We have a winner!

Meet Aaron.
He won the Willow Tree Nativity Scene and plans to share it with his family.

You can win too!

You can win too! Drop by Wildflower Gifts through Sunday, December 23rd to registar for our next drawing. You may register one time each day! Our store hours are 9:30am-6:00pm, 7 days a week.

Don’t forget about our December Events!

Sip & Shop – Winter Tastings
Every Friday & Saturday from 11am-3pm

Kids’ Only Christmas Shopping
Saturday, December 8 from 11am-3pm

12 Days of Christmas Email Event
Sign up on our email list to discover deeply discounted holiday gift items! Starting December 12th. And be sure check out our Fa La La! Pinterest Board to killer secret deals.

Thanks Twin Lakes!

“We want to give a big, whole hearted thank you to the Twin Lakes Conservation Survey Task Force. Their volunteer service for the park last weekend helped to remove approximately 500 – 700 lbs of trash from the cave. Trash and debris are carried in by flooding and can remain in the cave system- until pulled out by volunteers.

Clean-ups such as this demonstrate the continued efforts, began 21 years ago, to protect and preserve Lost River Cave.  Give us a call to learn about ways you can join in our preservation efforts.”

Special thanks Jon Durall, Matt McClintock, Stacey Brewer, Steve Gentry, Preston & Sherrie Forsythe, Jack Ferguson and Paul Fleischmann.

Group from United Nations, China visits WKU as part of joint research project

A team representing the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the Chinese government visited WKU this week for fieldwork and to discuss cooperative research under way to study atmospheric carbon dynamics.

Chris Groves explains details of groundwater monitoring equipment to Chinese scientists within WKU-owned Crumps Cave.

The group, which included scientists from UNESCO’s International Geoscience Program and the Chinese Geological Survey, visited sites at the WKU-owned Crumps Cave Educational Preserve and Lost River Cave. Research is under way there, with sister sites in China, to measure rates at which atmospheric CO2 is consumed by the dissolving of limestone in the world’s karst regions, which are areas like in south central Kentucky where caves, sinkholes and underground rivers are common. Rapidly changing atmospheric concentrations have been linked to increased rates of climate change, and so much work is underway to understand ways in which CO2 is being added to, or subtracted from, the atmosphere… Read more on the WKU News Blog!

The Tale of the Great ‘Coon Caper

Lost River Cave is known as a place where legends and history are born. Just last week another story will go down in our books forever.

Like many mornings at Lost River Cave the sun was shining down golden rays on our naturalist, Annie Holt, as she walked to our maintenance barn. From the corner of her eyes she spied a creature staggering out of sight. Upon further inspection she discovered a raccoon, wounded and missing his tail.

With a heart of gold, Annie did what any nature lover would do… her best to help this little guy by calling Broadbent Wildlife Sanctuary to the rescue.

Like a Knight in Shining Armor, Broadbent Wildlife Sanctuary sent a Rehabilitation Professional. He said unfortunately this guy was most likely a pet that had been released into the wild, probably on the park. People don’t realize when these critters are young that they are wild animals and should never be kept as pets. He said his tail was probably lost in a car accident because he didn’t understand how to survive in the wild.

Broadbent Wildlife Sanctuary will reintroduce him into nature so that he can live productively.  They will place him in very large natural fenced-in area called the ‘Coon Castle (from caper to king as we like to say).  When he becomes acclimated to outdoors he will be released into nature where his real home is.

This little guy will go down in Lost River Cave history as the Great ‘Coon Caper because he stole our hearts!

Employee Spotlight: Kathy Kontio

Summer is the busiest season at Lost River Cave, and we can’t say thank you enough to the staff for their hard work. Lost River Cave recognizes wonderful individuals who keep us afloat, from tour guides to cashiers to maintenance.

Kathy Kontio is originally from Bowling Green and graduated from Michigan Tech with a Bachelor’s in Ecology. After college, she had bird field jobs in various states. Kathy has worked with endangered birds like the California Condor and the Piping Plover. She was in AmeriCorps for two years in New York State where she started working in environmental education. Kathy started working as a tour guide for Lost River Cave this summer.   

Q & A with Kathy

What originally brought you to Lost River Cave?  Well, I’m from Bowling Green, and I saw a job opening and it’s the perfect place; are you kidding me?!

How is Lost River Cave different from any other employer you’ve ever had?  Well I get to drive a boat in a cave, and that’s pretty sweet.

Have your thoughts on caves or nature changed at all since you’ve been here? It has strengthened my realization that I want to stay in the Ecology field for a career.  

Have you had any memorable visitors during your time working here? I had someone from Holland on my tour, but no famous people or anything as far as I know.  

What do you think the WORST corny cave joke is? “Oh I see you left some people at the dam for me to pick up.” (One boat driver says to the other boat driver in the cave.)

Have you had much opportunity to travel, if so where to? Or, where would you like to go? I’ve travelled a lot to go to different places for work in the United States.  I’d like to go to New Zealand and Europe.

For visitors reading this, do you have any recommendation for where to tour/eat/explore in the Bowling Green area or all of Kentucky?  I did the zip-lining at Mega Caverns in Louisville; it’s the only underground zip line in the world. It’s totally worth it.   

Any last words of wisdom for your visitors reading this? We’ll get to the cave eventually.

Employee Spotlight: Curtis Epsey

Summer is Lost River Cave’s busiest season, and we can’t say thank you enough to the staff for their hard work. Lost River Cave recognizes the wonderful individuals who keep us afloat, from tour guides to cashiers to maintenance.     

Today Lost River Cave spotlights Curtis Epsey who is originally from Pennsylvania and just started working as a tour guide at Lost River Cave this summer.

Q&A with Curtis Espey

What originally brought you to Lost River Cave? I was just looking for a job, and while I was job hunting my mom told me of a random place she saw a job opening for online, so I came in and got an application.

How is Lost River Cave different from any other employer you’ve ever had? There’s a lot of freedom in the job. I get to be outside all the time while I’m doing tours, and I get to make my story a part of my tour.

Have your thoughts on caves or nature changed at all since you’ve been here? Not really. I’m a pretty outdoors-oriented person. I’ve been pretty environmentally aware, and being here promotes that.

Have you had any memorable visitors during your time working here?I’ve met a lot of newlywed couples, and they all seem to be from Colorado, no joke. I had a couple from Colorado this past weekend who really wished they’d known we rented out our dance floor because they would’ve had their wedding here at Lost River Cave. When they showed up they fell in love with the place. They were visiting Bowling Green on their honeymoon.

What do you think the WORST corny cave joke is? The sticktite joke. (Sticktites are what we call the stick debris that gets stuck to the ceiling of our cave and vaguely resembles stalactites.) 

Have you had much opportunity to travel, if so where to? Or, where would you like to go? I’ve not had the opportunity to travel. I’d really like to live in Colorado because I love being outside, and I love being able to snowboard and climb, and that’s a place you can do both. I’ve never been on a plane, and I’d love to travel and I don’t care where to.

For visitors reading this, do you have any recommendation for where to tour/eat/explore in the Bowling Green area or all of Kentucky: If you are in the Bowling Green area looking for food and you even vaguely like pizza, I suggest Lost River Pizza Co.  If you are in the Kentucky area and you like the outdoors, I suggest going to the Red River Gorge in East-Central Kentucky. It is great for being outside.  When you go, you better go eat at Miguel’s. It’s a pizza place.

Any last words of wisdom for your visitors reading this? Appreciate the beauty of the outside; it’s not often that we get to fully appreciate the outdoors because we are stuck inside so much as a culture. While you are here, take advantage of it.

Employee Spotlight: Jessica Paull

Summer is the busiest season at Lost River Cave, and we can’t say thank you enough to the staff for their hard work. Lost River Cave recognizes wonderful individuals who keep us afloat, from tour guides to cashiers to maintenance.

Jessica Paull first began working as a cashier at Lost River Cave last July. She is currently attending Western Kentucky University studying Sociology. Jessica is originally from Summer Shade, Kentucky.

Q & A with Jessica

What originally brought you to Lost River Cave? I moved up here for school, and it was close to where I lived, so I applied. It seemed interesting, so I applied and got the job.

How is Lost River  Cave different from any other employer you’ve ever had? Oh a lot.  It’s actually a fun job, a place you don’t care to come to every day. You meet all sorts of nice happy people. At my other job it was the opposite.

Have your thoughts on caves or nature changed at all since you’ve been here?  Greatly. Caves seem a lot more fun and interesting to me now, and I spend a lot more time outside in nature as well.
 
Have you had any memorable visitors during your time working here? Oh my goodness, there have been a lot! There is always the visitors that come from different countries, and there is a language barrier which is difficult to overcome. There was a lady the other day that was very memorable, she came to Lost River Cave when she was a Western student and helped clean out the garbage in the 1990s.  She came back and was absolutely amazed at what had become of Lost River Cave since then. She was so excited.

What do you think the WORST corny cave joke is? “What is the difference between a column and a pillar in the cave?  A column is when a stalactite and a stalagmite grow together.  A pillar is what we sleep on here in Kentucky.”

Have you had much opportunity to travel, if so, where to? Or, where would you like to go?
I’ve been to Mexico, and I learned that some Mexicans think of KFC when they think of Kentucky. As soon as I’d say I was from Kentucky they’d say “Oh, KFC?”  I would love to go to Bora Bora (a Caribbean island). It is absolutely gorgeous and you can rent huts over water for a night, and I think those are amazing. I’m sure you can do that everywhere, but I want to go to Bora Bora.

For visitors reading this, do you have any recommendation for where to tour/eat explore in the Bowling Green area or all of Kentucky? Chaney’s Dairy Barn, I love it.  I also love Montana Grille right here in Bowling Green, and also Lost River Pizza Co. which is right up the road!

Any last words of wisdom for your visitors reading this? While you are here you can always enjoy the dog park if you have a dog. It’s right at the end of our greenways trail. Your dogs can play with other dogs in a fenced in area. In my case I have a six-month-old pug, so she gets all of her energy out before we go home.

Employee Spotlight: Danny Dressler

Summer is the busiest season at Lost River Cave, and we can’t say thank you enough to the staff for their hard work. Lost River Cave recognizes wonderful individuals who keep us afloat, from tour guides to cashiers to maintenance.

Danny Dressler is originally from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, and he came to Bowling Green to attend Western Kentucky University.  He is currently studying Outdoor Recreation.  He is a supervisor, and he has now worked for almost a year as a tour guide at Lost River Cave.

Q &A with Danny Dressler

What originally brought you to Lost River Cave? I wanted a job that I could use as a reference for future positions in the outdoor recreation field.

How is Lost River Cave different from any other employer you’ve ever had? I have a lot more freedom. I get to display my personality in my work, and I get to do what I love to do (be outdoors) all day long.  

Have your thoughts on caves or nature changed at all since you’ve been here?  Not really. I came in with a pretty nature-oriented mind; maybe working here has strengthened my conservation efforts.

Have you had any memorable visitors during your time working here? I had some people from New Zealand come and take my tour, and it was pretty cool to see people from the complete opposite side of the world come see Lost River Cave. 

What do you think the WORST corny cave joke is? “What do you call a fish with no eyes? A FSH!”  

Have you had much opportunity to travel, if so where to? Or, where would you like to go? I’ve been to India in 2009 to do some journalism work, and I would love to travel to Southeast Asia.
 
For visitors reading this, do you have any recommendation for where to tour/eat/explore in the Bowling Green area or all of Kentucky? To eat there are lots of good places here. I would definitely recommend Mariah’s or Home Café. And while you are in the area, I would recommend checking out some of the other caves, particularly Mammoth Cave and Diamond Caverns. I would also recommend checking out Red River Gorge because there are a lot of outdoor activities like climbing, hiking and backpacking.

Any last words of wisdom for your visitors reading this? I would explore the backcountry roads as much as you can. Take the offbeat path.  

Employee Spotlight: Crys Smith

Summer is the busiest season at Lost River Cave, and we can’t say thank you enough to the staff for their hard work. Lost River Cave recognizes wonderful individuals who keep us afloat, from tour guides to cashiers to maintenance.

Crys Smith has lived in eight states, and she moved to Bowling Green in August of 2009. She graduated in May with three majors from Western Kentucky University. Her majors are Biology, Middle School Science Education and Science Math Education. She just accepted an 8^th grade teaching position in science for West Creek Middle School in Clarksville, TN.  It has been wonderful to have Crys as a tour guide at Lost River Cave this summer, and we wish her the best of luck with her new job. 

Q &A with Crys

What originally brought you to Lost River Cave? A geology professor at Western told me that there were job positions open and I should apply. I’d never been here or to Mammoth Cave before then.

 How is Lost River Cave different from any other employer you’ve ever had? Oh gee whiz, let’s see. Well, it’s outside. I usually don’t work outside, but it’s a lot cooler in the valley than people realize and the cave is cooler as well.  Working with the public, this is an opportunity for me to be explaining to them something that they may not know.
  
Have your thoughts on caves or nature changed at all since you’ve been here? The caves. I’d never been in one, and I didn’t know what one looked like. The humidity inside the cave surprised me, especially when the fog rolls in.  

Have you had any memorable visitors during your time working here? Oh gosh yes. There was a group of livewires from East Kentucky. They rode in on their motorcycles. I started talking with one gentleman on the porch not realizing he was going to be on my tour. When I got down there and started talking to the group, the gentleman stepped up and commented on how obnoxious he was and how much trouble he was going to be. I laughed and said I was a middle school science teacher and I just had a group of 130 14-year-olds. Bring it on!  They howled and said I was on a mission from God.  Little things like that just stick with you. 

What do you think the WORST corny cave joke is? The difference between the column and the pillars joke. The column is when a stalactite and stalagmite meet, while the pillar is what we sleep on here in Kentucky.

Have you had much opportunity to travel, if so where to? Or where would you like to go?  I have been all over the country. If I could travel anywhere, I’d like to see Canada and Europe.

For visitors reading this, do you have any recommendation for where to tour/eat/explore in the Bowling Green area or all of Kentucky? Buckhead Cafe is my favorite place to eat. Their French Onion soup is out of this world.  They have the best in town.  I personally would like to go on tours of distilleries in this area. That’s cool, that’s Kentucky history at its best.

Any last words of wisdom for your visitors reading this? Anything you could possibly want to do, you can find in Kentucky.

Welcome new team members!

This week has been intense for our new summer tour guides and guest service employees. They are discovering the rich cultural history of the cave and valley area as well as the biology, geology and ecology that makes a visit to Lost River Cave an unique experience.

New team member Crys Smith noted, “There is so much to know about Lost River Cave… It’s not overwhelming, it is eye opening!”

New team member Sabir Khayaliyer was most excited about our vibrant ecology, but he didn’t fail to mention how good the Linzie’s sandwich was that we had for our welcome lunch.

“This is a fantastic team! We are blessed this year with confident, personable individuals who are sure to make this one of the best years Lost River Cave has ever had,” added Wildflower Gift’s Manager Sylvia Risher.

Our Executive Director Rho Lansden couldn’t have agreed more. She believes this team really has a grasp of our mission to restore, preserve and protect Lost River Cave. Lansden observed the team’s excitement about becoming part of the Lost River Cave culture.