Cobleskill's secret

If roadside America weren't enough to quench my thirst for good old-fashioned fun, I was surely content when we found a natural wonder slightly off the beaten path. Not too far from Route 20 we ventured into the small town of Cobleskill. Above ground, it fits the stereotyped rural town, lacking evidence of any booming industry.

Below ground, however, is where the fun begins. Josh and I found ourselves descending 103 steps into a natural cave 115 feet below the Earth's surface. Wow! As we strolled along the 1/4-mile pathway through the cave, we were able to see fossils of marine life from a lake that existed once upon a time, the natural erosion of classified rocks (including limestone, some of which, due to water seeping in from the Earth's surface above, formed a convincingly slimy but honestly smooth surface of calcite), and plenty of stalagmites and stalactites.

Squeezing through narrow passageways and hovering low for a few suspended ceilings, we became instant fans of spelunking (exploring a cave with only a flashlight). The real treat came at the end of our hike when we found ourselves standing, mouths agape at a 100-foot waterfall plummeting down from the Earth's surface into this cave, and meeting up with an underground river that led to yet another cave down the road, with more force than a speedboat with unrelenting horsepower.

I was so excited about this secret find; imagine my reaction once we reached Niagara Falls.