Adventure in the canyon
I visited the Moravian Karst Protected Nature Reserve in the Suchý Žleb deep canyon again. The Moravian Karst is the largest and most important karst region in the Czech Republic, located north of Brno. This area includes the Punkva river system, the Říčka river, and the Křtinský and Jedovnický stream systems. I ventured to the Catherine Cave (Kateřinská jeskyně) near the Punkva Caves, which I had previously visited. It can be reached in about 20 minutes on foot from Blansko, Skalní mlýn, in the direction of the House of Nature. The House of Nature (Dům přírody) is an exhibition that presents the fauna, rocks, and fossils of the Moravian Karst. In addition, this organization offers educational and adventure programs for schools, travel groups, companies, and firms. With my Catherine Cave tour ticket, I was able to visit this interesting exhibition for free.
Discovery of the cave
Karel Absolon (archaeologist, paleontologist, geographer, speleologist) discovered Catherine Cave in 1909. The cavers believe that the cave systems in the area are connected, but so far they have not been able to reach the Macocha Depth area. The air temperature here is also 7–8 °C (46 °F) and the relative humidity is about 99%. There is a legend about the cave that says that it was named after a shepherdess who, while searching for a stray sheep, got lost in the cave and could not find a way out. However, no evidence of this was found during cave research. The cave has a huge interior space. Due to its excellent acoustics, today it is also used for vocal and instrumental concerts.
Among its mineral formations, we can see many special groups of stalagmites. The diverse forms of stalagmites stimulate the human imagination. This is how the characteristic Witch’s stalagmite and the Bamboo Forest Stick stalagmite group got their names. The cave is also significant from an archaeological and paleontological point of view. A mass of cave bear skeletons were found in one of its chimneys (Medvědí komín). The bears probably did not live in the cave, but only moved in to hibernate. Also it is likely that humans may have used the cave for rituals in the past, as evidenced by the approximately 7,000-year-old cave drawings found. The cave’s only connection to the surface is through the main entrance. The bats enter the cave through the upper opening of the entrance door in late autumn to escape the cold. During their hibernation, so that they are not disturbed by humans, the cave is closed to visitors from November to March.
“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt