Crystal Cave, Bermuda
Encyclopedia
Crystal Cave is the most famous of Bermuda
's many subterranean caverns. It is located in Hamilton Parish
, close to Castle Harbor. A tourist attraction since 1907, it was discovered in 1905 by Carl Gibbons and Edgar Hollis, two 12 year-old boys searching for a lost cricket ball. Soon after, the Wilkinson family (the owners of the property since 1884) learned of the discovery, Mr. Percy Wilkinson lowered his 14 year-old son Bernard into it with a bicycle lamp on 140 feet of strong rope tied to a tree to explore the cave.
The area surrounding Harrington Sound
(which lies to the south of Crystal Cave) is of limestone formation and noted for many subterranean waterways, through which the waters of the sound empty into the Atlantic. Crystal Cave is one of these, and - as its name suggests - is one of the most spectacularly beautiful, with many stalactite
s, stalagmite
s, and deep crystal-clear pools. However, some crystal formations have been damaged by earthquakes in the far past.
An excursion to Crystal Cave also includes the neighbouring Fantasy Cave with Fantasy being deeper (88 steps down). Fantasy Cave was reopened in the summer of 2001 with all the pathways rebuilt and re-illuminated by artificial lighting. It was discovered and opened about the same time as Crystal Cave, but was closed by the owners in the 1940s.
The two caves located on 8 Crystal Caves Rd. at Wilkinson Ave. are accessible by bus running between Hamilton and St. George's Parishes, taxi and other private forms of transportation (including motorbike and bicycle). Outside the two caves is a sub-tropical garden lined with palm trees where one will find many species of trees and flowers.
The caves are owned by the local Wilkinson Trust, and are open to the public.
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
's many subterranean caverns. It is located in Hamilton Parish
Hamilton Parish, Bermuda
Hamilton Parish is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It was renamed for Scottish aristocrat James Hamilton, 2nd Marquess of Hamilton when he purchased the shares originally held in the Virginia Company by Lucy, Countess of Bedford.It is located in the northwest of the island chain, and is...
, close to Castle Harbor. A tourist attraction since 1907, it was discovered in 1905 by Carl Gibbons and Edgar Hollis, two 12 year-old boys searching for a lost cricket ball. Soon after, the Wilkinson family (the owners of the property since 1884) learned of the discovery, Mr. Percy Wilkinson lowered his 14 year-old son Bernard into it with a bicycle lamp on 140 feet of strong rope tied to a tree to explore the cave.
The area surrounding Harrington Sound
Harrington Sound, Bermuda
Harrington Sound is a large inland body of water in the northeast of the main island of Bermuda. It is surrounded by the main island on all sides, only appearing open to the ocean via a small channel called Flatt's Inlet in the southwest...
(which lies to the south of Crystal Cave) is of limestone formation and noted for many subterranean waterways, through which the waters of the sound empty into the Atlantic. Crystal Cave is one of these, and - as its name suggests - is one of the most spectacularly beautiful, with many stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
s, stalagmite
Stalagmite
A stalagmite is a type of speleothem that rises from the floor of a limestone cave due to the dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate. This stalagmite formation occurs only under certain pH conditions within the underground cavern. The corresponding formation on...
s, and deep crystal-clear pools. However, some crystal formations have been damaged by earthquakes in the far past.
An excursion to Crystal Cave also includes the neighbouring Fantasy Cave with Fantasy being deeper (88 steps down). Fantasy Cave was reopened in the summer of 2001 with all the pathways rebuilt and re-illuminated by artificial lighting. It was discovered and opened about the same time as Crystal Cave, but was closed by the owners in the 1940s.
The two caves located on 8 Crystal Caves Rd. at Wilkinson Ave. are accessible by bus running between Hamilton and St. George's Parishes, taxi and other private forms of transportation (including motorbike and bicycle). Outside the two caves is a sub-tropical garden lined with palm trees where one will find many species of trees and flowers.
The caves are owned by the local Wilkinson Trust, and are open to the public.