遊山記：我說，他說，她說（2）― 地下世界的水晶溶洞

我說：
水晶溶洞位於紅杉樹國家公園， 1918年被發現，每年從五月開放到十月。

水晶溶洞處於地下世界，所以要走一大段的下坡路。夏日炎炎，雖然綠樹成蔭，我們依然走得汗流浹背。快到洞口的時候，一條瀑布從天而降，為我們帶來了幾分清涼。就這樣，我們來到了水晶溶洞的門口。

穿過蜘蛛網大門之後，前麵是一個奇異的世界：曲折的潮濕小道，巨大的溶洞空間，潺潺的小溪流水，拋光的大理石造型，石鍾乳、石筍、石柱，還有洞中48°F冰凍的感覺。

站在大廳的中央，導遊關閉了所有的燈，然後我們感受空曠的黑暗、躲藏的蝙蝠、以及辛勤運作的流水。。。真是令人流連忘返。可是整個旅程隻有45分鍾，我們必須離開了，然後可以有下一批的遊客。

雖然參觀時間隻有45分鍾，但是到指定地點買票，車行蜿蜒曲折的山路，步行下坡與上坡，一切都是慢節奏的，消耗了太多的時間，我們來不及去看Tokopah峽穀的大瀑布了。

兒子說：
Today is Monday, the second day of the trip. Today’s highlight was the Crystal Cave tour. However, before we even got to the cave, we had to take a hike down a very steep path through marble rubble and across a creek with some small waterfalls. The area itself was quite pretty. The cave itself would be even more fascinating. The Crystal Cave was unique because its features are carved out of marble, not limestone like most other caves. This gave the features in the cave a white luster, which, under the correct lighting, could look like icy icicles. The features were quite amazing as well. The stalactites were not the standard ones that are shown in textbooks, but come together to form complex patterns. The tour guide mentioned that some of the carvings looked like a piano organ, Jabba the Hut, and a dragon. I personally felt that the features looked like delicious white chocolate desserts from the ruffled texture slightly rounded all with an unusual white hue. The rest of the day was mostly spent in the car. The many twists and turns made me rather dizzy, so I napped quite a lot.

女兒說：
We went hiking today. At first, we ran down the mountain to the entrance of Crystal Cave. When we got there, we went through many rooms. Unlike most caves, this particular cave was made of marble. And, the only thing that stopped us from having to swim our way through the cave was a pile of rubble. It was very awe-inspiring -- the fact that at any moment, a river could flow through some gaps and flood the cave.

Going back up was tiring, but we could take all the time that we wanted. Mommy got some good pictures. I also got quite numerous views of a waterfall. We rested frequently. All of that took so much time that we had to skip a perfect opportunity to hike a trail to see a waterfall. Not a tiny one. A huge, gigantic river that would tumble down a cliff and send a fine mist in your face…the Tokopah Falls.

We drove back to Cedar Grove Lodge. It took a long time, so long that we were supposed to switch stories and start listening to our other CDs, The Hobbit/There and Back Again. I fell asleep.

[林貝卡]

可愛的孩子，他們倆長得真象。