Caves in Chepelare region
Uhlovitsa Cave
The cave is located 35 km south of Smolyan and 3 km northeast of the village of Mogilitsa (‘Sinite virove’ area – ‘The Blue Pools’). It is well-worthy of the name ‘one of the underground castles' of the Rhodope Mountains. It is one of the oldest caves in the region - more than 3.5 million years old! It took Mother Nature thousands of years to sculpt here a spectacular show of dendrite formations, corallites and helictites. The temperature within remains unchaged throughout the year - 10-11 °С. It was discovered in 1967 by Dimitar and Georgi Raychevi. It is named after a type of an owl – owlet, in Bulgarian ‘ululitsa’. Visitors are welcomed all year round.
Nadarska Cave
Located 6 km from the Uhlovitsa Cave, this is a beautiful cave that will reveal its secrets only to those who dare visitting it (escorted by guides). It is not electrified, so when inside be ready to be embraced by the mystery of the darkness, unveiled from time to time only by the flickering beam of the your lantern, revealing the bizarre shapes of stalactites and stalagmites.
Golubovitsa Cave
Located between the villages of Koshnitsa, Turyan and Mogilitsa. It contains several floors and three entrances; actually, this is a chain of several separated caves - Golubovitsa 1 and Golubovitsa 2; both are not electrified. Tourists can visit it from June to October and will deffinitely need special equipment - waterproof rubber boots, life jackets, lighting and a qualified guide, all of which is provided by the local caving club "Mursalitsa", which proffesionals will help you have an unforgettable adventure in this ‘young’ – only 1.5 million years old cave, and feel the rush of adrenaline through your veins. You will enjoy first a short trip on a boat, followed by a visit of the main part of the cave where a constantly flowing underground stream has sculpted amazing shapes.
But wait, there’s more! Be ready for an even braver test - rock climbing under the guidelines of an experienced instructor. The exit is the same as the entrance, but this time you will descend doing some rapelling on the 15-meter long slope, connecting the entrances of Golubovitsa 2 and Golubovitsa 1. The route ends with an Alpine zipline - a descent along a 45-meters long steel cableway. The line connects the two slopes of Garga Dere.
Thoroughfare Cave "Kaleto"
It is located near the village of Koshnitsa, Smolyan municipality, and is one of the natural phenomena in the area. It is a huge rock vault leading to a peak, where the remains of an old fortress (Kaleto in Bulgarian) of the same name are. Here you can embark on one amazing adrenaline experience, the Alpine swing (pendulum) – secured by a special equipment, you will be swung at a height exceeding 40 meters – just as a pendulum of a huge wall clock. Under your feet the unique view of the valley of Arda River will reveal.
Lednitsata Cave
Located at the foot of Shirokolashki Snezhnik Peak, the name derives from a maiden named Maruda, who lived in Shiroka Luka village when she was kidnapped by the yörüks, a nomadic tribe of Turkish ethnicity. She killed one of the villains, managed to escape and hid in the cave. Since then, nobody knows what happened to her....
Devil’s Throat Cave
Here you will find the highest underground waterfall in the Balkan Peninsula – the astonishing 42 m! It is part of the unique karst formation called the Trigrad Gorge. Visitors can enter only escorted by a guide. The cave is listed as one of the 100 most amazing tourist sites in Bulgaria.
Yagodinska Cave
Deffinitely among the most visited ones in Bulgaria - it is situated 3 km from the village of Yagodina. The total length of the galleries excedes 8 km, which makes it one of the longest in the country.
Haramiyska Cave
Another favourite place for adventure tourism, located in the proximity of Trigrad village. It is a thoroughfare cave that offers an extreme experience while overcoming fears and phobias so common among us, humans – of high, narrow and dark places. Alpine and speleological equipment is required to visit the cave.
Dobrostanski Biser
A shaft cave at the west of Marziganitsa Hut, Asenovgrad Municipality. You must use proper equipment and be guided by trained speleologists. It is declared a protected area because of the large bat colony inhabiting the cave.
