"It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue."

We ventured out to explore Grand Caverns, the oldest show cave in the United States. 

It was discovered back in 1804 by a teenager named Bernard Weyer. One of his animal traps went missing and, reluctant to let it go, he followed it down a hole. There underneath the ground he found the pre-Cambrian limestone melting like hot candle wax across the thousands of years.

An 1856 sketch by Ed Beyer (hanging in the lobby of the Homestead Resort, Hot Springs, VA)

It's the sort of landscape through which a larval geek may easily imagine carrying a brass lantern and elvish sword of great antiquity in search of lost treasures.

Even after tourists had visited the caverns for nearly 200 years. a new set of caves was uncovered by a search and rescue dog named Rosie in 2004. They stretch out more than 3 miles further than anyone had ever expected.  

This fact makes me smile every time I think about it. It's good to know that there are still things left to be found out there in the world.

Undiscovered caves, full of treasures, sasquatch and lake monsters.