Carlesbad Caverns National Park New Mexico Tourism

The world that exists deep below the surface is a subterranean marvel. Created slowly over the millennia, its beautiful formations awe visitors year-round.

Considered by many as the Eighth Wonder of the World it is, in fact, one of twenty World Heritage sites in the United States.

The creation of the caves began about 250 million years ago with the creation of a long reef in an inland sea. The sea eventually evaporated and left the reef buried under deposits of gypsum and salts.

When the Guadalupe Mountains were uplifted, 20 to 30 million years ago, they fractured the ancient reef. The groundwater that seeped into the cracks combined with hydrogen sulfide gas from the oil and gas deposits below, and created sulfuric acid. This acid is what carved out the large rooms and passageways that exist today.