Indian Echo Caverns - Part2

This is the continuation of our   cavern adventure in Hummeltown, PA.  After  30 minutes of waiting for our tour, we  started  our journey by going down this steep  concrete steps going the hill with our tour guide.

Going down was easy but coming back up is a different story.  It did not bother us but a lot of people where stopping on the way up catching their breath.  

Near the cave is the Swatara Creek.  According to our  tour guide, the first visitors to Indian Echo Caverns, were most likely were the Susquehannock Indians. They lived along the Swatara creek, upon which the mouth of the caverns sits. It is currently believed that they used the caverns as a refuge during inclement weather because of the constant 52° temperature inside the caverns. The Susquehannock vanished from the area in the 1670's leaving the region around the caverns virtually unoccupied.

Then he went to tell us that the first non-Native American explorers of the caverns were most likely French fur trappers. They traveled along the rivers and creeks of the north east during the latter part of the 17th Century and into the early 18th Century. Most likely they discovered the mouth of the caverns as they traveled on the Swatara Creek. These intrepid explorers wrote about their tales in the caverns attracting more and more explorers.

That's the cavern entrance.  We have to wait for outer tours to  get done before  we finally enter.

The  tour guide was really good in what he does.  You can tell that he take pride of the knowledge that he is imparting to the tourists about the place.

Shadow Shots

It was   cold inside the cavern.  I am so glad I wore a cardigan that day.   I don't think I  would have enjoy the  tour inside if I wasn't wearing something warm.

This is just  the beginning our  exploration inside.  I will share more photos next time so please tune in.