My first visit to Meramec Caverns was on a quiet day in October, when it appeared no one else wanted to visit! We arrived in the large car park to find in almost totally empty, but never daunted, we went into the centre to buy our tickets. The entrance is dominated by a statue of Jesse James, the notorious (famous?) robber, who apparently might have hidden out in these caves.

After a short wait, there were enough of us to start off the tour, and we had a young and knowledgeable guide to walk us through the caverns. Turns out that had been working in the caves all summer to earn some money before going into training for the police force. He was very approachable, as were all the staff we met there.

The caverns are very extensive, and the different rock formations quite stunning. I think the thing that impressed me most was the realisation of the time involved in producing these structures - and that they could be wiped out in moments by some careless action.

The tour itself is about a mile long, and starts in a giant "ball room" - a large cavern, where they apparently have concerts and celebrations - I would think that it’s be very noisy! The guide told us it seats up to 2000 people - I find that difficult to imagine, but if true then it’s even bigger than I had thought.

Although we are walking through the caves, all the walkways are concrete and there are plenty of hand rails where needed. At one point, there is a steep slope to climb, but the guide warned us, and said those unable to make the climb should stay at the bottom, and they would be picked as we came down again.

It was intriguing to see a "live" structure, full of varying colors, and then to see what happened when people had been handling the walls - the natural greases from peoples hands had made some of the structures stop growing, and they were monotone in color.

There is the standard shop, and a restaurant, although we did not stop to eat there on our visit, so I cannot comment on the quality of the food. Around the caverns the area is extremely scenic, with the Meramec river meandering through woodlands. There are also camp grounds in the area, and boat rides are also available.

An area well worth a visit, and one of the wonders of this part of the mid west.