October 17, 2026
Howe Caverns: An Underground Boat Ride 150 Feet Below the Farmland
Somewhere under the farmland of Schoharie County there is a lake, and there is a boat on it, and the whole thing is 150 feet below ground. Howe Caverns has been doing this since 1842, and it has not gotten any less strange: you take an elevator down into a limestone cave and ride a boat across an underground lake while the ceiling does the kind of drip-stone sculpting that takes ten thousand years and zero human help.
It is the rare attraction where the phrase “there's a boat underground” is the whole pitch and it is somehow enough.
Getting There
About 2 hours 45 minutes from Bergen County. Take the Thruway north, then head west toward Cobleskill — the caverns are at 255 Discovery Drive, Howes Cave, NY, a short hop off the main road. Tours run through the day and it is open year-round; check hours before you go so the drive is not for nothing.
What to Explore
The guided tour runs about 80 minutes — a walk through the cave, then the boat ride — and the temperature is a constant, cool 52°F regardless of what the weather is doing on the surface. In late October that is less “escape from the heat” and more “bring a light jacket,” but the appeal is the same: it is a completely different world a short elevator ride away. There is also a zipline and an adventure course on site if the boat ride is not enough for the teenagers, who will be loudly unimpressed by the cave until they are not.
This is the trip you keep in your back pocket for the weekend the foliage peaks and then the forecast turns to rain — it is indoors, weatherproof, and weird enough that nobody in the car will be on their phone. Pair it with a drive through the Catskills on the way back, or a stop in Cooperstown to make a full day of it.
Rent Direct With Frosty Flame — Skip the Fees, Keep the Perks
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EZ Pass pre-loaded so tolls are handled before you reach the booth.
Custom protection plans built for your trip, not a one-size-fits-all add-on.
Curated in-ride playlists (Volumes 1–4) so the drive is part of the experience.
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Written by Frankie
Frankie is Chief Editor & Marketing Director for Frosty Flame Vehicle Rentals.
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