Penetrating the Earth!

I had the opportunity today to take a tour of a part of our Earth that most people have never had the chance to see. I am currently in Texas and the local news had a story about the cave systems that dot the subterranean Texas landscape. The story focused on the large amount of rainfall during the last month and the fact that the caves are filling up with water. I knew that there were cowboys, longhorn steer and cacti in Texas but I did not know that there are caves. The story on the news described how most of the caves were now closed to the public and would be so until the water receded. I will only be here for a few more days, so we quickly made plans to head out and explore.

The cave we ended up going to is called "The Inner Space" cavern. It was discovered in 1963 when the Texas highway department was building Interstate 35. The crew was doing some ground core samples and came across a large airpocket. They drilled a larger hole and lowered one of their men down into a 40 foot high chamber.


Since that time the local family that owns the cave has turned it into a tourists attraction complete with a trolley that brings you down into the cavern and a snack bar full of all the best Texas meats. The tour guide was knowledgeable and some of the formations are incredible. The caverns were only partially open, as the rising water levels have made access impossible. The staff is predicting that they will be completely shutting down by the end of the week as the rest of the cave will soon be flooded. If you are ever in Texas, be sure to check out the caves. Just make sure that you avoid the meat at the snack bar.