PHOENIX — It's a hidden gem in the middle of the Valley that many living here have never heard about.
Every night during the summer, dozens of people gather along a gated fence with their families as the sun starts to set with their phones at the ready.
Then, all of a sudden, it happens: Thousands of bats take flight into the Phoenix night sky without making much of a sound. The only noise that can be heard is the gasps and awes from those in the crowd watching nature take its course.
“All these bats are amazing," said Jen Meade, who is visiting from Florida. "This is like a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me."
Many visiting what's known as the Phoenix Bat Cave near 40th Street and Camelback Road have never heard about it until recently. That includes Chris Bawden, who was born and raised in Arizona.
“I mean, they were flying a couple of feet over your head,” Bawden said.
The event lasts for about 20 minutes with as many as 10,000 Mexican Free-Tailed bats swarming the sky. It's a scene that has been going on for decades in Phoenix, according to Lisa Blyler with the Maricopa County Flood Control District.
The county is involved with the bats because the flying critters have taken over a 16-mile functioning flood control structure that handles flood waters. It was built in 1994 and Blyler said the bats have called it their temporary home ever since.
"They're good neighbors," Blyler said. "They're not causing any trouble, and they do a great service to the neighborhood, eating up all the bugs."
The bats arrive in May and typically leave in October as part of their migration cycle to Mexico.
12News was given special access to the Phoenix Bat Cave which is off-limits to the public. No trespassing signs can be seen all over the area. Blyler said it's incredibly dangerous because flood waters as high as six feet can sweep through the tunnel during heavy storms.
While you could only see one or two bats flying around inside during the day, you could hear them all over the tunnel's ceiling. Blyler said they hide in the cracks and crevices where it is nice and cool.
Those who want to see the bats can stand above the tunnel behind a wall of fencing that surrounds the entrance where thousands of bats exit.
"It's one of the coolest things here in Phoenix to see," Blyler said.
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