There are a wide range of activities to be found in the area surrounding Elizabethtown College, so this week, a friend and I visited the Indian Echo Caverns located in Hummelstown, Pa., a roughly 20-minute drive from campus.

The 440 million-year-old limestone caverns are currently owned by Echo Dell, a company that offers group tours of the cave system. According to the company’s website, the caverns were first commercialized in 1929 by John Bieber, who cleared many rooms that had been blocked and opened them to the public. After the Great Depression, the system was bought by Edward S. Swartz, whose family still runs the attraction.

Tours start every 45 minutes and cost $25 for each adult ticket, which can be purchased online or from the gift shop counter. The property also contains a petting zoo, where you can feed and enjoy the company of farm animals, an ice cream parlor and a mini golf course for some extra fun while waiting for a tour or to enjoy once you’ve finished.

The tour begins beside the Swatara Creek, at the entrance to the caverns. Our tour guide, Evan, briefly explained the history of the land and its ties to the Indigenous American groups that had once lived nearby.

We then ventured inside the cave, where concrete steps and railings had been placed, along with electric floodlighting to ensure the safety of guests and employees throughout the duration of the tour.

Evan pointed out writing on the walls of the first section of the caverns, called the Entrance Room, and described some theories about its origins. The most prominent thought is that the writing was from European colonists who attempted to explore the caves but found it too dangerous and difficult and gave up shortly past that first segment.

Next, we traveled through a narrow passage into the expansive cavern aptly named the Ballroom, where Echo Dell allows weddings to be hosted. Evan pointed out various stalagmite and stalactite formations that create interesting shapes and had been named after objects they resembled. He gave a brief lesson on the science of erosion patterns and rock formations, then we continued.

We were given another taste of the cavern’s history with the story of a wooden box found by a boy exploring the cave in the early 1900s, containing coins from the Roman Empire and instructions for creating diamonds. The origin of the box is still a mystery, and the gift shop has it on display for tourists to inspect and come up with their own hypotheses.

The lights were then turned off for a demonstration showing the lack of any natural light present in the caverns and the small amount of light the first explorers would have had. We got to see a few natural pools and played a game where the group was challenged to guess the names of a few formations, as well as learn about the superstition that drips from the cave’s ceiling granting good luck to a person when landing on their head.

Finally, we ventured into one of the deepest points in the caverns, where an unlit campfire was displayed. It was placed to represent a man who had lived in the caverns for 19 years after his sister was wrongfully accused and sentenced for the murder of her children. We were encouraged to look through the diary of the woman, also displayed in the gift shop, which had been found along with the man upon his death. We admired a few more rock formations to lighten the mood, and that concluded our tour.

Despite choosing a dreadfully rainy day to visit, my friend and I had a great time. The caverns were a stunning display of natural beauty and our tour guide was friendly and cracked jokes with the two of us throughout. Unfortunately, touching the formations is prohibited since it may be damaging to their growth, but I’d say simply standing in a place like the Ballroom is worth the trip, as long as you’re not claustrophobic!