Luray Caverns

This morning, Virginia made us baked apples and crustless quiche for breakfast. The quiche looked so good I dug in before remembering to take a photo.

We got up earlier than usual to beat the crowds, arriving at the caverns just after they opened. To be honest, I didn’t have high hopes for this adventure. Dennis had gone with his family a few years back and said they were cool but I had seen the photos and it didn’t seem all that great. Certainly hardly worth the $24 per person admission. But, I love cheesy tourist attractions and was more than willing to check it out. 

Here’s the thing- the caverns are amazing. I’m not kidding. I loved them. They are beautiful and interesting and weird and peaceful. There is a shallow underground lake in the caverns that is crystal clear and perfectly reflects the stalactites hanging from the ceiling above. The problem is that the caverns are not at all photogenic. Even the gift shop didn’t have any decent professional photos. I didn’t even buy a postcard (and I love sending postcards), because none of them do the caverns justice.

Despite that, I am posting some photos here. Please keep in mind that it is so much better in real life.

The caverns themselves developed around 400 million years ago and were first discovered in 1878. It wasn’t long before they became a tourist attraction. Back then they thought the stalactites (hanging from the ceiling) and the stalagmites (on the ground) grew rapidly, and thus encouraged visitors to break pieces off and take them home. It wasn’t until later that they realized they only grow one cubic inch every 120 years. Additionally, after they’ve been touched by human hands they don’t tend to grow at all, due to the oils on our hands. Now there is a strict no-touch policy, except for a couple of “dead” stalagmites.

The tour of the caverns took about an hour, during which time we walked about 1.25 miles. I’m trying to remember what our guide told us about the size of the caverns. I think she said there are 65 acres of caverns, 43 of which are open to the public. People even have weddings down there. There is also a natural organ, which is pretty cool. When you hit a stalactite it vibrates a rich, deep tone. The length of the stalactite determines the note it sounds. Years ago, a man went around tapping different stalactites until he found an adequate sampling of tones. He then wrote a song and created a little machine attached to the stalactites that would “gong” them at the appropriate time. The end result is a cool, and slightly eerie, song that echos throughout the cavern.

Overall, I would strongly recommend visiting the Luray Caverns if you get a chance.

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