Penn's Cave and Wildlife Park

All Natural Fun at Penn's Cave & Wildlife Park
by Jodie Dello Stritto

There's nothing fancy about taking a tour of Penn's Cave, nothing fancy about the drive through its wildlife park. And that's exactly what makes it such a treat.

And just when you thought I couldn't possibly gush about Penn's Cave anymore, let me tell you about the bus. Maybe it was the beautiful spring day, maybe it was the baby fawns bounding about with their lanky little legs, or maybe there's just something super cool about riding around safari-style with your head sticking out of a windowless bus into the fresh air (actually you must keep all body parts, including your head, inside the bus, but you can get real close). Again, simplicity that works. The wildlife tour covers the forest, meadows and wetlands that make up Penn's Cave grounds, using pre-existing logging roads and tractor trails.

Parts of which were old stagecoach routes that now trail off through tall grass and disappear into the trees—cool, right? How did I learn this interesting tidbit, you ask? Not to be outdone by Dave and Company, the wildlife tour guides are passionate, living encyclopedias on Penn's Cave's land and the animals living on it.

I think Scott, our wildlife guide, was more disappointed than we were that the wolves ignored his calls and only showed us some white, furry ears from behind the log where they were snoozing. And at the unexpected sighting of two snakes sunning themselves on a rock near the road, he backed up the bus for us, primarily the two preteen boys who spotted them, to get a good look.

While some of the animals, like white-tailed deer, are common and widely seen, its rare to get an up close look at a fawn nuzzling up to its mama (who actually avoids too much contact with her young to keep her scent from rubbing off and attracting predators—fascinating), or a big, young buck with its fuzzy velvet antlers lounging lazily in the shade of a tree. There are also non-natives (to Central PA), like Texas longhorn and bison.  They don't get particularly close, but you're close enough to get a sense of their size—immense in some cases.

The end of the tour features the get-out-and-get-close animals—bears, mountain lions, and bobcats. A new addition in 2008, the mountain lion pair seemed to revel in playing and posing for their eager audience. The bobcats, on the other hand, were more interested in stretching their long, lean selves to the tippy top of their pen to get a look at some fawns on the other side.

Like any good legend, the Legend of Penn's Cave is a tale of star-crossed love between a Seneca Indian Maiden named Nitanee and a French trapper, who meets an unfortunate fate in the cave at the hands of his lover's brothers.

Head down to the cave a few minutes before your tour departs and read the full story on your way—it's posted on a big board along the path. The dramatic temperature drop as you get closer to the dark entrance, combined with the story fresh in your mind will give you double the goosebumps.

A day at Penn's Cave is a great, affordable family activity, and also perfect for couples and groups of friends. Picnic tables and pavilions are available onsite for picnics and to enjoy food from the Cave Café. Kids will love panning for gemstones and finding a souvenir in the gift shop. For rates and more information on enjoying Penn's Cave, visit www.pennscave.com.

Commercial tours at Penn's Cave have been conducted since 1885 when they row boats, lanterns and torches, the black soot remnants of which remain on the cave walls to this day. Since then, simple backlighting has been added to illuminate the incredible natural architecture of the cave's three main rooms, and the wooden boats now have small gas motors. But that's the extent of advancement at Penn's Cave.

And, as we learned on our tour, this simplicity enhances the wonder of the experience and let's the best parts come through. The very best part being the moment the lights come on in each new room of the cave, revealing the artistry of thousands and thousands of years of water and rock. At the core, a day at Penn's Cave is about letting your inner nine-year old take over and marveling at nature at its absolute finest.

Oh, and it's also about Dave. During our tour, Dave effortlessly delivered a fact-filled, quick-witted presentation, all the while maneuvering our little wooden boat between some pretty tight spots. The jokes are corny and the banter is predictable (cave humor!), but the feeling behind it is absolutely genuine. Dave loves the cave. Which seemed to make our little boatload love it more.  He authentically enjoys sharing its fascinating story, and that makes it all the more unique (as if being America's only water cavern isn't enough!).

As much as we loved Dave, all Penn's Cave tour guides are closely trained in history, facts, and, thankfully, motor boat operation (they all proudly announce that  they've never needed the life jackets, stowed under the wooden seats, in nearly 125 years of tours). And each guide is instructed to take the cave's story and “make it their own,” American Idol-style.  Not surprisingly, many guides have theatre and performance backgrounds, and some are spelunking enthusiasts. As Jen described it, they make Penn's Cave Disney-esque, minus the costumed characters and highly-engineered rides. It's 100% natural, totally real.

Find Penn's Cave Online at: http://www.pennscave.com/

222 Penns Cave Road
Centre Hall, PA 16828

814-364-1664