The largest cave, view from above. Ice caves near Mutnovsky volcano, Russia. Creation of the Mammoth Cave National Park

What do the caves hide in their twilight, how are they ready to amaze even the most sophisticated viewer, is there at least a fraction of the truth in the ancient legends about them? You can learn about all this from this virtual tour.

The most famous caves in Russia

Kungur cave

The Diamond and Polar grottoes are recognized as the most beautiful. All this is complemented by about seventy lakes, the largest of which is big lake. According to ancient folk legends, this cave used to be inhabited. This is confirmed by the well and the hermit's hut found in the Cross Grotto.

Kapova cave

Human skulls were also found here, however, without skeletons. A theory has been put forward that this type of burial used to speak of the significance and greatness of the deceased.

marble cave

Caves can also surprise with their names .. The site has.

The most famous caves in the world

Reed Flute Cave, China

The Staff of the Dragon King stalactite is also very famous, it is of a very bizarre shape and giant size. He decorates the hall of the Crystal Palace. It is worth visiting such halls as the Red Threshold, the Dragon Tower, Dawn in the Lion's Grove, Pine in the Snow.

Mammoth Cave, USA

Its red limestone arches look very impressive, especially in the Broadway corridor, not far from which the rivers Styx and Echo flow. Rare species of shrimp, blind fish and crayfish live in them. Tourists love to look at the stone block here, which resembles the profile of George Washington's mother. And also everyone is not averse to leaving their business cards and autographs in a special Hall of Records. American scientists discovered a human mummy in this cave. However, this cave is not the most famous on the planet.

The most famous cave in the world: Fingal's Cave

The cave owes its name to a Scottish poet named James MacPherson. The legend says that the giant Fingal built a dam to connect Ireland with Scotland, along which the giant passed into his dwelling, while Fingal was fast asleep before the upcoming battle with him. The hero's wife, however, showed ingenuity and, pointing to her husband, said that it was Fingal's infant son dozing. A huge enemy, imagining the size of the father of this baby, gave a tear in horror, destroying the dam. The second justification for this name was that Big hall cave whimsically repeats the sounds of the surf, and she seems to sing. These enchanting sounds prompted Mendelssohn to write the famous overture "The Hebrides, or Fingal's Cave." It also strikes with intricately woven basalt columns that have six and octagonal shapes.
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Caves served as a refuge for man at the dawn of civilization. And today, these underground voids attract brave speleologists who seek to penetrate as deep as possible to the heart of the Earth.

Today's top ten contains largest caves in the world. Two of them are located on the territory of Abkhazia, which allows you to visit these natural monuments hundreds of Russian tourists.

Optimisticheskaya is the largest gypsum cave in the world. It is located on the territory of Ukraine in the Ternopil region. The cave has not been explored to the end, but the length of the corridors known to speleologists is 230 km.

9. Ox Bel Ha

The name of this system of underwater caves, translated from one of the Indian dialects, means "three ways of water." The system is located in Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula, the total length of the corridors is 256 km.

8 Jewel Cave System

Located in South Dakota, the cave system has a total length of more than 257 km. In the galleries of the cave there are strong drafts, the gusts of which reach 15 m/s. The maximum depth of the cave is 192 meters.

7. Lamprechtsofen

This cave system located in the Austrian state of Salzburg. Its length is 38 km, and maximum depth- 1,632 meters. It is noteworthy that the practical Austrians built a mini-power plant in the cave, which produces energy from the flow of an underground river.

6. Mammoth Cave

Located in the state of Kentucky (USA), the karst cave is considered the longest in the world. The length of the studied part of the crossings exceeds 587 km. The cave was discovered in 1797. Its maximum depth is 115 meters.

5. Snowy

One of the deepest caves in the world is located in Abkhazia. Its depth is 1,753 meters, and the length of all corridors, sometimes quite low, is more than 24 km. "Snezhnaya" is a system of three caves, which are interconnected without siphons - underwater tunnels filled with water.

4. Skocjan Caves

The cave system, located in the mountains of Slovenia, has a length of 6 km. The height of the arches reaches 50 meters. There are more than 30 underground waterfalls in the cave system, there is also a 15-meter stalagmite, nicknamed the Giant.

3. Sarawak Grotto

located on Borneo island the grotto is 400 meters wide, 700 meters long and up to 70 meters high. The grotto is part huge cave Gua-Nasib-Bagus. Only trained tourists are allowed on an excursion to Sarawak; a visit to the grotto lasts all day.

2. Krubera Cave

It is also called the Crow Cave, and it is located in the Gagra Range in the territory of Abkhazia. The cave has two branches and is the deepest in the world. The depth of the first branch is 2,196 meters, the second - 1,300 meters.

1. Son Doong Cave

The world's largest cave located in Vietnam, 500 km from Hanoi. The height of the arches of the cave is up to 240 meters, the width is 100 meters, and the length of passages and corridors has been studied so far for only 6.5 km. Speleologists discovered the grotto in 2005, although locals knew about Sondong since 1991.

The caves have always attracted with their mystery, uniqueness, as well as original combinations of bizarre statues, often reminiscent of fantasy images of mythical heroes.

Grottoes often served many people as a shelter over their heads, a reliable shelter from bad weather, a place of fertile hermitage. And now that many of them have become available for visiting, anyone can get a little closer to own history which is so captivating and alluring.

Kungur cave

She is considered the most beautiful in Russia. And this is not surprising, because, once inside, each person experiences a strong feeling that he has fallen into the very realm of the Snow Queen. All this is because the entire cave surface is covered with eternal layers of ice, as well as hoarfrost. According to scientists, the age of the ice layers reaches about 10 thousand years.

The views that tourists have the opportunity to admire are truly impressive. Ice droplets here gather into magnificent crystals, iridescent with many color shades. This is achieved thanks to the lighting system, which is based on laser illumination. There are also man-made ice sculptures.

Surprisingly, despite the eternally reigning cold, a man once lived in the cave. This is evidenced by a hermit's hut discovered here, a dug well, as well as a lost bast shoe.

Where is it located and how to get there? The cave is located near the city of Kungur ( Perm region). You can get here by bus from Yekaterinburg.

Batovskaya cave

It is considered the longest cave in all of Russia, because its length reaches about 62,103 meters.

The cave was discovered quite by accident: a local hunter, following the trail of a bear, suddenly stumbled upon the entrance to it.

Inside the grotto there are permanent lakes one and a half meters deep and ten meters long. The uniqueness of the attraction lies in the fact that it is based on both limestone and sandstone. This is rare, since most karst caves composed entirely of limestone. The Botovskaya cave is considered to be a horizontal type cave, representing a labyrinth of intricate passages.

Where is it located and how to get there? The object is in Irkutsk region, near the village of Konoshalovo. Guides are advised to get to the cave. By car, it is impossible to drive close to the entrance.

Barlog's throat

Counts the deepest cave Russia. So, its depth is about 900 meters, and the length reaches 3000 meters. It got its name in honor of the character of the same name from The Lord of the Rings. After all, when the researchers had to go down deep, overcoming the path along a narrow well, it seemed that they had made their way through the throat of a fantastic monster.

The cave is relatively young, since it was discovered only in 1994. The entrance to the grotto is located at the top of the Atsgara River, its peak reaches a height of 2825 meters above sea level.

Where is it located and how to get there? The throat of Barloga is located in the Urupsky district of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic. Take a bus to Kurdzhinovo, then hire a car. If the road is not washed out, then you can get to the Mostovska glade on the Zagedanka River.

Kapova cave (Shulgan-tash cave)

Gained worldwide fame thanks to the Paleolithic drawings. The age of the rock carvings is impressive: about 14–14.5 thousand years. The size of the drawings is also considered rare (within 44–112 centimeters). Some of them are made with red ocher, and the rest - with charcoal. Quite curious is the fact that no traces of soot were found on the ceiling of the object (after all, light was required to complete the drawings). But, as it turned out later, ancient people had a kind of analogue of a kerosene lamp, in which fat acted as an alternative to kerosene.

According to the results archaeological sites managed to find human skulls without skeletons. It is assumed that a separate burial of the head indicated the importance of the departed person. It is possible that the heads belonged to the shaman and the leaders, since earlier the cave was an analogue of the sanctuary, where certain rituals took place.

Where is it located and how to get there? Located in the Burzyansky district of Bashkiria on Southern Urals, in the reserve Shulgan-Tash. You need to go from Ufa to Sterlitamak, turn to Beloretsk. Before reaching it 50 km, turn to Starosubkhangulovo. Go to Mindigulovo, then follow the sign "Shulgan-Tash".

Vorontsovskaya cave

It ranks sixth among the longest caves in Russia (length is 11,720 meters). Represents largest system caves in the Caucasus.

During the archaeological excavations in the cave it was possible to find traces ancient man(from the Stone Age to the Middle Ages). And during the period civil war the grotto acted as a reliable shelter for the red partisans.

Also Vorontsov cave also called excellent geological monument. For example, the length of stalactites is impressive. In the same Labyrinth cave (which is a continuation of Vorontsovskaya) a stalactite called Rocket rises more than 6 meters high.

Where is it located and how to get there? Located near the city of Sochi. You can get from the village of Khosta by car. But it should be taken into account that Shuttle Buses they will take you only to Kalinovoye Lake, from where you will have to walk 5-7 kilometers.

Akhshtyrskaya cave

The uniqueness of this attraction is that it was once inhabited by primitive people, as evidenced by the discovered objects, traces and rock tempera.

The first settlement arose in a cave 70 thousand years ago. Its main representatives were the Neanderthals. Further 20 thousand years the grotto was empty. And about 30-35 thousand years ago it was inhabited by the Cro-Magnons. In later times, people also lived in the cave. Similar intervals between settlement occurred at a time when the cave (according to the same indicators of dampness) was not suitable for living. But if people did not live in it, then it was still not empty, becoming a refuge for bears.

In relation to the Akhshtyrskaya cave, a rather curious assumption was made by mythologists who claim that Odysseus once met a cyclops here.

Where is it located and how to get there? The cave is 15 kilometers away from Adler. You can get there along the way from the trout factory or by bus from Adler.

Where is it located and how to get there? Located in Khakassia, 9 kilometers away southbound from the village of Topanova. You can get there along the Shira-Kommunar highway.

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

Cave karst origin, is located in Mexico, in the state of San Lui Potosi. It looks smaller than it really 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 commensurate with the height of the Empire State Building (381 meters without a spire). The famous New York skyscraper Chrysler Building, whose height reaches 319 meters, could easily be placed in the cave. Black swifts live in the cave, but the name is derived from the Spanish word Golondrinas (“swallow”).

In the morning, flocks of birds fly in a spiral, gaining height until they reach the exit of the cave. In order not to violate quiet life swifts, descents into the cave are allowed only at certain times: from 12:00 to 16:00. In addition, a collision 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 fit base jumpers. The descent into the cave takes about 20 minutes. climbing equipment and about 10 seconds during a long parachute jump, while opening the parachute is possible only at a strictly defined time: at 6-7 seconds of falling. Climbing up takes about two hours and requires good climbing and physical fitness.

carlsbad cave

The 250-million-year-old Carlsbad Cave is part of a chain of 80 karst caves in the Guadalupe mountains on southeast State of New Mexico, USA. The depth of the cave is 339 meters, the total length of all passages and halls is about 12 kilometers.

The largest 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 grace of mineral formations. Carlsbad Cave was formed during the deposition of thick layers of limestone in rock. Small cracks formed in this limestone, into which water seeped through, dissolving softer minerals and forming caves and tunnels.

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

crystal cave

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 giant crystals selenite - a mineral, a structural variety of gypsum. The largest of the found crystals has a size of 11 meters in length and 4 meters in width, with a mass of 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 90–100% humidity, which makes it very difficult to explore the cave. Even with equipment, being in a cave usually does not exceed 20 minutes. Access to the cave is open only to scientists.

Han Son Dung Cave

The largest cave on planet Earth, Khan Song Dung, which means "Cave mountain river 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 presumably 9 thousand meters. The halls and corridors are 100 meters wide and 200 meters high.

The cave is unusual in that many years ago, gaps formed in the roof of the cave, through which light and plant seeds entered the underground halls. Now you can find real jungle in the cave. In addition, another interesting rare phenomenon attracts speleologists: cave pearls form in the cave. This rare type of pearl grows by itself in pools of lime water. Its composition differs little from traditional shellfish pearls, but it does not have a beautiful mother-of-pearl luster.

Photo: travel times.ru

Abyss of Three Bridges

Limestone cave of the Jurassic period, a karst sinkhole in Lebanon 255 meters deep, whose age is 160 million years. 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. Passes through them powerful waterfall. For thousands of years, the water from the stream slowly washed away the limestone and gradually destroyed the vaults of the cave. After the appearance of the upper bridge, it was destroyed for a long time by vertical and ring erosion, which, in combination with a series of collapses, created the middle and lower bridges.

Fingal's Cave

famous sea ​​cave located on the tiny isle of Staffa in Scotland. rain and sea ​​water they 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 to it is so narrow that it is impossible to get there by boat. In the Gaelic language, the cave was called Uam Bin, "Cave of Melodies": the huge hall of the cave repeatedly repeats the sounds of the surf, and the whole cave literally sings. An interesting fact is that when the famous author of 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 surprisingly regular shape. Most columns are 6-sided, but there are also 3-sided and 8-sided ones. They acquired such an unusual shape due to the long process of crystallization of volcanic lava. According to legend, these are the remains of piles driven into the bottom of the Irish Sea by the giant Fingal.

Marble Caves of Chile

Marble Caves - the main attraction Lake 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 maze 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 due to the impact of waves over the past 6200 years.

Most famous caves- Marble Cathedral, Marble Cave and Marble Chapel. All three grottoes are part of the peninsula and used to be 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 in a small boat or kayak, but only if the weather is good and calm.

Reed Flute Cave

Cave reed flute- marvelous beautiful cave not far from Chinese city Guilin. One of the largest karst caves in the region, reaching a length of 240 meters. The cave got its name from the special kind of reed growing around it, 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 underground lake one gets the impression of frozen actions, to which the Chinese gave poetic names: "Crystal Palace", "Dragon Tower", "Pine in the Snow", "Dawn in the Lion's 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 cavers have not yet advanced further than 300 meters. The cave got its name thanks to the legend of the dragon, which zealously guarded the gold mine. Anyone who mustered the courage to sneak into his domain, he incinerated with his gaze and killed 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 Jeita settlement, 18 kilometers north of the Lebanese capital Beirut. Caves and grottoes have been known since Paleolithic times. lower cave opened in 1836 by the priest William Thomson, an American missionary. You can only get here by boat, as the cave is filled with underground river providing drinking water over one million Lebanese. The upper galleries were discovered in 1958 by Lebanese speleologists. They consist of a series of separate chambers, the largest of which reaches a height of 120 meters.

Here is 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 made. The giant stalactites of the caves create beautiful compositions, thanks to which the Jeita Caves were among the 28 finalists of the Seven New Wonders of Nature competition.