Class II Green River, KY

The rolling Pennyroyal country south of the Green River looks like a pockmarked World War I battlefield from the air. Those pockmarks aren’t from artillery shells impacting the ground; they come from a combination of rainfall, porous limestone and time. These forces created sinkholes that collect rainfall and power underground streams that course strongly with each storm. The streams eventually flow north to the Green River and emerge from the ground as springs such as Echo River Spring, River Styx Spring and Turnhole Spring. During the water’s travel from sinkhole to Green River over the millenia, it carved tunnels, caverns and huge rooms through the porous, easily dissolved limestone under the ridges along the south side of the river. These features seemed so gargantuan to the first visitors they called it Mammoth Cave, now recognized as the longest cave system in the world. Canoeists and kayakers may float the Green River right through the heart of Mammoth Cave National Park and witness one of the most unique geological areas on Earth. Mammoth Cave National Park is a World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve - recognition of the ecosystem’s international importance. (KYFWR)