Niagara Cave
Christina
Sign welcomes visitors to Niagara Cave
Photo credit: Christina
Photo credit: Christina
I recently went to Niagara Cave in Harmony, Minnesota. It is one of four terrific caves in this area. It was rated one of the top 10 caves in the country! This cave has many interesting features such as a 60-foot waterfall, calcite flowstone — which looks like mud or lava but is actually stone — stalactites, and 400 million year old fossils! Niagara cave also has its own wedding chapel inside where nearly 400 weddings have been performed so far.
Another cool feature of this cave is a place where the cave ceiling is very low and dome-shaped. If you stand directly below this spot and hit your chest with your fist, it will echo throughout the whole room in the cave. It is definitely a neat thing to experience.
There are many rock formations throughout the whole cave that have been there for millions of years. Some of my favorites include a profile of an elephant that is about six feet tall. It sticks out of the wall into the walkway between rooms. I also enjoyed what looks like a skeleton hand sticking out of one of the walls. It is a little bit creepy, but definitely interesting.
Another cool feature of this cave is a place where the cave ceiling is very low and dome-shaped. If you stand directly below this spot and hit your chest with your fist, it will echo throughout the whole room in the cave. It is definitely a neat thing to experience.
There are many rock formations throughout the whole cave that have been there for millions of years. Some of my favorites include a profile of an elephant that is about six feet tall. It sticks out of the wall into the walkway between rooms. I also enjoyed what looks like a skeleton hand sticking out of one of the walls. It is a little bit creepy, but definitely interesting.
An example of flowstone in Niagara Cave
Photo credit: Christina
Photo credit: Christina
There is a part of the tour where the guide will turn of all the lights in the cave, and let you experience total darkness. This part of the tour blew my mind. You can’t even see your own hand in front of your face. It is a really crazy thing to experience. During this part of the tour I began to think about how brave the cave explorers must have been when exploring and building the walkways and stairs that are necessities for cave viewers today. I am thankful for their bravery.
My favorite part about Niagara Cave is that all of it is natural and its formations were created by chance. When you are in a cave it invokes a bizarre feeling inside you that you are surrounded by something that formed without the help of people at all. It gets me thinking about all the other parts of the world that function without people. I recommend going to Niagara cave with friends or family. Bring a picnic and make an afternoon out of it. You will learn so much about the cave and hopefully your trip will spark an interest in caves and other natural landmarks around the world. It might just spark a long-lasting desire to learn more about your world, as it did in me.
My favorite part about Niagara Cave is that all of it is natural and its formations were created by chance. When you are in a cave it invokes a bizarre feeling inside you that you are surrounded by something that formed without the help of people at all. It gets me thinking about all the other parts of the world that function without people. I recommend going to Niagara cave with friends or family. Bring a picnic and make an afternoon out of it. You will learn so much about the cave and hopefully your trip will spark an interest in caves and other natural landmarks around the world. It might just spark a long-lasting desire to learn more about your world, as it did in me.