Our first sighting of Mega Cavern came as a shock. We were expecting a huge tourist attraction, not a working cavern. We parked in the small parking lot and began our descent into the underground by wandering through a hall filled with fun facts about the history of the cavern. (Did you know the temperature of the cavern stays at a balmy 58 degrees year round?) We arrived at the underground activity center and waited for our tour to begin. Because one of the past functions of the cavern was a government fall -out shelter in case of nuclear attack during the Cuban Missile Crisis, we watched propaganda videos made by the government during our wait. It was a fascinating slice of history.
Tours begin on the hour and soon we were boarding the Mega Tram for our adventure through the underground. Our guide immediately made everyone feel at home by sharing a few jokes and a brief history of the cavern. The cavern was designed as a limestone quarry in the 1930’s and is still in use as a business today. Boasting high security storage, the cavern is now used by government agencies and high security businesses such as Loomis, who were looking for a virtually indestructible storage facility. We passed business after business as our guide explained the cavern could withstand damage from earthquakes or manmade disasters.
A favorite stop for the kids on the tour was the recycling center. Our guide explained how paper was brought into the cavern and consumed by Canadian red worms to make an extremely fertile soil. When our guide asked if anyone would like to taste a worm, one brave soul raised his hand to prove to his nephew he did not mind eating a worm. While several kids offered to be test tasters, our guide assured us this opportunity was only available to people over 18. The kids were appropriately awed and never realized, due to the darkness, that the adult had been given a gummy worm.
I enjoyed the replica of the fall-out shelter, designed for 50,000 people in the 1950’s. With only four highly secured entrances, the families who would have moved into the cavern planned to stay there until after the nuclear fallout was over and it was safe to return above ground. The tour lasted approximately 70 minutes and kept both the kids and adults entertained with tidbits of history, geology and even a few ghost stories for the brave of heart!
If you go:
- The cavern is damp and a little chilly. Cold natured guests should take a jacket on the tour.
- The tour requires no walking so it is accessible for everyone. Be sure to arrive 15 minutes early to purchase tickets.
- Zip Line Tours throughout the cavern are available for the brave and offer an up close look at the caverns which cannot be seen from the tram.
- Tickets are $13.50 for adults and $8 for children 3-11. They can be purchased in advance.
Some of the limestone veins in the cavern.
We received complementary passes to Mega Cavern. All opinions are my own.
My DH loves to explore caves and we have been to couple of them. I loved the part about tasting red worm. 🙂
Wow, this must have been an amazing experience. I know a lot of Science Buffs who would love to take this tour.
I haven’t been to our caves for awhile. Nice shots you got.
That’s beautiful and you got some great shots. I’m not entirely sure I would be able to make it through there though. I’m not big when it comes to going underground but I can live through your experience. Thanks for sharing.
Okay that looks like an amazing place to visit! I need to go there if we are ever in the area.
Wow that looks like such an awesome place! I used to love visiting caves as a child something mysterious and magical about them. x
Wow. I just live for this kind of stuff. Looks absolutely amazing.
I can’t wait to visit places like these with my kids. I know there are caverns in PA and NY – maybe when they’re older.
I’ve never visited any place like that before. It would be a treat to go!
Wow, looks like you had a lot of fun while exploring undergound! I would love to see the a government fall -out shelter. Great photos.
Wow, this is quite the background! I’d be a bit freaked to walk through, but it sure foes look cool.
I would love to walk in those caverns, they look so adventurous!
A zip line tour?! That sounds awesome. What a cool experience!
I lived in KY for 20 years and never heard of Mega Caverns! The worm thing is so funny!!!
It is kinda scary looking. There is a similar one in Jamaica that I have been into a few times.
I haven’t done the cave exploration thing in far too long. I went with my daughter in Ohio once, but before that it was in childhood! I need to go!
What a neat place to get to explore. I’d love to go and explore some caverns with my family.
Wow, that is really neat! I just heard of a place around here called “The Ice Caves” that I have been curious to check out.
HOLY COW! This is cool. I’d love to zip line through these caverns! But I’m a little nervous, I think I might freak out being underground…
Okay that is super cool for sure. I would love to see that.
That looks great!!! I love exploring caves we have done them a couple times, its always a blast!
This looks like such a great adventure! It is on my bucket list for sure!
What a cool place to visit, That’s too funny about the worm!
Wow, that looks like a really cool place to go exploring!! I have only been to one cavern but it was full of gross bats. Ew!
My kids love to travel and taking them to places like this would be amazing for them…. and me too!
I’d love some Mega Cavern time. My daughters would seriously ADORE this place. Thank you for the amazing pictures!
That is sooo incredibly neat! How fun!
wow what fun! I’d love to go to a place like this with our family.
wow what a super cool experience, my boys would so love this!
I’ve visited Louisville a few times but didn’t know about the Mega Caverns. My brother lives close by. I’ll have to see if he can check them out before he transfers in October!
Oh my goodness, what a great experience… We have some caverns here in Texas and haven’t been in years. This makes me want to go back! Thanks for sharing
SOOO beautiful.
Wow getting to look around a cavern like that must of been amazing!
That would be a great little adventure for my kids. I love the anecdote about the worm and the recycling. How funny is that? My kids would be appropriately awed at that also. LOL.
What a neat place to visit. Looks like something I would enjoy.
That looks like quite the experience! Great photos!
We’ve been to a cavern up the road from us. It was interesting. I wish I had left the kids at home.. all the stairways made it tough.
I have never been to one before, but have always wanted to check one out!
Oh I love touring caves like that! It looks so much fun! My kids would love it too!
That is hilarious about the gummi worm! hahaha I’d never have volunteered – did the volunteer know in advance?!
Haha, no, he didn’t. He thought he was going to have to eat a Canadian Red Worm. I wouldn’t have volunteered either!
Mega Cavern looks like a great place for a family outing. My boys would absolutely love the adventure of exploring the caves. The displays are super informative as well, so they can learn by seeing AND doing.
That is so cool. I remember being in something similar in upstate NY and I was amazed by it.
Mega Cavern is just gorgeous. The colors of the cave walls are beautiful, and the displays seem very informative and entertaining. Gummy worms… LOL.
The colors really are amazing. Mother nature sure does it right 🙂
I agree, I love seeing the different colors and designs in the wall!
This is absolutely amazing! I find caves to be very intriguing both for their structure and how they were made. I’d love to visit Mega Cavern and have an adventure!