Road Trip Highlights: Oregon Caves

A twenty-mile detour off Route 199 brought us to the Oregon Caves, another wonderful example of the impermanence of cold, hard stone -- and a terrific place to cool off on a sweltering summer afternoon.

Ranger Tom Siewert showed us around and explained the origins & basic features of the caves. For instance, these tiny little stalactites are called drinking straws. They're hollow -- the mineral-laden water that form them drips through before hardening at the end. Josie thought they looked like they'd been hammered in from above.


The technical term for these stripey formations is cave bacon. The lumps on the bottom are soft when they first form, but harden over the years. The soft stuff is called moon milk -- isn't that lovely? -- and it apparently has antibacterial qualities.


We liked Ranger Tom's mnemonic: "Stalactites hold tight to the roof of the cave; stalagmites might reach the ceiling." He said these little guys grow about an inch every thousand years.



At the top of a scary-steep staircase we found a chamber whose roof was covered with these incredible pod formations. Ranger Tom told Simon we couldn't stay too long or the heat from our bodies would cause them to hatch!