Size: 46,766 acres (18,925 hectares), including over 33,000 acres (13,354 hectares) designated wilderness.
Location and terrain: Southeastern New Mexico; Guadalupe Mountains (primarily limestone) and Permian Basin (primarily gypsum).
Elevation: Ranges from 3,596 feet to 6,368 feet (1,036 m to 1,941 m) above sea level. The visitor center is at 4,406 feet (1,343 m).
120 caves known at this time: This number will change as exploration continues.
Largest caves in the park by surveyed length:
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Lechuguilla Cave, > 140 miles (225 km); 1,604.2 feet (489 m) deep. Access to this cave is limited to research and exploration only.
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Carlsbad Cavern, > 30 miles (48 km). Developed for public touring. The Big Room is 8.2 acres (3.3 hectares)-- the largest, readily accessible cave chamber in North America.
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Spider Cave, 3.52 miles (5.7 km). Undeveloped. Guided adventure tour.
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Slaughter Canyon Cave, 2.3 miles (3.7 km). Minimally developed. Guided adventure tour.
Annual visitation: ~ 500,000. Since 1924, the park has had over 44,000,000 visitors.
Park services:
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Paved entrance road, seven miles (11 km) from Hwy 62/180 to visitor center; with wayside exhibits.
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Visitor center (GPS location 32.174212°N; 104.445855°W), gift shop, cafeteria, bookstore, ticket counter, and information.
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National Park Service operates information and ticket desks, educational exhibits, theater, restrooms, and drinking fountains.
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Carlsbad Caverns Trading Company, LLC (contracted concessioner) operates: gift shop, restaurant, kennel, and ATM machine. In Carlsbad Cavern, at base of elevators, they operate a limited snack bar and merchandise sales area. www.carlsbadcavernstradingco.com.
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Walnut Canyon Desert Drive: scenic nine mile (14 km) drive off the main road, gravel road not recommended for low clearance vehicles or RVs.
- Rattlesnake Springs Picnic Area: For day use only, this 40 acre (16 hectares) area is about 2.5 miles (4 km) off highway 62/180 (turn off is about five miles (8 km) south of White's City). Tables, grills, restrooms, and water are available. Very popular with bird watchers.
- Over 50 miles (80 km) of backcountry trails, minimally maintained. No dependable water sources in the backcountry. Overnight camping in backcountry only with free permit from visitor center.
Surface ecosystems: Chihuahuan Desert, with Pinyon-Juniper in higher elevations and shrub/grass lands in lower; over 750 plant species.
Mammals: 67 species
Bats: 17 species known to live in the park. Three species roost inside Carlsbad Cavern. The largest colony is of Brazilian free-tailed bats, Tadarida brasiliensis-- population estimated at about 400,000.
Birds: 357 species. A large colony of Cave Swallows, Petrochelidon fulva, have nested just inside the cave entrance since 1966 and been banded and studied continually for over 30 years.
Amphibians and Reptiles: 54 species
Significant dates:
1903: Guano mining begins in Carlsbad Cavern, then known as "Big Cave" or "Bat Cave."
1915-1918: Ray V. Davis photographs Carlsbad Cavern, which stimulates interest in the cave. Davis' photos appear in the New York Times in 1923.
1923, April 6-May 8: First survey and mapping of cavern, performed by Robert Holly of General Land Office; his awe of the cavern and recommendations led to establishment as national monument.
1923, October 25: President Calvin Coolidge creates Carlsbad Cave National Monument.
1925: Wooden stair system built through cavern's natural entrance eliminates need for cavern visitors to enter via guano bucket.
1930, May 14: Congress designates Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
1931: First elevator shaft blasted and infrastructure installed and goes into operation in January 1932.
1950s: Throughout Carlsbad Cavern dirt trails and wooden stair systems are replaced with winding, paved trails.
1955: Second elevator shaft blasted and installation of larger capacity "passenger" elevators. These become the "primary" elevator system, while smaller original elevators are secondary.
1959, March: Construction of visitor center is completed with the most recent renovation completed in 2008.
1963: Bat Flight Amphitheater is constructed at the cavern's Natural Entrance to provide seating for visitors to view evening exodus of bats from cave.
1972, January 6: Self-guided tours of entire cavern are initiated.
1973, September: First public, guided tours of Slaughter Canyon Cave, then known as New Cave.
1986: Lechuguilla Cave discovered to have more than entrance pit. The current mapped length is over 140 miles.
1993, November: King's Palace guided tours start in "Scenic Rooms" portion of Carlsbad Cavern paved trail system because excessive damage, such as breakage, to cave features during twenty years it was self-guided.
1993-94: Scheduled "adventure tours" are started to Left Hand Tunnel, Lower Cave, Hall of the White Giant, and Spider Cave.
1995, December: Carlsbad Caverns National Park is designated a World Heritage Site.
