Lackawanna County Coal Mine Tour near Hershey, PA will literally be taking you back in time as you go into what was an Anthracite coalmine. Anthracite was, at one time, the top coal in the region. Although at one time the entire coal industry consisted of the mining of anthracite, there are no longer active anthracite mines around. Those that are familiar with mining are familiar with the 190 Slope, which closed in 1986. What was once the Continental Coal Mine is where the tour will take place.
You'll want to begin your tour in the "shifting shanty", which is where you'll find the gift shop, snack bar, ticket booth and many mining artifacts. You'll find many displays to browse through before or after your tour or while you're waiting. Tours are not scheduled so there is no need to call ahead. When the public gets there and there's enough for a tour, they take a tour. They do have, however, around one tour each hour. Depending on the guide, the group, etc., you tour should last around an hour.
You'll start your tour, you'll be in a custom mine car that takes you down 1350 feet at 26 degree angle by way of the 190 Slope. When you get to the bottom of the mine, the tour begins, which will find you about 300 feet underground. You'll learn about mining throughout the tour, with questions being answered at each stopping point. You'll find that the hour passes far too quickly. This is a very educational and interesting tour for adults as well as children.
