Stalactites, Stalagmites at Luray Caverns

Luray Caverns, originally called Luray Cave, is a large, celebrated commercial cave just west of Luray, Virginia, USA, which has drawn many visitors since its discovery in 1878. The underground cavern system is generously adorned with speleothems (columns, mud flows, stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone, mirrored pools, etc.). The caverns are perhaps best known for the Great Stalacpipe Organ, a lithophone made from solenoid fired strikers that tap stalactites of various sizes to produce tones similar to those of xylophones, tuning forks, or bells. 


The Caverns are situated in the Shenandoah Valley just to the east of the Allegheny Range of the Appalachian Mountains in Luray, Virginia. The Valley extends from the Blue Ridge in the north to the south end of Massanutten Mountain. Cave Hill, 927 feet (283 m) above sea level, had long been an object of local interest on account of its pits and oval hollows or sinkholes (known as karst) through one of which the discoverers of Luray Caverns entered. More on this natural wonder at the Wiki article here...