Bat Swarm Emergence at Carlsbad Caverns

Here's the short video of the "Bat Flight" that I had the opportunity to see, & that I had mentioned in my last post. ( I didn't film this... photography & filming are off limits... I think the guy who did the filming had some clout!) Just push play below... you may have to wait a few seconds for it to start. Pretty amazing stuff... I had never seen anything like it.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Has anyone out there been to the Carlsbad Caverns? It's a pretty amazing place. It's a four hour drive from my place, but it was well worth it. You can enter via an elevator, or the "Natural Entrance..." I chose the natural entrance, so I could check out all there was to see on the way down. Either way, you will descend about 755 ft below the Earth's surface. The view looking in~

And the view looking out... the last daylight I'd see for awhile!

Photographing the inside of the caves is tough. It's dimly lit & my flash doesn't carry that far.

It is estimated that the growth of these underground formations began 500,000 years ago.

Stalactites above... Stalagmites & flowstone below~

The formations are basically formed by little drops of water & the mineral calcite... over many, many years. More interesting formations~

Without a tripod, there is no way to show the immensity of the place, due to the lack of lighting. I walked along underground paths for 2 miles marveling at the formations. There are many "rooms" to the caves, the largest aptly named "The Big Room," and is 8.2 acres if you can imagine that! If anyone is planning on going... a few recommendations:

1) Don't go on the Weekend! I had no choice, due to my work schedule... but it was crazy crowded!

2) If you are into photography... bring a tripod to capture the magnificence of the place.

3) STAY for the evening "Bat Flight..." this is not to be missed! You aren't allowed to take pictures, but I have found a wonderful short video I will post later... but for now, I'm off to enjoy the rest of the weekend!

:)