Skyline Caverns is a series of geologic caves and a tourist attraction located in

Warren County, Virginia Warren County is a U.S. county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The 2020 census places Warren County within the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area with a population of 40,727. The county seat is ...

, south of

Front Royal Front Royal is the only incorporated town in Warren County, Virginia, United States. The population was 15,011 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Warren County. History The entire Shenandoah Valley including the area to become ...

. The caverns were discovered by Walter S. Amos, a retired

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

and

mineralogist Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proce ...

from

Winchester, Virginia Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...

, on December 17, 1937. Skyline Caverns is open year-round, offering guided tours through the caverns.

History

Walter S. Amos was contracted by several private and government agencies to search for caves and caverns to open in conjunction with

Skyline Drive Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is a ...

. During his search, he came across a

sinkhole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are locally also known as ''vrtače'' and shakeholes, and to openi ...

that was located approximately where the parking lot is currently situated. Normally, sinkholes are created by the collapsing of a cavern roof, which takes the ground above with it. When he saw there was no water in the sinkhole, which meant there had to be a drain nearby, he believed he had discovered a cavern. Knowing this, Amos began to search the edges for some opening to the possible cave system below. He found this opening on the lip of the sinkhole by noticing a small colony of camel crickets (which only live in damp, dark areas by nature) under a small ledge. Upon digging out the first "room" of the caverns, he came into a large system of connected rooms, most of which were navigable and cleared from all obstructions. Ninety percent of the caverns were naturally accessible and other than the entrance area, only ten percent needed to be dug out. However, the cavern floor was lined with approximately of mud and clay, which had to be cleared before the caverns could be opened to the public on April 13, 1939. The use of scientific analysis makes the discovery of Skyline Caverns extremely unusual. The caverns are estimated to be approximately 50 to 60 million years old.

Anthodites

During the clearing of this mud, Amos and his men discovered another area in the caverns that had been blocked for many years, by a large amount of mud. Upon clearing the newly discovered area, the geologist discovered

anthodite Anthodites (Greek ἄνθος ''ánthos'', "flower", ''-ode'', adjectival combining form, ''-ite'' adjectival suffix) are speleothems (cave formations) composed of long needle-like crystals situated in clusters which radiate outward from a common ...

s. Anthodites are an unusual form of crystal, or perfect six-sided crystalline structures made of pure calcite. These crystals are protected by Virginia State Law, and are kept behind closed doors that a tour guide must open for the public to view them.

Commercial operation

Today, guided tours (as opposed to self-guided tours) are given year-round, including on Christmas Day. Tours depart every 15 to 20 minutes, lasting approximately one hour and cover about of walking, and reaching a depth of below ground. Tours cover about twenty percent of the caverns; the remaining eighty percent is inaccessible to tourists. Cavern formations visible on the tour include stalactites, stalagmites, columns, "flow-stone", anthodites, and aragonites. Skyline Caverns also features five flowing streams, three of which are visible on the tour. Additional attractions include a miniature train ride and mirror maze.

References

External links

* {{Caves in Virginia Caves of Virginia Limestone caves Show caves in the United States Landmarks in Virginia Landforms of Warren County, Virginia Tourist attractions in Warren County, Virginia