Go deep, see an underground waterfall on a cave tour at this Kentucky State Park

Year round, Carter Caves State Resort Park, near Olive Hill, has a little bit of something for everyone.

“Summer season, as you might well expect, is probably our most busy time of the year,” said Paul Tierney, a naturalist at the park.

But spring offers a different experience: bountiful and colorful wildflowers.

“And fall time, color change,” he said. “In winter time, the entrances to caves will have ice stalactites and stalagmites. So it’s not just a summer destination for a lot of people.”

Carter County, in northeast Kentucky, is home to more than 200 named and mapped caves, Tierney added. About 50 of those caves are located within the state park.

“We offer two cave tours year round, and that’s Cascade and X-Cave,” he explained. “Cascade is probably our most popular tour. It’s an hour-and-15-minute-long tour – three quarters of a mile walking distance. You get a really great overview of kind of what caves in this area look like: large rooms, active water. It also features a small underground waterfall.”

X-Cave, while smaller, offers some of the best and largest formations in the park, Tierney said.

“Those two caves are the main caves you get a chance to explore on a commercial basis, he said. “And that’s lit, prepared, steps, handrails, those types of things and you go with a guide.”

▪ Carter Caves State Resort Park is located at 344 Caveland Drive, Olive Hill, Kentucky.

This story was originally published June 6, 2024 at 10:00 AM.