading to Kartchner Caverns State Park just south of Benson, Arizona, about an hour and a half away. So we decided to go for a walk around the campground before packing up.
We pulled out of our site just before 11:00 and after a wait at the RV dump, we were finally on the road about a half hour later. Other than a few rough spots on I-10, we had an uneventful drive, arriving at Kartchner Caverns State Park just before 1:00...
After getting set up, I booked a cavern tour for Tuesday morning...tomorrow we will go for a hike!
Monday (Dec. 2) morning we hit the trails just before 10:00...deciding on the Foothills Loops Trail...
After lunch, Steve edited pictures and I worked on the blog finishing our stay at Catalina. Later that evening, we had a video call with Chris, Angela and Isaac...so we could sing "Happy Birthday" to Isaac. Hard to believe it is 6 years ago when we waited for word of his birth!
Tuesday (Dec. 3) morning we had reservations for the Big Room Cavern tour at 10:45. We decided to go over to the Discovery Center early to check it out.
It was just before 9:30 when we walked into the Discovery Center and were told by the folks at the front desk that there was room on the 9:45 tour if we wanted to take it...okay sure!
Big Room Tour...is half of a mile long and takes an hour and 45 minutes to complete, one hour of which is underground. The Kartchner Cavern story is about amazing discoveries past, present, and future. Marvel at the many strange and colorful formations. Learn about the cave fauna, both living and ancient. Experience the wonder of the cave’s discovery and learn about new scientific research and discoveries as ongoing studies continue.
Unfortunately no pictures are allowed to be taken inside the cavern. As a matter of fact, you are not allowed to take any items with you...No bags, cameras, cell phones, backpack carriers, purses, packs, bottled water, strollers, etc. are allowed into the cave while on tour. So I highly recommend you visit the website for Kartchner Caverns State Park to learn about the amazing discovery of the caverns and more about the park and tours. Click on "images" to see photos.
After our tour we went back into the Discovery Center, and into the theatre to watch the movie about how Kartchner Caverns were discovered. After that, Steve asked me if I wanted to go out for my birthday lunch (yes, today is my birthday)...I wasn't expecting that because we had gone out while we were at Catalina State Park (remember...Olive Garden was my birthday lunch). But, sure, I'd love another birthday lunch!
We ended up going to Mescal Bar and Grill...a spot that we had gone to with Dave and Leslie when we were here in 2018. I had actually forgotten about the place...until I looked back on our blog 😊. While we were on our way there, I received a text from Leslie wishing me a happy birthday. After I told her where we were going, she said that they would have bought lunch had they been with us, so she e-transferred money to cover it. Thanks Leslie and Dave!
See the gorilla out front...
Back home we spent the rest of the afternoon outside relaxing in the shade. I spent time reading and acknowledging all the wonderful birthday wishes I received on Facebook. We also had a lovely video call with Rob, Angie, Conner and Bryce. So great seeing them, even if it is virtually.
Wednesday (Dec. 4) we have a tour of the Rotunda/Throne Cavern. Our tour isn't until noon, so we headed over to the Discovery Center to check out the museum first.
Bones discovered in the caverns...
Steve took a short 26 second video...
Steve listening like a bat...
Once finished at the museum, we walked back to the trailer to drop off our phones since we can't take them on the tour...and then returned and waited for our tour.
Rotunda/Throne Tour...This tour is a half of a mile in length and takes approximately an hour and a half to complete, 50 minutes of which is underground. Discover the role that water plays in creating the caverns. You will see the discoverers' original trail, 45,000-year-old bat guano, delicate formations, and “Kubla Khan,” the largest column formation in Arizona.
The grand finale was sitting down and watching as the lights gradually lit up the cavern in front of us (with music playing), showing the amazing "Kubla Khan". WOW!!!!
Although the Big Room tour we went on yesterday was "grand", we both felt the Rotunda/Throne Tour was our favourite.
And that wraps up our stay at Kartchner Caverns State Park...we hit the road again tomorrow!
To me that’s one of the best caverns. Certainly the most interesting on how it was found and kept quiet until they could protect it.
ReplyDeleteIt’s a great story and a beautiful place to stay and explore for sure. We also liked the Carlsbad and Sonoran Caves too.
DeleteYou can take pictures in the caves .... if you did the photographer's tour which is only once a month and $125! at least there was one back in 2019 when we were there. I looked back at our blog and saw that I posted pictures from google. :)
ReplyDeleteYes, we saw that there was a photographers tour but that's too rich for us! ☺️
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