Amethyst Geode

Ohio History

Purple Crystals

These beautiful purple crystals were also on display in the gift shop, except they had not been sliced into rings like the last pictures. In fact, this amethyst geode was still in its original form. Check out the bottom picture! The green "skin" on the outside is basalt, which formed a protective tube around the amazing amethyst crystals as they grew. You'd never guess there were such beautiful gems inside a drab green log like this, would you?

Amethyst Geode

This geode came from Brazil, and is really as big as it looks, measuring six and a half feet high and weighing almost 700 pounds. Now that's big! Also, according to the sign, it's worth $10,000 . . . and didn't seem to be for sale.

Colorful Geodes

Ohio History

Purple Kaleidoscope

Of course, we had to have a 'quick' stop in the gift shop to pick up some souvenirs. However, as soon as I spotted the display of these beautiful geode cross sections for sale, I had to stop and take pictures! The one above is my favorite.

Pink Sunburst

Of course, these colorful crystals did not come from the Ohio Caverns. They were imported, mostly from Brazil, I think. The beautiful kaleidoscope-like patterns are created by cutting cross-sections of large basalt 'tubes' in which the crystals grow. Check out my next post for more details . . .

Lavendar Geode Crystals

Gold Miner

Ohio History 

Crystal Digger

It now came time to leave the underground world. This involved climbing a straight 63 steps back to ground level! We stopped to catch our breath and learn a bit more about the Ohio Caverns' history. After being discovered accidentally by a farmhand in 1897, just over a quarter mile caverns was opened up for tours by the public (who promptly removed all the crystals and covered the walls with grafitti).

 

New owners came in 1922, and they hired excavators to remove the mud and open up almost       3 1/2 miles of tunnels. They strung electric lights and laid gravel walkways which were later paved with cement. This is the part of the Caverns we just saw on the Natural Wonders tour. To celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the Caverns' discovery, the Historical Tour was opened in 1997. It includes the area first toured by the public, but does not feature as many crystal formations.

 

I thought the picture above was appropriate for discussing the hours of underground labor that went into these Caverns. Actually, this and several other crystal geodes featuring miniature figures were for sale in the Ohio Caverns gift shop. This one only measured about 3" across. They were such intricate creations!

Crystal Cave

Ohio History

Who Lives Here?

This is my favorite picture from the Ohio Caverns. It's not hard to imagine that somebody must live in that cave! In fact, I'm not sure the opening is actually big enough for a person. This photo is looking down over the rock ledge beside the trail path, and I don't think it was as far down as it looks. However, I still love the visual effects of the shot - it seems to portray both beauty and mystery in the same scene.

Walls of Crystals

Ohio History

Side View

Here's another mesmerizing shot in - I believe - the third room of the Caverns. The rusty red streaks run diagonally up to meet the striking vertical white crystals. I could have stayed in there taking photos for hours! In fact it was quite comfortable compared to the outdoor chilly weather (so long as you didn't touch the cave walls or try to sit down), as the temperature was its typical 54 degrees. It was very humid though - the humidity is always 90 percent - and it seemed everything was dripping. They said the air is cleaner in the caves than above ground since it's filtered by the constantly dripping water flow.

Crystal Nursery

 This wall seemed like the crystal nursery. Tiny baby crystals hung in neat rows across its surface. I wonder what will happen when they get bigger and meet? It was amazing how they're all growing in such straight lines. According to the website, 95 percent of the caves' crystals are still active and growing. Do you think they'll gradually merge into larger crystals, or all grow very long and skinny?

Tunnel of Crystals

Ohio History

Looking Back

As we entered the fourth room, I turned back for this breath-taking snapshot. It was even more impressive in person than the photo (ok, I know the colors are a bit off...). I read some of the names for the underground chambers on the website - everything from "Fantasyland" (that sure fits) to the inventive title"Big Room." I wonder how hard that was to think up? The largest "room" covers almost a half acre, filled with hundreds of crystal formations, each so unique and complex in its design.

 

The Ohio Caverns currently have over 2 miles of surveyed passageways. The Natural Wonders Tour covers the mile most dense with crystals, while the Historic Tour takes visitors to the portion first discovered and opened decades ago. By the way, more about that history in a minute . . .   

Iron Oxide Crystals

Ohio History

Crystal Combos

As we advanced into the third underground "room" of crystals, our tour guide pointed out the unique "dual formations" in the Caverns. They are combinations of iron oxide sediment at the top and regular calcium crystals at the bottom. These multi-colored formations are thus a mixture of rusty brown and pure white. Can you see both stalactite and column dual formations in the picture above? According to the Caverns' website, these formations are quite rare but Ohio Caverns features a large number of them.

Iron Loopholes

There was plenty of other iron in the underground caves as well. The orange color in the left side and center of this picture is actually hundreds of teeny crystals formed by the iron oxide. And in the back center I believe is a solid iron column, though it's hard to tell. These orange hues were so pretty - it was hard to believe it's the same process that leaves orange hard water stains all over the shower walls!

Crystal King

Ohio History

Champion Crystal

This is the prize crystal of the Ohio Caverns, accurately named Crystal King. Measuring almost five feet long, the crystal stalactite is estimated to weight over 400 pounds. It was amazing to imagine that much weight hanging from such a small top! It is said to be the largest free-hanging crystal stalactite in Ohio, unique in its pure-white color and perfect formation. Crystal King hung back in a rock wall recess, and though we couldn't see it, there is a corresponding stalagmite in a pit far below. According to the Ohio Caverns website, the crystal drips once every 7 to 8 minutes...we didn't stay that long to watch!

White Light

And now enjoy the no-flash, "natural" lighting view of Crystal King. The shadows and highlights are something else. Also, at this point we were as far underground as the tour would take us, about 103 feet. I can be impressed now that I'm not actually in the cave anymore!

Crystal Shapes

Ohio History

Hidden Pictures

Moving into the second "room" of crystals, we began to spot some interesting varied shapes. Don't you just want to light that birthday candle in the center of the photo above? I see an arm and hand reaching down to the left of the candle, and a little orange egg on the right. But did you spot the water spigot on the far right side? This amazing crystal was hardly three inches tall, yet it looks so real! Except for the missing handle...

Light Effects

Ohio History

Crystal Silhouettes

Flash photography brings out the most beautiful colors and detail in the Ohio Caverns rock and crystals. But it also misses some of that "underground mystique." So here are a couple pictures using only the lights featured in the cave. Our tour guide assured us it was all white light, and any colors we saw were natural to the crystals. I love the silhouettes in the picture above. Doesn't it just feel a tiny bit like you're looking into the mouth of a shark?

I couldn't help thinking about a carrot when I took the picture below. I'm pretty sure that crystal is less than 12" long but it sure looks amazing.

Looking Up

Anatomy of a Crystal

Ohio History

Stalactite vs. Stalagmite

Here are a couple larger crystals, still on those rock shelves I described. Do you know the difference between a stalactite and a stalagmite? Truth to be told, I didn't until our tour; now I don't think I shall ever forget them. As our tour guide said, stalactites hang tight from the ceiling; stalagmites might reach the roof someday. So the stalactites hang down; the stalagmites grow up. I wonder how long it will take the one above to reach the ceiling. Will the stalactite reach the floor first?

Columns of Crystal

There was one more kind of crystal formation we saw as well: columns. I suppose the little columns in the picture above are stalactites that have reached the floor (or stalagmites that have reached the roof?). In this particular picture it almost looks like someone has squirted caulk all around the top of the crystals and it's oozing and dripping out! Or is that well-done upside-down meringues?

Rooms of Crystal

Ohio History

Crystal Shelf

 After a good 10 or 15 minutes of walking through rock-walled tunnels, we got our first glimpse of real crystals. The tour we took, called the Natural Wonders tours, traversed through four different "rooms" inhabited by hundreds of crystals. So above is the first "room." The crystals hung from low rocky roofs and grew from corresponding rock "shelves" about four to five feet high. The space between the two rock ledges ranged from two feet to six inches. It felt like looking into a kaleidoscope: rainbow-colored rock backdropped hundreds of miniature white "icicles." A mesmerizing view, to say the least.

From Mud to Cave

Ohio History

Crystal Water Droplets

Here are some of the first crystals we saw. They were tiny - only about an inch long - and hung above a rocky ledge at eye level. Did you spot the drop of water on the end of the foreground crystal? We watched (and used our imaginations) as each drop of water trickled down to leave its own tiny deposite of minerals, lengthening the crystal by . . . oh so little. The Ohio Caverns maintain a steady temperature of 54 degrees all year long, allowing a constant cycle of moisture. Indeed, although it felt both damp and chilly, this environment would be welcome in the freezing winter or summer heat!

Mud Division

 Our tour guide explained that when the caverns were first discovered, the tunnels were actually filled with mud anywhere from 3-6 feet deep. Many hours of man power drained the mud and poured the tunnels with concrete walkways. If you look closely at the picture above, you can see proof of the mud. Can you spot the crystal hanging from the ceiling a ways back that looks to have a bunch of mushroom roots at the bottom? Well, that was actually the base of the crystal, growing atop the mud. Now the mud is gone, but the crystal remains, no longer "planted" but now suspended.

Cavern Tunnels

Ohio History

Colorful Overhead Rock

As we opened the door and entered the rocky tunnel, the view changed dramatically. At first it seemed very dark, damp, and closed-in. Mounted lights shone from crannies in the solid rock walls, creating multiple shadows which blended into the deep darkness of tunnels leading every way off our path. However, as we became accustomed to being underground, we began to marvel at the rich colors of rock above our heads. The photo above is one such view. The camera flash brings out even richer colors than did the cavern lights.

A Tight Squeeze

The tunnels soon became even more challenging. This one was only about a foot wide at the center! Several others were so low we had to duck down as we passed through. It was amazing to feel so closed in underground and yet be part of such a large network of winding tunnels.

Ohio Caverns

Ohio History

Hidden Beauty

Ohio does not boast many amazing natural wonders: no powerful waterfalls, colorful canyons, snowcapped mountains, or scenery. However, there's more under the surface than meets the eye. In the photo above, what appears to be all-too-common sedimentary rock layers conceals one of the most intricate and unique natural features in Ohio. Behind and below that rocky wall, several miles of winding tunnels create elaborate underground caverns. Besides colorful rock formations, these caves are home to hundreds of snow-white crystal columns, ranging from 2" to 4' in length.

So let's head for that tunnel door and explore the Ohio Caverns!