We drove across southern New Mexico and it looked like the old west. Arid with low scratchy bushes. You could just imagine the cowboys and Indians riding across this landscape. There was a lot of history just in that. In fact we read a little about it on rest stop plaques. We saw it represented in sculptures on downtown streets. But there was more to this state’s history, and it was hiding beneath the surface.
Admittingly we didn’t even know about the Carlsbad Caverns ahead of time. We recently found out about them from another travelling family. And they were right about the place; it was really cool!
We didn’t know what to expect. So imagine when we showed up and found there were 2 entrances into the cavern. One was the “natural entrance” which resembled a ginormous mouth that looked as if it were going to gobble you up as you got closer. The other entrance was by elevator, dropping you down 800 feet! From there, you went even deeper into the earth.
The place is wonderfully fascinating. It began way back on Pangea during the Permian Period. New Mexico was located at the equator and an inland sea and reef used to be where the Carlsbad Caverns currently is. The sea dried up, the earth changed and mountains rose up. The higher they rose the further away the water table got. This is where this cave system is different from others.
Other caves are usually formed because surface water flows down through cracks and slowly enlarges the passageways in them. They typically are wet with streams and rivers running through them. Carlsbad Caverns on the other hand has no water running through it.
So How Where They Created?
While other cave systems rely on erosion from the surface water (which does contain/ carry a weak carbonic acid with it) to create them, The passages in the Carlsbad Caverns were made from a “sulfuric acid bath” eating away at the limestone. The sulfuric acid came about from the combination of oxygen, microbes, and hydrogen sulfide (from oil) all mixing.
Now with these openings/ passages created underground, room was made for speleothems (cave formations) to grow. We learned that the many beautiful and different types of formations are not currently growing because there is not enough surface water soaking through the ground.
While down below, we toured part of the area on our own and then paid for a guided tour of a section called the King’s Palace.
“What did you like about the guided tour?”
Tyler: “You get to see more stuff and learn more.”
Ellie: “I liked it, but I was so hungry, so I don’t remember.”
Jason: “I like the guide. He made it fun.” Anjeane: “You learn so much more about the stuff this way.“
When we went below, we also made sure to bring our black light. We would hold it on different rocks, then turn off the light. Some of the rocks would glow for a few seconds from within. We were able to share this experience with a little girl and her dad, and it seemed like it made their experience just that much better.