The fossils of ancient sea creatures formed the limestone that would become Luray Caverns. This stalac-timeline measures 70,000 years of history on our largest stalactite. Every inch took 120 years to grow.
Before Pangaea started breaking up
200 million years ago.
Luray Caverns began forming
400 million years ago.
As the Appalachians grew, acidic water slowly etched the caverns from the limestone below...
...drip by drip.
It takes 120 years for Luray Caverns to grow a single inch. At 48.6 feet, the oldest stalactite is 70,000 years old.