Howe Caverns

Howe Caverns. I've wanted to go there for a while. Well, I finally did it today and it was a good experience. I did the basic walking tour and saved a few bucks with a AAA discount. The caverns stay at 52 degrees and apparently the oils in a person's skin reacts with the calcite of stalagtites and stalagmites and turns it from white to a nasty brown. I got some pictures that are OK, but most required me to turn off the flash and therefore blur somewhat due to camera shake. They are very, very serious about you not touching the calcite drippings. VERY SERIOUS. They mentioned it at least 3 or 4 times during the tour and even had one stalag-whatever there for you to touch all you want and get it out of your system. I had to partake of course, hell, I paid for it!

[for the photographers among you: If for some reason you want to take a tripod down there, DON'T! The tour will be moving along for even the quickest to set up and there isn't much room on most of the walkways. If you insist on something, get a very small tripod that you can very quickly wrap around a railing or bring a collapsible monopod. Really though, I strongly suggest you don't take one down there. It will be more trouble than it's worth.]