What is the name of the largest cave in the world. Amazing caves of the world

A cave is a naturally occurring natural cavity in a mountain large enough for a person to enter. They are studied by such a science as speleology. Thanks to speleologists, we know a lot about caves, because they can be very different: deep, beautiful, bizarre or simply huge. What is the deepest cave in the world and what other outstanding caves exist on Earth?

This Vietnamese cave was discovered relatively recently - in 1991 - by a local resident who was afraid to enter it because of the terrible roar of water inside and called friends for help. Eighteen years later, speleologists from Britain began to study it closely. Having covered a distance of four kilometers, they came across an obstacle in the form of an impressive wall, entirely formed from solid calcite (rock-forming material). In 2010, the study resumed again, the expedition stayed in the depths of the cave for two weeks.

Unusual stone columns and deep gorges were found in the cave. The wonders of Shondong amazed the entire speleological world. The dimensions of the cave are truly gigantic; in some places a skyscraper could fit there. It resembles a lost city underground. It’s even surprising that for so many years no one suspected its existence.

When floods occur, it is not possible to enter the cave

The cavity is 150 m high and about 9 km long. After the opening of the cave, extreme sports fans flocked there. To get underground, you will need a rope and other climbing equipment. Along the way, you will be able to explore dark labyrinths decorated with real rock patterns created by water flows. After all, inside this strange cave a stormy underground river roars, creating various tunnels. In some places she managed to break through to the surface.

Shondong is an extremely unusual place. 70-meter stalagmites grow here, attracting the attention of tourists, and real clouds are formed due to the mixing of warm and cold air. No matter how difficult and tiring the path to the cave may be, everyone who has been there unanimously assures that it is worth it.

Lubang Nasib Bagus

This one big cave in the world is located in Malaysia. It has a famous grotto called Sarawak. This grotto has very impressive dimensions - 600 by 415 m, and a height of about a hundred meters. The total volume of the grotto reaches a fantastic figure of 25 million cubic meters. It was discovered by three cavers from England in 1981.

At that time, they examined the karst massif, which is located in the Gunung Mulu Nature Reserve. The scientists climbed up the river and found themselves in the cave from which it flows. The speleologists didn't even have enough flashlights to fully illuminate it.

The area occupied by the Sarawak Grotto can easily accommodate several dozen aircraft.

Miao (Miao)

China also has one of the largest caves on the planet. It is hidden under the hills, and you can only get there by moving along the underground river. The cavity is a huge cave chamber. Several years ago, an expedition took place to study this chamber in detail using the laser method.

This expedition was organized by the British, including specialists from the Chinese Institute of Karst Geology. Funding was provided by the American National Geographic Society. Later, all the information was announced at a conference on the issue of caves held in England. After extensive laser scans, the cave was officially mapped in 2013.

The volume of Miao is approximately 11 million cubic meters

Eisreisenwelt

There is an amazing place on the planet, surrounded on all sides by ice. It is located in Austria near the city of Salzburg. This is the longest cave in the world that is partially made of ice.

The cave goes as much as 40 kilometers into the depths of the Alpine mountains, but ice occupies only a small part of it, followed by limestone. The cave was formed by the efforts of the Salzak River, which made a hole in the mountain, and the ice appeared due to snow that fell into the cave and froze in winter.

The entrance to the ice part of the cave is always open to tourists, and cold winds constantly blow through the tunnels, which prevents snow and ice from melting, and in the warm season, cold air rushes out, forming a kind of airlock.

According to official data, the discoverer of the cave was A. Posselt in 1879. This naturalist, however, was able to explore only the initial 200 m. Before the discovery, only local residents knew the cave. They were afraid of it, calling it the devil's abode. In the mid-20th century, it was decided to build a special cable car, which reduced travel time from 1.5 hours to just 3 minutes. The open season lasts from early May to late October. A full tour of this impressive site will take approximately 1.5 hours.

It's difficult to find a photo of the cave's interior because photography is prohibited there.

Red Cave

On the Crimean Peninsula, part of Russia, there is also an outstanding cave, or rather a cave system, stretching for more than 25 kilometers. There are many halls underground different sizes And appearance, between them lies a difficult labyrinth. True, only 500 m is accessible to tourists, and then under the supervision of an experienced guide.

Internal view The cavity is striking primarily due to the lighting, skillfully distributed along the entire route. Its intensity is adjusted in such a way that the relief is emphasized and beautiful shadows are created. Walking through the cave is convenient and safe: it is equipped with special paths with railings. The place is very interesting from the point of view of speleology, especially for its large stalagmites and bizarre sagging on the walls. There is also an amazingly clean river flowing inside. It is so transparent that sometimes it can only be seen by reflections of light.

Hearing this name, anyone will imagine the remains of the greatest prehistoric giants discovered by scientists underground. But this is just a play on words, in the English dialect “mammoth” means huge. However, despite the fact that it has nothing to do with mammoths, traveling in it is extremely exciting. This is a whole underground kingdom, full of halls, galleries and passages. The cave seems to live its own independent life: rivers roar here and waterfalls bubble. The reservoirs even have their own unique fauna: blind fish, shrimp without eyes...

The main entrance is located in the USA, Kentucky. Nearby, in the western part of the Appalachians, there are several smaller underground systems that were previously considered independent, but now it turns out that they are all somehow connected to Mammoth. A significant national park was founded on this territory, where a colony of rare bats lives and you can enjoy untouched nature. In Mammoth Cave, scientists have repeatedly come across unusual finds, for example, the mummified corpse of an Indian, perfectly preserved along with clothes due to special climatic conditions.

The cave has not yet been fully explored, but its estimated length is 587 km.

Sak-Actun

This unique cave is one of the main attractions not only of Mexico, but also of the world. The large river flowing through it bears the same name, which means “white cave”. The cave system has a length of more than 300 km and is a suite of rooms connected by “room” passages. The study of Sac Actun, located on the Yucatan Peninsula, began only in 1987, but in the years since then, only one percent of the territory has been studied. It is difficult to imagine how many more amazing things are hidden in it, because the cavity was formed 65 million years ago.

According to one version, its occurrence is the result of a collision of the Earth with a huge meteor. At the place where he fell, a crater appeared, from which, in turn, many cracks spread underground. Time passed, and the crater, along with the cracks, was filled with rainwater. And so it turned out to be a long deep underground channel. Local tribes, such as the Mayans, have always treated this river with respect.

The river occupies almost the entire cave, and the spectacle is extremely beautiful.

Krubera-Voronya

This cave is located in Abkhazia. Its length is just over two kilometers, and Georgian scientists began to study it in 1960. Krubera-Voronya is of interest not only for speleologists, but also for biologists. Here they discovered a previously unknown species of beetles, which were recognized as record holders among insects for the depth of their habitat. Biologists also claim that many other new species can be found in this place.

The cave is mainly studied by the famous speleological group Cavex. It was this team that was the first to reach the maximum depth - 1.7 km. Research cannot be called easy: the expedition kept coming across dead ends and had to go back. It also happened the other way around: windows were discovered in the wall of the cave, leading to the opening of new paths.

The shortest river on the planet flows from Kruber-Voronya - Reprua, which is only 18 meters long.

Sarma

Sarma is located in Arabica Mountain, in Georgia. It consists of a series of wells and halls, between which many tunnels and small climbs meander. Sarma is unanimously recognized by scientists as one of the most beautiful and scientifically interesting caves, extremely valuable for the world speleological community.

Sarma is conventionally divided into three levels - the first goes to a depth of 420 m, the second - to 900 m, the third - to 1830 m, further the territory has not yet been explored. Sarma received its name in accordance with the name of the wind: due to the peculiarities of aerodynamics, a strong hurricane wind always blows here, reaching a speed of 50 km/h, which local residents are afraid of.

The cave is closed to tourists, so you can get into it only as part of an expedition with the appropriate skills and equipment

Our Earth is a place filled with amazing wonders and mysteries of nature, only a small part of which has been explored by mankind. Huge and majestic caves always delight travelers.

Son Doong is a cave in Central Vietnam that currently holds the title of the largest cave in the world. It is located in the heart of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh Province, not far from the Vietnam-Laos border. Its dimensions reach record levels - the height is 200 meters, the width is 150 meters, and the length is more than 5 kilometers. The total volume of the unique formation is 38.5 million m³.

The entrance to the cave, located deep in the jungle, was first found by a local resident named Ho Hanh in 1991, but the roaring water flow coming from there and the steep descent prevented him from exploring it from the inside. Only in 2009, a group of British scientists led by Howard Limbert managed to discover and successfully study Son Doong in Vietnam, after which they announced the official opening of the cave and confirmed that its dimensions allow it to be awarded the status of the largest on the planet.

“Hang Sơn Đoòng” is translated from Vietnamese as “mountain river cave”. It does have a fast-flowing underground river that floods parts of Shondong during the rainy season. In addition, it has its own jungle, climate and even real clouds, which are formed due to the large temperature difference. The giant underground cavity's two huge windows allow light to flood into many parts of it, creating a lush jungle with 3-meter-tall trees inside.

Shondong is famous not only for its impressive size, but also for the best examples of cave formations on the entire planet. Here you can find interesting ancient fossils, stalactites and some of the tallest stalagmites in the world, up to 70 meters high. A particularly impressive formation is the Dog's Hand and a place called the Cactus Garden. Also in the cave there are examples of giant cave pearls that fill the limestone layers.

The flora and fauna of Shondong is a treasure trove for any scientist. Many rare plant species grow in the cave area, and recently a number of new animal species have even been discovered. Monkeys, hornbills and flying foxes all live in this unusual underground jungle.

The unique cave was formed as a result of a long process of washing away limestone by water flow approximately 2-5 million years ago.

At the beginning of August 2013, the first tourist group went on an excursion to Shondong. To get inside the attraction you need using a ropego underground to a depth of 80 meters. Tourists set up a tent camp there, spending time in the labyrinths of the underground cave or sitting comfortably by the fire. The cost of such entertainment is $3,000. From September to March, access to the cave is closed due to the rainy season, during which many areas are flooded. The 2015 tour schedule will be posted on the tour website later this year.

The world's largest cave, called Sơn Đoòng, has attracted a lot of attention from many film companies such as BBC, National Geographic, as well as famous Japanese and Brazilian teams. In 2011, she appeared on the pages of the popular National Geographic magazine.

On December 27, 1966, the Cave of Swallows in Mexico, the largest well cave in the world, was discovered. In terms of depth, the Cave of Swallows ranks 2nd in Mexico and 11th on Earth. We decided to talk about ten of the most unusual caves in the world.

The cave is of karst origin, located in Mexico, in the state of San Louis Potosi. She seems smaller than she actually is. The shape of the cave resembles a bottle: the entrance to the cave is 55 meters, and in depth it expands to 130–160 meters. The depth reaches 376 meters, which is comparable to the height of the Empire State Building (381 meters without the spire). The cave could easily accommodate the famous New York skyscraper Chrysler Building, whose height reaches 319 meters. The cave is home to black swifts, but the name is derived from the Spanish word Golondrinas (“swallow”).

In the morning, flocks of birds fly in a spiral, gaining altitude until they reach the exit of the cave. In order not to disturb the quiet life of swifts, descents into the cave are allowed only at certain times: from 12:00 to 16:00. In addition, colliding with a flock of birds during a free flight is very dangerous: the cave, which has become a Mecca for fans of extreme sports, is a serious test even for very experienced and physically trained base jumpers. The descent into the cave takes about 20 minutes using climbing equipment and about 10 seconds when skydiving, and the parachute can only be opened at a strictly defined time: at 6–7 seconds of the fall. The climb to the top takes about two hours and requires good mountaineering and physical training.

Carlsbad Cave

Carlsbad Cave, which is 250 million years old, is part of a chain of 80 karst caves in the Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico, USA. The depth of the cave is 339 meters, the total length of all passages and halls is about 12 kilometers.

Most Big hall has the shape of the letter T with dimensions in two directions of 610 and 335 meters, a height of up to 87 meters and an area of ​​5.7 hectares. The cave is a system of huge halls and galleries and is famous for the special beauty and elegance of its mineral formations. Carlsbad Cave was formed during the deposition of thick layers of limestone in the rock. This limestone formed small cracks into which water seeped, dissolving softer minerals and forming caves and tunnels.

In all the caves of the Carlsbad chain, stalactites formed fantastic figures: Bashful Elephant (Bashful Elephant) looks like an elephant turning its back to the passage, Rock of Edges (Century Rock) is a lonely giant stalagmite. The caves have become a haven for a colony of bats: at dusk, the entrance to the caves becomes black due to the nocturnal inhabitants flying away to hunt.

Cave of Crystals

It is located in the Mexican desert of the state of Chiahua at a depth of 300 meters and was found while drilling a local mine. The cave is famous for its giant crystals of selenite, a mineral that is a structural type of gypsum. The largest crystal found is 11 meters long and 4 meters wide, weighing 55 tons. These are the largest natural crystals ever found on the planet. The cave is also known for its unusual climate: it is very hot here. Temperatures reach 58 °C with a humidity of 90–100%, which makes exploring the cave very difficult. Even with equipment, the stay in the cave usually does not exceed 20 minutes. Access to the cave is open only to scientists.

Han Son Doong Cave

The largest cave on planet Earth, Han Son Dung, which means “Mountain River Cave,” is located in Vietnam. It was discovered only in 2009 by a group of British researchers. The largest hall of the cave has a total length of more than 5 thousand meters, the total length of the cave is supposedly 9 thousand meters. The width of the halls and corridors is 100 meters, and the height reaches 200 meters.

The cave is unusual in that many years ago, holes appeared in the roof of the cave, through which light and plant seeds penetrated into the underground halls. Now in the cave you can find a real jungle. In addition, another interesting rare phenomenon attracts speleologists: cave pearls form in the cave. This rare type of pearl grows on its own in puddles of limewater. Its composition differs little from traditional pearls produced by mollusks, but it does not have a beautiful mother-of-pearl luster.

Photo: traveltimes.ru

Chasm of Three Bridges

Jurassic limestone cave, a 255 meter deep sinkhole in Lebanon, 160 million years old. The cave owes its name to the fact that the opposite walls of the abyss are connected by three bridges, each of which hangs over the other. A powerful waterfall passes through them. Over thousands of years, water from the stream slowly washed away the limestone and gradually destroyed the cave arches. After the appearance of the upper bridge it for a long time was destroyed by vertical and circumferential erosion, which, combined with a series of landslides, created the middle and lower bridges.

Fingal's Cave

The famous sea cave is located on the tiny islet of Staffa in Scotland. Rains and sea water have drilled a whole system of caves on it, the largest of which is named after the giant Fingal, the hero of the Irish epic, who built a dam connecting Scotland and Ireland.

The main hall of Fingal's Cave is 75 meters long, 20 meters wide and 14 meters high, and the entrance is so narrow that it is impossible to get there by boat. In Gaelic, the cave was called Uam Bin, “Cave of Melodies”: the huge hall of the cave repeats the sounds of the surf many times, and the whole cave literally sings. The following fact is interesting: when famous author"The Wedding March" composer Felix Mendelssohn visited the cave in 1829, he was so amazed by the amazing play of sounds and echoes that it inspired him to create an overture called "The Hebrides, or Fingal's Cave."

The cave is also famous for its impressive basalt colonnade of amazingly regular shape. Most columns have a 6-sided shape, but there are also 3-sided and 8-sided ones. They acquired such an unusual shape thanks to a long crystallization process. volcanic lava. As the legend says, these are the remains of piles driven into the bottom of the Irish Sea by the giant Fingal.

Marble Caves of Chile

Marble Caves are the main attraction of Lago General Carrera in Chile and one of the most beautiful places in Patagonia. They are also called the Marble Cathedral (Marble Cathedral or Las Cavernas de Marmol), which is a labyrinth of beautiful geological formations. In fact, the walls of the cave labyrinth are not made of marble, but of limestone. Numerous tunnels and columns have been formed by wave action over the past 6,200 years.

The most famous caves are the Marble Cathedral, the Marble Cave and the Marble Chapel. All three grottoes are part of the peninsula and were previously completely flooded with water. The glacier that filled the lake melted over time, the water level dropped significantly, revealing to the world marble labyrinths partially filled with turquoise water. Tourists can explore the caves by small boat or kayak, but only if the weather is good and completely calm.

Reed Flute Cave

Reed Flute Cave is an amazingly beautiful cave near the Chinese city of Guilin. One of the largest karst caves in the region, reaching 240 meters in length. The cave got its name due to the plants growing around it. special type reed, from which some of the best flutes in all of China have been made since ancient times. The age of the cave is at least 180 million years, it was formed due to the destruction of quartz rocks by water. The cave is famous for stalactites, stalagmites and other bizarre rock formations, and thanks to the illumination and reflection in the underground lake, one gets the impression of frozen actions, to which the Chinese gave poetic names: “Crystal Palace”, “Dragon Tower”, “Pine on the Snow”, “Dawn in Lion’s Square” Grove", "Red Threshold" and so on.

Dragon Cave

The Dragon Cave is located in Kastoria, in northwestern Greece. The cave is considered unique and is the only cave in Greece with 7 fresh underground lakes and 10 halls of various sizes (the largest is 45x17 meters) and 5 tunnels. The depth of the cave reaches 600 meters, but speleologists have not yet advanced further than 300 meters. The cave got its name thanks to the legend of a dragon who zealously guarded the gold mine. He scorched everyone who gathered the courage to sneak into his domain and killed them with flames from his mouth. In addition, the entrance to the cave resembles the mouth of a dragon. The cave is also famous for its special air circulation system and special microclimate.

Jeita Grotto

Jeita Grotto is a complex of two separate but interconnected karst limestone caves with a total length of almost 9 kilometers. The caves are located in the Nahr al-Kalb valley in the settlement of Jeita, 18 kilometers north of the Lebanese capital Beirut. Caves and grottoes have been known since Paleolithic times. The lower cave was discovered in 1836 by priest William Thomson, an American missionary. It can only be reached by boat, as the cave is filled by an underground river that provides drinking water to more than one million Lebanese. The upper galleries were discovered in 1958 by Lebanese speleologists. They consist of a series of individual chambers, the largest of which reaches a height of 120 meters.

Here is also one of the largest stalactites in the world with a height of 8.2 meters. In one of the caves, the remains of an ancient foundry were found, where swords were supposedly produced. The giant stalactites of the caves create beautiful compositions, thanks to which the Jeita Caves were included in the 28 finalists of the “Seven New Wonders of Nature” competition.

Our planet is a place amazing miracles and unusual riddles. It would seem that man has mastered even the most remote corners of the Earth, but has not yet discovered all its secrets. In addition to those known to everyone, there are a huge number of man-made and natural objects that capture the imagination and minds of all mankind. Among them is the largest in a unique formation with its own ecosystem. Let's talk about where it is located, when it was discovered and what distinctive features it has.

Shondong: size statistics

Shondong is the largest cave in the world. Such a statement by local residents was supported by facts obtained by a research expedition from England in 2009. According to dry statistical figures, the formation has a volume of about 38.5 million cubic meters, a height of about 200 meters, and a width of about 150 meters. Once in such an underground kingdom, willy-nilly, any person can be confused by the grandeur, size and scope.

History of discovery

The unofficial history of the cave begins in 1991; it was from this period of time that the local population mentioned its presence, until specified date no information was provided. At the same time, we should not forget that the underground grotto of colossal size was formed by the water element for at least two million years in a row. Evidence of the cave's considerable age are huge stalagmites, as well as other bizarre stone formations.

How to get to the cave?

Where is the largest cave in the world? Vietnam, Quang Binh Province - this is the address you will have to follow to visit it. Not far from the border with Laos, in these places there is a national natural park called Phong Nha - Ke Bang, and it is here that a unique natural formation is located. Finding the entrance to the cave is quite difficult, this is due to the fact that it is located in a rather wild area, in the kingdom of mountains and jungle. Perhaps this fact explains the fact that for a long time the underground formation was not discovered and was not explored even after its discovery at the end of the 20th century. Descent underground is carried out using ropes, which is also a rather serious obstacle and test.

Beauty and features of Shondong

What is the largest cave in the world famous for? Photos of the formation amaze with their amazing beauty and scale. First of all, most travelers are amazed by the water that flows in the bowels of the earth and in solid rocks for several kilometers. The most desperate daredevils even pitch tents on its banks, but you won’t be able to enjoy the silence away from civilization here either. The splash of water and the howl of the wind in the depths of the cave create a frightening atmosphere worthy of any horror film.

In addition to the river, Shondong also has its own green spaces and jungle, in which indigenous inhabitants may also be present. So, various insects and snakes are found here, a little less often birds and even monkeys. Unique feature The local ecosystem is considered to have a unique underground climate. Fogs and clouds that are familiar to us are found even underground, which in itself is very unusual and intriguing. In fact, this is explained quite simply: a significant temperature difference between the surface and the underground leads to the formation of clouds and other similar phenomena.

You can visit Son Doong at any time, except during the rainy season. During this period, the caves are filled with water to a dangerous level, which means that visiting them can be extremely dangerous for the lives of researchers.

Other contenders for the main title

IN different time The title of largest cave in the world was claimed by:

Unique dungeons of the world

Now that you know the name of the largest cave in the world, we can talk about other unique underground kingdoms, popular among lovers of extreme recreation and unity with nature. So, the list of the most interesting formations you can enable:

Kingdom of Ice

The world's largest ice cave is located in New Zealand and has the complex name Isrisennvelt; its area is approximately 300 square kilometers, which allows it to be the absolute record holder in its category in terms of size. Beautiful and cold ice formations are found in Iceland (Vatnajekull is prohibited from visiting in the warm season due to the high risks of melting and collapse), in Russia (grotto in Austria.

Movie about a cave

Delight and inspiration - this is what the largest cave in the world evokes in people. Sanctum, a 2011 science fiction film about a cave, tells the story of a group of explorers descending into the depths of uncharted dungeons. A brutal struggle with a dangerous and unknown element leads to very disastrous consequences, reminding viewers not only of the beauty of the caves, but also of the threat to life hidden in their unknown nature.

The largest cave in the world is currently located in Vietnam, but research in order to understand our world is carried out regularly and systematically, which means unique finds will not keep you waiting. It is likely that very soon we will meet new natural phenomena, no less fantastic and beautiful than those already known to mankind.

April 14th, 2013

Mammoth Cave is a place of beauty, mystery and paradox. This is a real kingdom of underground lakes and canyons, waterfalls and streams, narrow passages and large domed halls. Located 80 km from Bowling Green, Kentucky, the cave contains one of the world's largest underground tunnel systems, which is why it is included in the list World Heritage UNESCO. Mysterious sinkholes, underground waterfalls and cave formations in gypsum karst attract many visitors. No one yet knows the true size of Mammoth Cave. New caves and passages are constantly opening up, the underground boundaries of this spectacular labyrinth expanding deeper and deeper into the depths underworld. Mammoth Cave is the world's longest underground labyrinth system, if the second and third longest caves in the world were combined, it would still remain the longest in the world with a margin of 160 km!

People have entered Mammoth Cave and lived here since historical times. Anthropologists believe that Native Americans first discovered it about 4,000 years ago. For lighting, they used torches made from bunches of reeds still growing nearby. The charred remains of these ancient torches were found for many kilometers inside the cave. Almost 5 kilometers from the entrance, the mummified body of a gypsum miner who died about 2000 years ago was found. He was crushed to death by a huge 5-ton boulder. The human body and clothing are well preserved.

The cave has been known since time immemorial Indian tribes. In a cave speleologists mummies of Indian tribes were found. Mammoth Cave was discovered by American colonists back in 1797. Legend has it that the first European to discover Mammoth Cave was either John Houchine or his brother Francis Houchine. In 1797, while hunting, Houchin pursued a wounded bear and discovered the entrance to a cave near the Green River.

Then in 1798, Valentine Simon acquired a cave for the development and extraction of potassium nitrate. As a result of the Anglo-American War of 1812-1814, prices for saltpeter skyrocketed. During the War of 1812, the cave served as an important source of saltpeter, which was extracted using labor mainly from the black population of America. Saltpeter production at that time had great importance, since it served as a key component for the manufacture of gunpowder. During the War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain, much of the saltpeter needed for the war effort was mined from Mammoth Cave. Its owners relied on the labor of 70 African slaves to extract this valuable mineral.

Next Mammoth Cave by entrepreneurs Charles Wilkins and Hyman Gratz for industrial production saltpeter and calcium nitrate was purchased. But the war ended and, as a result of the decline in demand for saltpeter, prices began to fall, which made the extraction of saltpeter extremely unprofitable. The mining and production of saltpeter was stopped, and the cave was turned into a tourist attraction of local importance, and subsequently of global significance.

At the end of the war in 1815, prices for saltpeter fell sharply, and its extraction became unprofitable. However, people who learned about the cave began to visit it to see with their own eyes the enormous size of this underground miracle. In the following decades, the cave became a popular tourist attraction.

In 1838, the cave was purchased by slave owner Franklin Gorin. Gorin appointed one of his slaves, Stephen Bishop, as an escort for the then visitors to the cave. Bishop made attempts to explore the cave, which were fairly successful. AND Bishop became the first explorer of the cave. Bishop discovered many interesting and beautiful places in the cave, to which he also gave his names. Bishop was the first to successfully cross the so-called. Bottomless pit. After which Bishop concluded that the cave has a much greater extent than previously thought. Subsequently, Bishop compiled a map, which included more than 16 kilometers of routes he laid out. This map was the only guide to Mammoth Cave for 40 years.

Stephen Bishop turned out to be a talented explorer and guide. He made many discoveries that increased the cave's popularity over the next decade. Stephen became the first person to cross the Bottomless Pit, a large hole over 30 meters deep. Stephen Bishop became one of the most famous guides in the history of Mammoth Cave, and almost everyone who visited the cave needed his advice. Many of his discoveries are described in the guidebook Rambles in the Mammoth Cave.

Later in 1839, doctor John Croghan bought the cave along with slaves, including Bishop, from Gorin. John Krogan made attempts to turn the caves into a medical and preventive hospital, but without much success.

Dr. Krogan was interested in the possible healing properties of the cave. He believed that the cave's constant temperature and humidity could be beneficial for people suffering from tuberculosis. In the spring of 1842, he housed those suffering from this disease in wooden and stone houses built in the center of the cave. Visitors from that period spoke of the constant coughing they heard from patients living in these houses. In 1843, the experiment ended in complete failure. Several patients died and the condition of others worsened. It is obvious that the high humidity inside the cave and low temperature only harmed, and did not help sick people. Two stone houses are still preserved in Mammoth Cave as a memory of this experiment. Ironically, Dr. Croghan himself died from this serious illness in 1849.

Attempts to turn the cave into a tuberculosis sanatorium were unsuccessful. And in 1845, Alexander Bullitt published the book Rambles in Mammoth Cave, during the Year 1844, by a Visiter. Gradually, Mammoth Cave became more famous. And with the construction of transport arteries to nearby cities in late XIX century, made it possible for tourists to visit the caves. This is what later made the Mammoth Cave an important tourist attraction. USA.

In the 1920s and 1930s, attempts were made, which were subsequently crowned with success, to acquire land holdings around the cave. And thanks to these efforts, both on the part of the authorities and on the part of interested citizens, the Mammoth Cave National Park was created in 1941.

Further in the course scientific research from 1954 to 1961, speleological expeditions found that Mammoth Cave, as well as a number of other nearby caves, Kristalnaya, Neizvestnaya and Solyonaya, are part of one karst cave system. In 1972, a speleological expedition that conducted research in Mammoth Cave, based on its research, concluded that Mammoth Cave was connected to the nearby Flint Ridge cave system. This means that all the caves in this area are nothing more than one whole cave system.

Kentucky Cave Wars

The difficulties of farming on infertile, poor soils caused the desire of the owners of small caves located near Mamontovaya to switch from farming to other types of business. Thanks to the development of transport in the first quarter of the 20th century - rail and road - the number of visitors to the cave increased significantly. In the mid-1920s, the area around Mammoth Cave became the center of what historians have called the “Kentucky Cave Wars,” a period of intense competition between local cave owners to generate money from tourism.

A widespread practice of deception was used to lure tourists into other small caves. Along the roads leading to Mammoth Cave, fake road signs, misleading tourists and directing them to other caves. The owners of these small caves made visitors think that they had visited Mamontova, when in reality it was a completely different cave. A typical strategy at the initial stage of the emergence of automobile travel was that the capper (a person luring simpletons), jumping on the step of a passing tourist’s car, convinced passengers that Mammoth Cave was closed, quarantined, collapsed, in a word, inaccessible for visiting and suggested they visit another cave.

Creation of Mammoth Cave National Park

After Dr. Krogan's death, his nephews and nieces held the cave as trustees until the last of his heirs died in 1926. According to his will, after the death of the last heir, Mammoth Cave should be sold at an open auction. With the death of Dr. Krogan's last heir, a movement spread among wealthy residents of Kentucky to create a national park on the territory of the cave. Citizens of the state formed a public organization Association National Park Mammoth cave. They believed that the only way to ensure its protection for future generations - the creation of a national park.

Mammoth Cave was considered a clear candidate for park status and state support. In reality, the national park project proved difficult because, unlike parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite, the area around Mammoth Cave was occupied by farmers and local businesses, many of whom were unwilling to leave their lands and opposed the creation of a national park. parka.

On May 25, 1926, President Calvin Coolidge signed legislation creating Mammoth Cave National Park. The law made the creation of the park contingent on donations of land to the federal government.

Donations from wealthy citizens were used to acquire the land of some farms, while other plots of land were acquired under the state's legal right to alienate private property. Unlike the formation of other US national parks in sparsely populated areas of the country, thousands of people were forced to forcibly move to other places of residence. Like the American Indians who originally inhabited the area, the descendants of European settlers who arrived in the Green River Valley in the 1790s were also forced to leave the area.

Mammoth Cave National Park was officially opened on July 1, 1941 to "protect the unique underground labyrinth, the rolling hills above, and the Green River Valley."

How was the cave formed?

An ancient sea covered the central part of the modern United States 325 million years ago, depositing more than 180 meters of soluble limestone, later covered by a layer of sandstones and shales deposited by an ancient river. The top layer covered the bottom like an umbrella. The sea and river disappeared, and the forces of erosion eroded this top layer about 10 million years ago, when cracks and holes exposed the limestones outward. Geologists believe that the old part of Mammoth Cave began to form about 10 million years ago. Rainwater, oxidized by carbon dioxide in the soil, seeped through the cracks and began to dissolve the limestone, creating a labyrinth of passages, amphitheatres, rooms and voids that we know as Mammoth Cave.

Many internal features, such as stalagmites, stalactites and columns, formed at the rate of one cubic inch every 100 to 200 years.

Why is it called “Mammoth Cave”?

The name Mammoth was first used to describe the cave in the early 1800s. The name was used due to the enormous size of the labyrinth and passage systems, and has nothing to do with the mammoth. Any information about the discovery of mammoth remains here is untrue.

How long is Mammoth Cave?

To date, researchers have mapped 584 km of passages, making Mammoth Cave the longest cave system in the world. Explorers are still discovering new passages, and, as they often say, “there is no end in sight.” Professional speleologists continue to study the cave system, compiling new maps and discovering new passages, many of which constitute difficult-to-reach corridors.

The bats

Mammoth Cave once had a population of 9-12 million bats in its historical section alone. Although bats continue to live in the cave, today their numbers do not exceed several thousand. Now ecologists are working on a program to restore the bat population.

Tourism and attractions of Mammoth Cave

The US National Park Service offers visitors a number of cave tours. Tours last from one to six hours. Two excursions are conducted using only paraffin lamps, and are a popular alternative to the electrically lit routes. Several "wild" tours veer away from the well-developed parts of the cave and lead into dusty tunnels.

The park's tours are distinguished by the quality of their explanatory programs. Tourist information depends on the tour chosen, so by taking multiple tours, tourists will learn about various aspects formation of the cave and its history.

The six-hour tour is most popular among tourists. The groups pass through Cleveland Avenue, which is a long cylindrical hall carved out groundwater. Its walls shine with white plaster, crystallized under a layer of limestone. The route then passes through the Snowball Dining Room, where you can stop and grab a bite to eat. The tour then proceeds through Boone Avenue, a deep ravine so narrow in width that you can easily touch the opposite walls of the passage with both hands. The tour ends at Frozen Niagara. Mineral-rich water seeping through the rock gradually formed Frozen Niagara, characteristic feature which is the presence of stalactites, stalagmites, images of stone waves on the walls, simulating the fall of water.

One of the parts of Mammoth Cave is called the Methodist Church, where it is believed that religious ceremonies in the early 1800s. Visitors to this part of the cave are given the opportunity to experience what the first tourists felt. The guide turns off the lights and lights the torches, and visitors see with their own eyes what the cave looked like before electric lighting was installed here.

Buta Amphitheater - other famous place Mammoth Cave, he was visited by actor Edwin Booth, brother Lincoln's assassin John Wilkes Booth. Edwin Booth is said to have read Hamlet's "To be or not to be" soliloquy at this location.

Nearby is a deep hole in the ground known as the Bottomless Pit. It was named by the first guides of the cave, unable to see its bottom through the weak light of oil lamps. The depth of the Bottomless Pit is 32 meters.

Entrance to Mammoth Cave. One of the most famous and most photographed objects in the park. It is especially good when you look out from the middle of the cave.

The once most famous and popular Eco River Tour, during which tourists had the opportunity to ride a boat on an underground river, was canceled in the early 1990s due to environmental reasons. In addition, maintaining the cave passages for public viewing, subject to periodic floods, was incredibly expensive. During the season, tourists are offered a cave tour that allows them to see the underground river.

Visitors to the national park rarely see more than 20 km of passages available for excursions. If you have free time, you can explore the cave on your own. Other activities include hiking and horseback riding in the park's more than 112 km2 of surface area, fishing and boating on the Green River.

The park's peak tourist season is during the summer, when an average of 5,000 to 7,000 visitors visit the park daily. Approximately 500,000 tourists visit the cave every year.

Mammoth Cave formed more than 10 million years ago in a thick limestone bed beneath the Big Clifty Sandstone in the western foothills of the Appalachians under the Flint Ridge. The top layer of sandstone covers and protects most of the cave from seeping water. Therefore, the upper passages of the cave are very dry, which explains the absence stalactites, stalagmites and other sinter formations. But in some places, thanks to erosion and cracks, water still penetrates into the cave, forming beautiful panoramas, for example in the “Frozen Niagara” hall. Water, accumulating at lower levels, forms lakes and rivers. One of these underground rivers, the Echo River, is up to 60 meters wide and about 10 meters deep. Until the 1990s, frequent tourist boat excursions were held on the river, but were subsequently discontinued due to financial difficulties and environmental concerns.