VIEWPOINT: Mammoth Cave National Park
Kentucky is home to the world's longest and most interesting cave system.
Of the 426 documented miles of underground passageways in Mammoth Cave National Park, we have seen four. But those four were enough to convince us that this place is nothing like your average cave, both in terms of size and quality.
NATURE: MIGHTY FINE
Slot Canyons and Waterfalls… in a Cave?
Apparently there’s a bit of southern Utah under Kentucky. Some of the slot canyons in Mammoth Cave look an awful lot like The Narrows in Zion National Park, and while the waterfalls aren’t anywhere close to the scale of those in Yosemite, they’re still striking. Add these features to the unique rock formations typically found in caves, and you’ve got an endlessly interesting place to explore.
EXPERIENCE: MIGHTY FINE
Great Guides and Plenty of Options
On our brief visit to Mammoth Cave, we did the Grand Avenue Tour. This tour took us through four miles of the cave over the course of four hours, and it was led by a park ranger who shared stories, answered questions, and highlighted the features of the cave. It was one of the most comprehensive tours we’ve ever been on.
If we’d had more time here, we would have taken advantage of the numerous other options available. On a seasonal basis, the park service cycles through more than a dozen different tours that explore various areas of the cave. And if going underground isn’t your thing, the park also offers plenty of hiking, boating, and fishing opportunities on the surface.
VISITING: EASY
A Bit Off the Beaten Path, but Accessible
As our ranger guide put it, Mammoth Cave is “in the middle of nowhere, Kentucky.” He’s not wrong, but in this part of the country, “middle of nowhere” isn’t that far from somewhere. While there’s not much in the immediate vicinity of Mammoth Cave, it is sandwiched between Nashville and Louisville; both cities are fewer than 100 miles away.
And once you’re here, you’ve got everything at your fingertips. The cave tours all depart from the visitor center, and some of them are ADA accessible, featuring an elevator and paved walkways underground. This is not like the caves out west, which are sometimes hours from civilization and may require a helmet to enter.
STUPIDITY INDEX
The Stupid Will Be Fine
The nice thing about popular caves like Mammoth Cave is that The Stupid have few opportunities to hurt themselves. Explorers have mapped the cave’s passageways, and the park service has installed handrails, concrete paths, and elevators, so things tend to be pretty safe. And with an experienced ranger as your guide, the risk of self-inflicted injury is fairly low.
CATSBY’S TAKE
It Was Decent
I have no concept of time zones. So Mammoth Cave being just barely in Central Time meant nothing to me, except that I was being fed an hour later for no reason. At least there were birds and cars to watch outside the window.