Caves: the cradle of humanity

On the territory of the "Yangan-Tau" geopark there are more than 40 caves and grottoes. Some of them are quite extensive, and there are quite small grottoes. But nevertheless, each of these caves is unique and attractive. The most popular among tourists are Laklinskaya cave (Tash kyus), Idrisova cave (cave of Salavat) and Urmantau ice cave. The increasing recreational load can have a negative impact on the microclimate of the caves, their flora and fauna, so to assess the consequences and calculate the load of the cave Geopark was visited by members of the caving squad, behind which kilometers of passages of the Ural caves.

Laklinskaya cave

The cave is 252 meters long and 31 meters deep. Area 5 288 sq.metres.
Immediately from the entrance begins a steep descent at an angle of 30 degrees to a depth of 14 meters. You need to go down carefully so as not to slip and fall. Especially slippery here in winter and spring. Because of the features of the entrance to the cave, cold air flows down and stagnates there, so it is cold all year round.

Going down, you will find yourself in a huge hall Lobby. Its size is amazing: the length of 105 meters, width up to 45 meters, and height – 19 meters. On the floor are boulders, sometimes in the cave, found ice.

In the North-Eastern part of the hall there is a narrow and short passage. But in the Northern part of the hall gallery after 80 meters leads to another room size of 20-25 meters. It is possible to see the beautiful incrustations.

Another gallery with a length of 40 meters leads in the third (and last) hall Laklinskaya of the cave. Its size is 50 by 28 meters, height up to 13 meters. The main "highlight" of this grotto is a two – stage calcite drip, resembling a frozen waterfall. There are also small stalactites. The cave extends parallel to the Lakly river.

Exit

Idrisovskaya cave

The cave consists of a horizontal corridor the Northern stretch, which crosses several broad caves and on the West passes in the course of descending. The length of the underground passages is 93 meters, the average height is 2.6 meters, the average width is 3.8 meters. The floor in the cave is clay with splinters of rubble. Here there are animal bones, remains of plants and trees. The interior of the cave is quite modest: small stalactites on the ceiling.

The uniqueness of the cave lies in the presence of unique rock paintings and other traces of ancient civilizations. The images belong to the category of Paleolithic painting, they are made of ocher and are anthropomorphic in nature. Insects and bats sleep in the cave in winter.


Wintering butterfly

Urmantauskaya ice cave

The cave, situated in a picturesque place in the rock Bagantash (Stone pillar in bashkir language) on the right slope of the valley of the river Yuryuzan, 2 km to the East of the Urmantau village. It is a labyrinth of canyon and tunnel-like corridors. The longest cave of the Ufa plateau, its length is 621 m, depth is 36 m, average width is 2 m, average height is 3.7 m, area is 1004 m2. The floor is covered with clay, gravel; there are many sinter formations in the form of recrystallized bark, stalactites and stalagmites. The cave was discovered accidentally in the 60s of XX century, when a local resident fell into it. In the course of further research here was discovered the site of primitive man.
The cave is dry, ice remains in the entrance part until summer. In Urmantau cave inhabited by bats.