The Cave at Cave Spring

We made it out to a Cave Spring today to visit, not surprisingly, the cave and the spring for which the town is named. There isn't too much else there that might draw a tourist into town, but the spring is locally famous for the drinkable water that flows right out of the ground, producing 2 million gallons of  naturally purified water per day. Sure enough, while we were there, folks were filling gallons jugs of the water from a little collection pool right at the source. The spring was the site of a Cherokee settlement and the original Trail of Tears route runs right through the small town of Cave Spring, too.

This cave was the first that either of my sons had ever been in, so there was a bit of nervousness heading in, and this one was a bit unlike the others I have been in out west. The cave was damp all over, which makes sense when you think about it's proximity to the spring. Inside, it's a constant 57 degrees all year long. Lights are suspended from the ceiling and the size of the cave is such that you could fully explore it in probably 15 minutes or so.

The main "room" is impressive in size and opens up right in front of you after a narrow approach hall. Below, you can see a stairway that is carved into the ground that leads to a hole at the surface, but nowhere else.

Daylight peaks through from surface holes here and there...