{"id":1366,"date":"2012-06-06T17:15:13","date_gmt":"2012-06-06T21:15:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/?p=1366"},"modified":"2012-11-29T21:45:09","modified_gmt":"2012-11-30T01:45:09","slug":"get-to-know-lava-tunnels-in-the-galapagos-islands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/get-to-know-lava-tunnels-in-the-galapagos-islands","title":{"rendered":"Get to Know Educational Travel: Lava Tunnels in the Galapagos Islands"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/get-to-know-lava-tunnels-in-the-galapagos-islands\/cimg2335\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1367\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-1367\" title=\"Student tours to Galapagos Islands\" src=\"http:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/CIMG2335.jpg\" alt=\"Student tours to Galapagos Islands\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/CIMG2335.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/CIMG2335-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/CIMG2335-528x396.jpg 528w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nWith all of the wondrous wildlife around the Galapagos Islands, you may forget to explore beyond what\u2019s right in front of you\u2014as there\u2019s already an abundance to look at. Lucky for you, as your educational travel experts, we\u2019re here to give you the lowdown on what\u2019s below the surface of this unique geography. These volcanic islands are filled with millions-of-years-old lava tunnels, ripe for intrepid investigation. The most famous of them is the half-mile long <em>Tunnel of Endless Love<\/em> that\u2019s buried in the depths of Santa Cruz Island. (Its name comes from the heart-shaped hole in its roof.) You\u2019ll also find the longest of the Galapagos\u2019 tunnels, the Cueva del Cascaja, measuring a massive 1.87 miles in length!<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p>You might be wondering what a lava tunnel is, especially if you\u2019re a bit (c)rusty in the field of volcanology. (Sorry.\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t help it.) Well, when a volcano erupts, bubbling lava flows down its side. Although the lava exposed to the surrounding air is cooled (so much so that it solidifies,) the lava underneath stays hot and continues to flow down the volcano, leaving a hollow tunnel in its path.<\/p>\n<p>Safe for even the most ardent claustrophobe, these tunnels are extremely wide and surprisingly spacious, allowing ample room to stand and gaze at the geological gem around you. With a staircase leading you into these (mostly) well-lit caverns, you\u2019ll be able to take in the rusty reds and blue-grays of the ancient volcanic rock, touch the smooth tunnel walls, and spot tiny stalactites forming on the ceiling. And for the super observant among you, look out for small crystals made from mineral deposits dotted around the tunnel. Hard to believe the glimmering formations were once a fiery mess!<strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With all of the wondrous wildlife around the Galapagos Islands, you may forget to explore beyond what\u2019s right in front of you\u2014as there\u2019s already an abundance to look at. Lucky for you, as your educational travel experts, we\u2019re here to give you the lowdown on what\u2019s below the surface of this unique geography. These volcanic <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/get-to-know-lava-tunnels-in-the-galapagos-islands\">Read More &#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173,63,172],"tags":[58,266,312,311,310],"class_list":["post-1366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-parents","category-students","category-teachers","tag-educational-travel","tag-galapagos-islands","tag-nature-tours","tag-science-tours-for-students","tag-student-trips-to-galapagos"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1366"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1366\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1600,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1366\/revisions\/1600"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}