Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

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For reviews of all Mammoth Cave National Park tours, how to get tickets, what to wear, and rules for the tours, see the Cave Tours web page here on National Park Planner. Keep in mind that not all tours are offered year-round, and the schedule of what tours are available changes often. Be sure to check the National Park Service’s official Cave Tours web page for the current schedule.

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OVERVIEW

The Wondering Woods Tour at Mammoth Cave National Park combines a hike and a tour of Wondering Woods Cave. This is a new tour that only began in the fall of 2022. All ages are welcome, though those under 16 must be accompanied by somebody 18 or older. The tour lasts an hour and a half, including a bus ride to and from Wondering Woods.

Wondering Woods is the name of a former privately owned cave and tourist attraction located on Mammoth Cave Parkway (KY 70) just past the fork with Park City Road (KY 255). The owner, artist Herby Moore, created an 1880s frontier village and ran the attraction from the early 1970s until 1992, at which time he closed it due to a lack of business. In 1993, the Nature Conservancy purchased the property from Moore and donated it to the National Park Service the next year. The goal was to return the land to its natural state.

All of the Wondering Woods buildings were demolished by 2008 except for the Chapel Garden Gallery, which included an art gallery, meeting room, and a brick tower with a spire on top. When the National Park Service went to tear it down, it discovered that a colony of endangered Rafinesque’s big-eared bats had taken up residence in the tower. The main building, which was in poor shape, was torn down in 2010, but the tower and two entrance structures were left standing. The tower was converted into a bat hibernaculum and is now called the Wondering Woods Bat House.

Chapel Garden Gallery tower of the former Wondering Woods theme park (photo by Wayne Hsieh)

THE HIKE

Hike to Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

The hike portion of the Wondering Woods Tour takes place in what is called the Tranquil Valley of Wondering Woods, and the destination is Wondering Woods Cave. I didn’t have my GPS with me, but the hike is no more than a half mile (one mile round trip). The trail is a well-groomed gravel path, so there are no rocks or roots to trip over. The terrain is slightly hilly, but it’s not very difficult. If you can walk a half mile, you can hike to the cave without problem.

Typical terrain on the trail to Wondering Woods Cave, part of Mammoth Cave National Park

WONDERING WOODS CAVE

Wondering Woods Cave, which was originally called the Old Original Cave, does not connect to the Mammoth Cave system. It was discovered in the early 1900s and operated as a show cave, which are caves with plenty of stalactites, stalagmites, and other formations—collectively called speleothems—that tourists want to see.

Speleothems inside Wondering Woods Cave, part of Mammoth Cave National Park

If you have taken any tours of Mammoth Cave that began at the Historic Entrance, you know that it is not exactly pretty or what most people expect when they think of a cave. It’s more like being in a large mine shaft or a vehicle tunnel. The reason for this is because a top layer of sandstone covers most of Mammoth Cave, and this keeps water from dripping into it. Without dripping water, the speleothems cannot form. There are a few places where water has gotten in, but these areas are rare. Within Mammoth Cave itself, such formations are best seen on the Frozen Niagara Tour and the Domes and Dripstones Tour. (No need to take both, as Domes and Dripstones is just a longer version of the Frozen Niagara tour.)

Typical interior of Mammoth Cave near the Historic Entrance

Wondering Woods Cave, on the other hand, is a wet cave full of stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone, cave bacon, and other calcite formations that tourists expect from a cave. It is not very long—you can see from one end to the other. You must duck down when entering, but other than that, it is a large cavern reminiscent of Mammoth Cave, only with speleothems.

There are stairs to walk down at the start and stairs at the far end. If you want to limit your stair climbing, there’s not much to gain by climbing the staircase at the end. Most of the cool stuff is at the beginning and middle of the cave. If you do climb the staircase, there is a good view of the overall cave from the top.

Low ceiling at the entrance of Wondering Woods Cave, part of Mammoth Cave National Park

Staircase at the far end of Wondering Woods Cave, part of Mammoth Cave National Park

View of Wondering Woods Cave from the top of the staircase at the far end, Mammoth Cave National Park

The following are photos of the various speleothems inside Wondering Woods Cave.

Flowstone and drapery formations inside Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

Calcite formations inside Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

Flowstone and drapery formations inside Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

Flowstone and drapery formations inside Wondering Woods Cave in Mammoth Cave National Park

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