As one continues to descend into the cave by a long series of switch-backs, the light begins to fade. The air becomes more humid and cool. Carlsbad, unlike many other caves uses differently colored lights to draw your attention to particular formations. This site has number of photographs
The park offers guided walking wild cave tours and self guided crawling cave explorations. Due to various hazards in the caves such as low oxygen levels and poisonous gases and the fact that the caves are a non-renewable natural resource, ALL CAVES in the park are closed except through tour or special permit.
This cave has some wonderful formations and scenes throughout the tour. Bill Stephenson, founder of the National Speleological Society, says, " The beauty of the Caverns of Sonora cannot be exaggerated, not even by a Texan." cave photographs
Geology programs to be given by Al Gerow, on site geologist for Longhorn Cavern State Park. Programs are held by reservation - min. 10 people. One special program includes a one-hour 25-minute geological tour of Longhorn Cavern and 30-minute geological seminar
Discovered in 1963 by a construction crew working on the interstate highway at Georgetown. note: students at the University had seen part of the cave system in 1947 (personal experience)
The cave has been used as a shelter since prehistoric times. Among legends about the cave is one that the outlaw Sam Bass hid a $2 million cache of stolen money inside. Confederates made gunpowder in the cave during the Civil War. Legend also says Texas Rangers rescued a kidnapped girl from Indians in the cave.
At least 9,500 caves, sinkholes and springs are known in Texas, distributed in karst regions covering about twenty percent of the state. Karst is a terrain formed by the dissolution of bedrock, and generally is characterized by sinkholes and caves that channel water underground.
The Texas Cave Conservancy is a non-member, non-profit, Texas Corporation dedicated to the protection of caves, cave life, and aquifers as related to caves. We do this through public education, scientific research, and cave management.