This was a nice weather day for hiking and not having to drive anywhere. We took the Foothills Trail to the Ocotillo Trail to make one, nice long hike at Kartchner Caverns State Park.

We also wandered through the visitors center with displays about the area and a video about two cavers who discovered the cave here in the ’70s. There was one small hole that moist air smelling of bats was outgassing to mark where this remarkably large cave system was. They couldn’t believe their luck, and proceeded to contact the Kartchner family that owned the land in hopes of getting the cave developed for visitors and protecting what was a still-living cave. The family was quite excited and helped push through legislation in record time to get the place protected for future generations to see.

Tickets for the cave tours were sold out for the days that we were here, so we may have to make a day trip back from Tucson later.

The visitors center had a lovely garden outside with sample plants and a tool display that I really appreciated. A lot of work went into making this cave wheelchair accessible for all and the campground follows suit with the nicest bathrooms we have ever seen for those needing accessible places.