- LURAY, VIRGINIA
Great Stalacpipe Organ
Luray Caverns has the most
amazing stalactites and stalag-
mites. I went there to hear a sonic
treasure, an organ that creates
music by tapping the cave forma-
tions. Tunes take on an ethereal
quality as the sound echoes
around the large cavern. Created
back in the 1950s, it was the
brainchild of Leland W. Sprinkle.
He spent three years armed with
a small hammer and a tuning
fork, searching for the right cave
formations to make each note.
- YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND
Thurgoland railway
tunnel
Tunnels are lots of fun to shout in,
as any toddler will readily demon-
strate, but here is one whose sound
is particularly unusual. This disused
railway tunnel now forms part of
the U.K.’s National Cycle Network.
Constructed in the 1940s, it has an
unusual cross-section with bulging
walls that form a horseshoe shape.
Along with the very smooth and
thick concrete walls, this creates an
aural treat. Shout in the tunnel and
you hear an extraordinary metallic
flutter as the sound bounces
around and slowly dies away.
- SOUTHEAST AUSTRALIA
Superb lyrebird
The superb lyrebird is one of the
world’s most skillful vocal imper-
sonators. It can mimic the calls of
about 20 other species it hears
in the rainforest, including whip
birds and kookaburras. This strange
amalgamation of sounds is sung to
impress possible mates, with the
male performing from a stage it
builds on the rainforest floor. Even
more remarkably, birds brought up
in captivity impersonate man-made
sounds, like car alarms, chainsaws,
and the click of camera shutters.
52 NATGEOTRAVEL.COM
KENT KOBERSTEEN/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC IMAGE COLLECTION