Back in October my family visited Luray caverns in northern Virginia. This was our first time visiting caverns. We've done a couple of mine tours over the years, but seeing something like this was quite interesting!
I didn't really know what to expect, as I'd only ever seen a couple of pictures of the caverns, but we were really impressed!
There is a guided tour, but we opted for the self guided tour. You're given a brochure when you get there that has a numbered list and corresponding attraction that is easy to follow as you travel throughout the caverns. The brochure lists names and information about different parts of the caverns.
There is a lot to see with the multitude of different cave formations: stalagmites, stalactites, mirrored pools, etc. We spent probably at least an hour walking through the caverns.
One interesting fact was that Luray caverns is the site of the first air conditioned home in the US! A sanatorium was built in 1901 above the caverns, where the cool air from the cavern was directed inside of the building establishing it as the site of the first air conditioned home in the US!
This part of the cavern was Dream Lake. It was pretty neat (but also a little eerie!) to see such a perfectly still lake with such a perfect reflection. It reminded my sister and I of The Crystal Cave in Harry Potter where Harry and Dumbledore find the locket horcrux.
The lake is only about 20 inches at it's deepest part, although it appears much deeper because of the perfect reflection.
If you are interested in more information about Luray caverns, you can check out their website or the Wikipedia page.
Have you ever toured a cave or cavern?
We toured Indian Echo caverns in Pennsylvania 2 1/2 years ago when we went to Hershey. It was so neat! I wasn't sure at first because I really do not the idea of being underground but I soon found I was so fascinated it was easy to forget where I was. That lake really does look like the cavern lake from the Harry Potter movies.
ReplyDeleteI have driven past Luray Caverns for years and never stopped (we're always on our way somewhere), but boy, those pictures are beautiful! I'll have to make a point to stop next time I'm heading down 81.
ReplyDeleteWow, so very beautiful. Very lovely. I so want to go there.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like fun! Yeah, it's definitely an eerie feeling being underground. I was thinking on how strange it must have been to be the first person to go down there! When I lived in Washington state there are the Ape Caves that go under Mt. St. Helens and I have no desire to ever go on that tour! The idea of going into a cave underneath an active volcano is just too creepy for words! But I agree, the caverns were fascinating!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely should stop for a visit! It is a really interesting place! And you can easily get through it in a couple of hours (shorter if you really wanted to rush). There is even a gas station on the grounds as well as picnic tables, cafe, and large grass areas so it's a nice place to stop on your way to somewhere else!
ReplyDeleteThank you! It is a very fascinating place!
ReplyDelete