Today, on our way to Las Cruces, New Mexico, we visited Kartchner Caverns State Park.
It was discovered in November 1974 by two cavers Randy Tufts and Gary Tenen. They had found a sinkhole in the Whetstone limestone mountain.
After crawling inside the cavern for a length of a football field they arrived at the 'Big Room', the mother lode of all caverns, never to be seen before by human eyes.
They swore secrecy for many years, afraid that the caverns would get vandalized if they became public knowledge. The park story had many ups and downs, that involved the land owners, James and Lois Kartchner, Charles R. Eatherly, Special Projects Coordinator for the Arizona State Parks Board, two governors and a lot of money, which the state did not have. They were called the secret caves, and at one point of the story Eatherly had to be blindfolded and driven in the middle of the night for a cave tour to convince him that this was really worth it his attention.
For many reasons, it took a long time before the caves became a state park in 1988, and then opened to the public in 1999.
We took the 'Big Room' tour. Pictures were not allowed so we don't have anything to show.
Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and gave a healthy slew of jokes. The caverns were amazing.
The tour start with airlocks and a spray of water to remove particles from our bodies. It was like entering a space shuttle before take off! They are really serious about preserving these caves.
We learned about different formations: stalactites, stalagmites, drapery, bacon drapery, soda straws, columns, fried eggs, popcorn... by the end of the tour I was hungry!
The 'Big Room' caves are closed during the summer for the local bat population mating season. I wish I could see them in there. Instead we saw many piles of guano.
My daughter called me from the Women's rally in San Diego, and I felt bad to have missed it. So I did my part in the parking lot :D
We spent the night in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
In the evening we went out for a drink at La Posta de Mesilla in Mesilla. This restaurant has been around since the town was founded. There were rooms everywhere and a cage with several big parrots, including two macaws. I always get sad when I see birds in a cage, but these guys seem to be well taken care of.
We talked to the bartender to find out what we could see in El Paso. She named few places but at the end we were not too impressed. It looks like Mesilla fitted more out mood.
We also talked to a girl, Tracy from Florida, California and New York. She was a lot of fun, smart and witty. She told us about other places to visit in the south and we took note.
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| Sopaipillas con miel |
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