This national park has been called ‘the Grand Canyon with a roof over it’

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is known for its caves, but there’s a lot more to the national park, which celebrates its centennial this year.

Despite its name, there is only one Carlsbad Cavern, but there are many other caves in the park. There’s also plenty to see above ground, including the park’s famous bats, brilliant night sky and the rugged beauty of the Chihuahuan Desert.

“The combination of the desert ecosystem, being so kind of harsh and fragile with hot temperatures and stabby plants, and then the fragile nature of the cave ecosystem beneath your feet is a really neat contrast,” said Anthony Mazzucco, a park guide and acting supervisory park ranger at Carlsbad Caverns. “The bats being like a link between the cave and the desert kind of brings it all full circle. It's a really powerful lesson in the way our ecosystems work and relate to each other.”

Here’s what visitors should know about Carlsbad Caverns, the latest national park in USA TODAY’s yearlong series. 

How many caves are in Carlsbad Caverns?

There are at least 120 known caves in Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The only one open to the general public is Carlsbad Cavern. Mazzucco explained most caves are off limits to visitors and park staff not only for their safety but to protect the cave ecosystems.

“Those areas of the self-guided routes in Carlsbad Cavern, and to an extent even the guided tour areas, have all been kind of sacrificed in a way,” he said. “The infrastructure and the lighting and the trail system create an element of permanent damage to the cave. (It) is great because you can allow people to see it up close and personal and learn about it in a safe manner, but some caves, that’s just not possible to do it in.”

Cavers can get recreational permits for other caves in the park, but that program is on hold, as are interpretative tours of Slaughter Canyon Cave. The only ranger-led tour now available is the King’s Palace Tour of Carlsbad Cavern.

What’s so special about Carlsbad Cavern?

Carlsbad Cavern is full of mesmerizing rock formations that visitors can explore at their own pace.

The park notes the humorist Will Rogers once likened it to “the Grand Canyon with a roof over it,” adding “it’s got all the cathedrals of the world in it, with half of ’em hanging upside down.”

Do you have to make a reservation for Carlsbad Caverns?

Reservations are required to enter the cavern itself. They must be made in advance at Recreation.gov or by calling 877-444-6777. 

Reservations cost $1 per person, regardless of age. A $15 cavern entrance fee is also required for visitors ages 16 and up. Cave entry is free for guests age 15 and under, but they still need a $1 reservation.

“Anything on the surface, no reservation and no entry fee is needed into the park,” Mazzucco said. “So any surface hiking trails or watching the Bat Flight Program we do in the summertime evenings or any astronomy dark sky programs or just starwatching on their own, wildlife viewing, if the park has any special presentations or looking around the visitor center exhibit hall or doing any shopping in the bookstore, all of that is free.”

Visitors should note a number of surface hiking trails and Walnut Canyon Desert Drive are closed because of flood damage. The latest conditions and closures can be found on the park’s website.

What months are the bats at Carlsbad Caverns?

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to 17 bat species.

“The colony that we're famous for is referred to as Brazilian freetailed bats,” Mazzucco said. The migratory bats spend the summer roosting in Carlsbad Cavern, arriving as early as April and staying until September or October. “By the fall, whenever the weather gets a little colder, there's no insects around to eat, the bats will migrate south to Mexico or further south in Central America.”

Weather permitting, each night during the summer, rangers host a free Bat Flight Program talk at the park’s Bat Flight Amphitheater, where visitors can watch hundreds of thousands of bats take flight from the cavern’s Natural Entrance. The third Saturday of each July, the park hosts a bat celebration.

“Every day we like to celebrate our flying mammal friends, but for Dawn of the Bats, is kind of a day focus on that education,” Mazzucco said. “We typically have these ranger talks in the evening to watch the bats exit the cave every night. For Dawn of the Bats,  we kind of reverse it, and some of our staff will get up pretty early and invite the public to join right around sunrise for a chance to watch or mainly listen to the baths return to the cavern.” Other activities are held throughout the day.

How long does it take to walk through Carlsbad Cavern?

Exploring Carlsbad Cavern can take as little as 45 minutes to more than 2½ hours, depending on whether visitors walk the steep path down from the cave’s Natural Entrance or take an elevator to the relatively flat Big Room.

“For being such an extreme environment, it's fairly accessible, all things considered,” Mazzucco noted. “If folks have any of their own mobility devices, you know, wheelchair, electric scooter, one of those kinds of knee carts if they have a leg injury, things like that, A-OK to go down the elevator and explore most of the Big Room. We just kind of prohibit those devices on the main corridor section because of the steep switchbacking trail to prevent any safety issue.”

There are more than 60 switchbacks on the Natural Entrance Trail, which he said descends 750 feet or the equivalent of three-quarters of the height of the Empire State Building. 

National parks for every body:How to make the outdoors more accessible to people with disabilities

Is Carlsbad Caverns the biggest cave in the US?

The Big Room is the largest single cave chamber by volume in North America, but Carlsbad Cavern is not the biggest cave.

Mammoth Cave in Kentucky is the longest known cave system in the whole world.

What is the closest city to Carlsbad Caverns? 

Carlsbad Caverns is 20 miles away from Carlsbad, New Mexico, and 145 miles away from El Paso, Texas. El Paso International Airport is the nearest major airport. 

How close are White Sands and Carlsbad Caverns?

The national parks are less than 3½ hours apart by car.

Carlsbad Caverns is actually closer to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas. They are just over 30 minutes away from each other.

Who are the Indigenous people of Carlsbad Caverns?

According to the park, prehistoric Native peoples lived in the Guadalupe Mountains 12,000 to 14,000 years ago, and Mescalero Apache arrived in the area in around 1400.

Mazzucco said that while there is so far no known evidence of these early residents going far into the dark zone of Carlsbad Cavern, they did leave pictographs and rock art near the Natural Entrance of the cavern. “Folks hiking down the main corridor, they kind of walk past that area, and keen observers can notice them,” he said. “There are lots (more) within the park, mostly in hard to reach backcountry areas that have some specific closures.”