**Masshole Mommy received four complimentary tickets to visit the Adventure Center at Loon Mountain in order to facilitate this post. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own and were not influenced in any way**
While we were staying at Loon Mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire a few weekends ago, one of the things we did was take a gondola ride up to the summit. We’ve stayed at Loon numerous times over the years, but it wasn’t until we got a Super Adventure Pass for their Adventure Center that we actually went to the top of the mountain.
There are a few things to do up on the summit of the mountain, including the Glacial Caves. There you can crawl, squeeze and climb your way through the really old caves & boulders that date back to the ice age. Seriously.
More than 12,000 years ago, the massive Laurentide Ice Sheet covered Loon Mountain in more than a mile of ice. When the ice melted, it left behind a whole bunch of ginormous boulders just below the summit. Now-a-days you can explore the small caverns and passageways tucked into the that area because they’ve built a wooden walkway throughout it.
The kids were really excited when they saw that they could crawl through and explore caves along the wooden walkway. There are 10 “challenges” along the way and we were able to climb up and down ladders and crawl through crevices and openings in the rock formations.
If you are not the adventurous type, you can just stay on the wooden walkway that circle around the caves. Altogether there are 9 caves and I was only brave enough (or able to fit into) a couple of them. Some of the passageways are extremely narrow and I actually got stuck in one of them and had to go back.
I would suggest dressing comfortably if you want to check out the glacial caves and be sure to wear sneakers – especially if you plan on crawling though the boulders. Oh, and if you are afraid of getting dirty, stay on the walkway.
Was it worth it, though? Totally.
Glad you got to do this and I agree totally worth it!!! 🙂
I totally want to this! My kids would love it
Looks like such a fun time. I know Davey & Isa would love it. We do some cave exploring in northern Wisconsin and Michigan – fun!
My son was yesterday with me when we first saw this post and he was like ok add that to our family bucket list
Oh this place even has caves!!! I was just checking out directions. 4-5 hours away from me but this would be a blast to visit. I’m going to start planning. Thanks Robin!!!
I was just wishing it was close enough to be a day trip for my family too, Alison. It would be so worth it! I love this kind of experience.
I agree! I just wish they were closer! We are going to look for something similar to this near us!
Sounds so fun and adventurous. I really need to go to these caves myself! I’m very interested in seeing them first hand.
The caves are my favorite thing about loon. Such a fun and active activity that everyone can enjoy. Definitely worth trying especially if you have kids.
Sneakers are a must, looks like everyone had a fantastic time! Love gondolas too, always a fave with us!
Ooohh! I like the Skyride, they are brave going in those caves heheh!
Have a cavetastic week and thanks for cartwheeling by 😉
Looks like a lot of fun for kiddies.I would personally stay on the wooden walkway never get me in any kind of cave.
I love that they have challenges along the route. My boys would love exploring the caves too!
We have a few caves here we want to get to. Looks like a great day.
I have enjoyed exploring caves.
Our son actually camped overnite in one.
I think that would be a bit spooky 🙂
I’m visiting from Picture Perfect Party
Looks like a really neat place, although I don’t think I would be brave enough to go into most of the caves. My teens would love it too.
What an awesome place to visit! You always go to amazing places! #ww
Great shots – looks like a fun outing.
for sharing your photos at the new home for Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/p/other-wordless-wednesday.html. I hope to see you each week!
I’ve been in caves before but, I’ve never taken the girls. I’d love to take them though.
It’s the opposite here! My kids have crawled through caves several times but I never have.
Wow! That is pretty high I don’t know if I would have chickened out… But the view is amazing, so very lovely.
Wow, that looks like a great day trip! I would love to go into a cave, but promise me, no bats!
Mitch
I havent been to caves in a while! These look like so much fun. The gondola ride looks like a blast too. I bet there are awesome views.
That is so neat! What a fun family trip!
I agree! Looks like they had such a fun time!
What an adventure. I had no idea there were caves up at the top of the mountain!
Looks like a really neat place. It would make a fun summer adventure!
I have not been cave exploring in ages. This looks like a really fun time.
I agree Debbie – this looks like such a fun time! The kids would love it!
Okay, those are just awesome… we have never gone exploring like that before, but I would love to. Thanks so much for sharing!
Goodness, those caves look absolutely amazing! I would love to explore them!
This is pretty cool! You guys appear to be having a fun, adventurous summer!
This looks and sounds like something our family would enjoy very much… Great pictures
I’m not afraid to get a little dirty, as long as I’m dressed for it! I love the look of those caves!
You and your family always visit the best places. Looks like a great place to enjoy the outdoors. I’d love to take my family there. We have been wanting to explore caves for a while now.
It’s so gorgeous there! I’d love to visit and just spend all my time hiking and spelunking.
I’d love to go explore the caves with my kiddos and husband!! I can see my boys climbing all over the place, exploring 🙂
My family would love that! It looks fun. I think any boy would have smiles on their faces just like your boys do going through there.
what a fun place to go and visit. I enjoy exploring nature it’s so beautiful and unpredictable.
My family loves to explore nature. Caves are definitely a favorite for my boys.
Caves are the best for a boy. When I was a kid, I explored caves all the time. It’s great fun, but you have to be extremely careful.
your boys are too cool. To crawl through crevices and openings in the rock , I would have chicken out. I need to start fighting my fears. How cool are they 🙂
SO cool! I can’t wait til Addie is old enough for adventures like this! I love exploring! I know my nephews would love to go here!
This sure looks like a fun place to take the kids…
Looks like you guys had a blast! We love exploring places like that!
You guys are having tons of fun this summer!
We went to The Polar Caves, in NH before – and I did not want to squeeze in any of those tight ones – to scary.
great pictures 🙂
Looks like a great adventure you guys went on!
Wow, that looks like so much fun! I remember seeing one of your pics on Instagram a while back and wondering where you were that there was a cave!
That looks like fun! I love spending time outdoors with my family.
You guys go on the funnest vacations! Glacial caves? Sound amazing! I wish we had something like that here in Arizona!
This looks like something me and my husband would enjoy. I love nature, and to go and have an adventure like this looks like so much fun!!!Thanks for sharing about your trip!!
Now THAT would be a fun time! I’ve not seen any parks that allow you to go exploring through caves, let alone encourage you through ‘challenges’. That’s definitely a place I’d love to visit 🙂
That looks like a lot of fun to explore! I would stay on the walkway, but I know my daughter would like to check out the caves.
I’d definitely love to try and explore the caves instead of staying on the walkway!! :p
Ai @ Sakura Haruka
That looks like a blast! I love going to places that allow for exploring like that. What a great family trip
We all love climbing around in caves!! Looks like a great spot for climbing and exploring.
Knowing my luck someone in my family would get hurt there. We tend to be accident prone. IN fact my toes still hurt from smashing them into my closet door yesterday.
one of my kids favourite activities is to explore a system of caves that are nearby. It’s not that challenging really — but they just think it’s really cool. especially in October when the bats come home to roost. eeekkk. who’s children are these? seriously.
You do the coolest things with your family! This looks like such fun.
I love the awesome things you are doing with your family this summer! It must be so fun to explore places like this with your boys…those memories will remain with you all for a long, long time.
I would love to be able to visit caves like this! I bet getting dirty was totally worth it!
This looks like a lot of fun! I bet the kids loved it.
Wow, this looks like so much fun! I’m totally the adventurous type 🙂 Making a note of this for possible future family vacations!
That looks like so much fun! Love the gondola skyride!
I bet the boys loved exploring the caves. That is something that I would like to take my girls to do sometime!
This looks like such a cool place. It’s seems like a great place to take the kids and help them stay active.
That would be a fun place to take the family. My boys would have fun climbing around there.
Looks like a great place! I love the name too. My family would love going there!
Looks like fun! My family would love this.
That looks so fun! I’d definitely be afraid that I’d get stuck in those narrow passages though!
I love mountain hikes and caves like this! So much fun! Like that little mine shaft! I think that’s cool!
That was totally worth it! Looks like so much fun!
Looks like it was a fun and adventurous day for you and your family! Worth it!!!
That place looks great my son and nephews would have a blast me on the other hands I can’t I would freak out if I have to crawl.
That looks like a fun trip. Gives me an activity idea for when my niece comes over. We can go on a hike. Just a mini afternoon vacation. Cool.
Wow! That looks like such a great place to explore. My family would love it.
I have been to a lot of caves before, but never any that I could get stuck in. I am like you… I don’t think I would go too far off the beaten path.
what a great place for adventure! you said caves and I said yes! but my kids are scared of caves…
I’m a bit of a chicken of what might be in those caves, lol, so I might not go in there. 🙂 It looks like a really awesome place to visit though, especially with kids!
That is a gorgeous place. I love all these travels you are featuring!
I have a friend who recently went there, it looks amazing. I so would do the zip lining!
That looks like so much fun. My boys love exploring and we have a cave near us that they love checking out. We call it “going on an adventure”… I cannot wait until my daughter is big enough to participate. This looks like a fun place to go!
This place is beautiful. I’ve never heard of it before. Adding it to my list of places to visit.
I think I want to be a member of your family. Because, boy, you guys do the most fun adventures!
Those caves look like a LOT of fun. Though the gondola skyride is my favorite.
Wow this place looks beautiful, I would love to visit here one day.
I am so fascinated by skyrides. I enjoy the exercise hiking to the top too.
You are such a cool mom, please adopt me so that I can go to cool places like this! WOW! My kids would love to do something like this. We’re big fans of the great outdoors. I would love to do a skyride or enjoy some hiking here.
Wow, what fun! I am claustrophobic, but I still think I would check out the caves!
Oh wow. What stunning views there are there.
OH my lord after I get over the heights … lol I would love this. Very cool!
My kids would have been climbing everywhere! What neat caves!
That sounds like a fun trip! I’ve never visited Glacial Caves before!
Not into skiing, but I LOVE the summer stuff you can do at Loon.
When i go back east I am seriously going to have you plan my vacation. You always do the best things with your kids
I am such a wimp! I would never be able to ride in the gondolas!
Amazing shots! What an exciting place to visit!
Happy Wordless Wednesday! 🙂
This looks really cool and definitely a place where you would need a good pair of sneakers! I think my nephews would enjoy visiting the glacial caves!
Looks like a fun place to visit! We were just reading about caves from the Bible during our devotional time this week. Would be fun to visit some so the kids could see one!
How fun does that place look?! I bet your boys had a blast!
What a neat place! The gondola ride alone would be awesome!
This looks like the perfect thing to do for your boys!
Looks like a great trip! I will say, you all are very brave to crawl in those little spaces! I don’t think I could!
I would totally partake in this! Sounds like tons of fun 😀
I’d be petrified to ride in a gondola. I have done it at Canobie Lake and was scared the whole time. Any shaking and I was dying!!
Looks Like You All Had A Blast I Love It There, It’s Been A While Now This Makes Me Want To Go & Take The Family!1
So cool! Did you wear your flip-flops here, too?! LOL
How cool! The caves look neat, and It looks like you guys got to see some cool caves! Glad you guys had fun!
How awesome! This looks like lots of fun! My kids would have a blast going through all the caves.
That looks like a blast. I do get claustrophic, but not sure I can do the caves.
This looks like so much fun! What a great place to visit.
a new place to add to my bucket list, sounds amazing!
My husband is such a cave guy! He will squeeze into any little cave without a second thought, and I’m a total claustrophobic. Opposites attract, I guess! I love watching your travels lately!
That gondola ride looks so scary. I would be screaming the whole time, but having fun.
This looks like it was a super fun day.
Adopt me please. I realize its crazy but I want to travel too and you always find the best places. Not sure how we would explain a 50 year old lol adoption but haha. This looks so fun.
The glacial caves look like a fun adventure. It looks like you and the boys had a lot of fun!
So fun! I want to start coming on these trips with you and your family! Your boys are so lucky!
What a fun looking adventure. I love exploring caves you never know what you might find when you are out exploring.
We also love exploring. This looks really fun!
This looks like soo much fun! And an awesome bonding experience for your family too!
I love exploring caves, since it’s kind of rugged without requiring much experience (vs rock climbing). But I’m afraid of heights, so I’m not sure about the going up the mountain part.
Looks like a really fun outing! Get a decent workout in too, and those views are awesome!
That looks like a lot of fun. I love the Mine Shaft display they have 🙂
So glad you got pictures of this! When I read your other post the other day that mentioned all there was to do – I was thinking about the caves. I’d love to see the caves!
This looks like such fun was had by all! We have a gondola not too far from us, and try to get on it at least twice a year 🙂
That really looks fun! What a great time.
This looks like a lot of fun! I would love to go on the sky ride.
That looks like a fun trip! I would be scared of snakes though. Eep!
What a great adventure! You are so wonderful to get your kids to all these cool places!
You guys are always up to something super fun! I love gondola rides, but some of those other small areas might be too claustrophobic for my taste.
I had no clue there were glacial caves there?! Wow. Thanks for sharing this, I love how much you all do in the Summer, I am hoping next Summer to experience a lot of the places you shared here this Summer! xo
We have something similar in Collingwood (a couple hours away) … very cool!
Wow, that is one place I’d love to visit with my family!
Just found this blog – thanks for your review. We are going to Loon this weekend and I was worried about the caves as I have a big booty and was nervous my lower half might get stuck, but you inspired me to give it a try 🙂 At least the kids will have fun.