Last February during my trip to
Arizona, I visited Kartchner Caverns located in the Whetstone
Mountains in Southern Arizona (near Benson). I did not expect to be so
fascinated by these vast caverns. These caves are located in
the mountain above, so the;y are warmer than most caves—about 68
degrees F. The caverns were first formed around 200,000 BCE but were
not discovered until 1974. They are considered a living cave, that
is, a wet cave still growing formations.
I bought the book below in the gift
shop and it is hard to write about. It is too full of fascinating
information. I can't choose what to include. Basically it is the
story of how Gary Tenen and Randy Tuffs discovered the cave. They only shared
the information with a few trusted friends who were sworn to secrecy.
They were afraid it would be vandalized if others discovered it. They
continued to explore the caverns. Finally, after three years, they
told the Kartchner family who owned the property. It took years to
complete a plan that would protect the caves and allow the public to
visit them. Kartchner Caverns finally opened to the public in 1999, A brief history is at the Kartchner Caverns site.
