Little girls, big world

So here's the thing: when the website promises a one-mile handicapped-accessible path, they're not lying, but they're not telling the whole truth either. It is indeed possible to push a small child in a stroller half a mile down the path through the woods and half a mile back, which adds up to a mile of paved path, as promised. However, what they don't tell you is that the paved path only goes about three-quarters of the way toward the cave, and the rest of the path is the extreme opposite of stroller-friendly. I don't know how far I ended up carrying the youngest grandchild this morning, but I definitely got a good whole-body workout.

I knew from the start that I couldn't manage both little girls at the more demanding caves, so we didn't even try to visit Old Man's Cave or Rock House. But we got to Ash Cave early enough to have the whole place to ourselves, and what a place it was. Sunshine dappled the high cliff walls as we walked the path through the woods, and the older granddaughter kept asking how big the cave would be. 

Big enough, child--big enough. I've never seen a photo do it justice. The little one focused on tossing rocks in the creek while her sister climbed rocks and took photos on her own little camera.

At Conkle's Hollow we heard pileated woodpeckers and watched butterflies flitting over towering Joe Pye weed alongside the creek. We saw some smaller caves along the paved path, but then we encountered steep steps and a narrow winding trail leading to the final cave, so it was time to leave the stroller behind and do some carrying. It was worth it, though, to see the little girls' wonder over the caves, the creek, and the waterfall. 

They were so impressed that they came right home and started building their own caves out of blankets and pillows. It's not as big as Ash Cave or as twisted as Conkle's Hollow, but it's just the right size for the resident spelunkers--and if it keeps them busy long enough, maybe I can get a nap.