The next morning (3-25) we had a ride of
just 30 miles from Bowling Green to Mammoth Cave National Park.
I am no longer amazed, but rather just amused, about the perception of
non-bicyclists relative to the terrain. We
had been warned south of Bowling Green that it was “all uphill to Mammoth Cave”
from there. It turned out to be rolling
terrain with just one uphill of any significance.
We reached
Mammoth Cave by about 11:00 and checked our cave tour options at the Visitor Center. They weren’t real good. We could wait until 2:00 for a two hour guided
tour or we could take the self-guided tour anytime between 10:00am and 2:00pm. We didn’t want to hang around there half the
day, so we opted for the self-guided tour. Now
I’ve been to Mammoth Cave twice previously and I know there is great beauty here, but
you certainly don’t get to see any of it on the self-guided tour. All you get is a walk of about one-half mile
through the natural entrance and down the main tunnel of the cave. We didn’t get to see one stalactite or
stalagmite or cave formation of any kind. Let
me say with very good hindsight that anyone going to Mammoth Cave on a weekend or during
the summer should make reservations in advance for the better cave tours.
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In truth, the cave is really something
special and well worthy of its status as a National Park.
It’s the largest cave system in the world with more than 350 miles of
explored passageways, and geologists estimate that there could be another 600 miles of
unexplored passageways. Like most caves,
Mammoth Cave was formed by the slow dissolution of limestone by groundwater. Over time, the groundwater formed underground
streams and the small streams converged to form the large underground rivers that are
today’s cave system. As the Green River
has carved deeper into the hills from the surface, the cave streams have responded by
creating newer, lower level routes for sub-surface water.
The passageways at the top of the cave system haven’t held water for
millions of years, but at depths of up to 450 feet below the surface, cave streams are
still forming new passages.
The cave
system was discovered by European settlers in the late 1790s and became an important
source of saltpeter (used in gunpowder) during the War of 1812. The saltpeter was mined by slaves, some of whom
became the first cave guides when people began to visit around 1816. One of them, Stephen
Bishop, became legendary. Bishop
discovered more miles of cave passageway than anyone before or since, was the first to
cross the previously impassable Bottomless Pit, and the first to see the eyeless fish that
inhabit the cave streams.
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The unfortunate and
ultimately fatal plight of another amateur cave explorer, Floyd Collins,
helped bring Mammoth Cave to national attention in 1925.
Collins became stuck in a small passageway in nearby Sand Cave, and for
several days, the nation’s attention was riveted on this part of Kentucky as rescuers
attempted to extricate him. Despite great
effort by a large number of rescuers, he died before they could free him. The publicity of the event, however, led directly
to the authorization of the National Park in 1926 and its full establishment in 1941. In 1981, Mammoth Cave was named a World Heritage
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Since this is Gene’s final day as a
member of the Last G.A.S.P. Bicycle Tour, I’ve asked him to summarize his feelings
about his journey over the past three weeks. Go
to it Gene – it’s been great to have you along.
The
thing that I had to continually remind myself, one of Gary’s rules, that this is a
journey, not a trip. Another thing that I had to remind myself was to concentrate on
little pieces each day and enjoy what was passing us by as we rode. The people that I
encountered, people that I did not know or will probably never see again, were genuinely
interested in what we were doing. Several places where we stopped to have lunch were like
stepping back in time 20 or 30 years. I was amazed at the low prices and wondered how
these little local eateries could stay in business.
The hardest thing for me to do was to learn to be flexible. I’ve spent
much of my adult life, yes I am old, living a scheduled style of living. Now that I’m
retired, learning to relax and not be so driven has been difficult. This journey has been
a big help in that department. As Gary leaves tomorrow to finish his journey, I wish him
the best, and thank him for allowing me to join him on this leg of his journey. Thanks,
for a great time.
(Great
Adventures to Scenic Places)
