Kevin Mims

You know, I'm always looking for those “Do It All” kind of places – places where you can camp and paddle and geocache and bike. Those kind of things. That's why we're here at Florida Caverns State Park. And one of the highlights here are the cave tours, which are some of Florida's most unique wonders.

Florida Caverns State Park is located in Northwest Florida. We're here right outside of Marianna. And it's just a beautiful place to kind of come and visit. The campsites here are phenomenal. I mean, you won't find better campsites. You just kind of come and spend a good weekend together with your family.

[cut to interview with Kelly Banta]

Kelly Banta

Day visitors like to come and utilize the park for fishing, hiking, swimming. We have multi-purpose trails for bike riding, or an equestrian facility for people who have horses. We also have a guided cave tour through the only tour cave in the state of Florida. A park visitor's center with a gift shop and a museum.

We have stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone, rimstone pools, draperies, soda straws. They grow approximately one cubic inch every one hundred years. And as you walk through the cave, you'll see a colorful display of different minerals. You'll see calcite, iron, manganese. And that's what makes the cave so beautiful, because you have all the different mineral deposits like you see here behind me.

Kevin Mims

The cave tour was awesome. I mean, you go in and you see these millions of years old formations that have just been there for millions of years. It's just really something to come and see.

So, I've had a great day here at Florida Caverns State Park. I've gotten to ride the bike, I went paddling, I've geocached and we've toured the caverns. It's just been an all-around awesome day. I'm just going to spend the rest of the time just hanging out by the fire and kind of reflecting on how nice Northwest Florida is to come and visit.