Ledenika
Encyclopedia
Ledenika is a cave
in the Northwestern parts of the Balkan Mountains
, 16km away from the Bulgaria
n town of Vratsa, its entrance being at 830m above sea level. It features an abundance of galleries and impressive karst
formations including stalactite
s and stalagmite
s, dating back a thousand years. The cave is about 300m long and contains ten separate halls. The biggest one is the Concert Hall. The way to it is through the Passage of Sinners. Only those whose heart is pure can pass through it. Once the cave was full of water but now only a small lake has remained - the Lake of Wishes. The legend says that if you dip your hand in the ice-cold water of the lake and make a wish, the wish will come true.
The first hall (the lowest part of the cave) is the Antechamber. In winter and springtime this hall enchants with its ice crystal decoration that the cave is named after (“led” in Bulgarian means “ice”). For a few metres – through the Plaznyata Passage – you need to walk with your head down – up until the tiny almost round hall – and then through another narrow passage into the big Concert Hall. Everything here is majestic and unique – the Crocodile, the Giant’s head, the Falcon, Santa Claus, the Witch’s house etc. From the big hall – through the iron bridge, the Big and Small Precipices and the Pelmets Passage – you arrive in the beautiful White Hall. In here you can see the Mother-in-law’s Tongue, the Giant’s Wife, the Elephant and the Bathing Lass. The highest point of the cave is called the Seventh Sky – accessible only to the most enthusiastic tourists.
The temperature in the cave varies from –7°С to –15°С, and 8°С in the interior. The air humidity is 92%. Not many animals can be seen other than bats, cave beetles, wood-lice, spiders and the unique “Ledenicus” or “Light-hater” insects. Little vegetation is adapted to the cave: only poorly developed lichen
s and mosses.
The cave is part of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria
, Bulgarian Tourist Union: Working hours - summer: 8:30 to 12:30am and 1:30 to 6:00pm.; winter: 8:30am to 4:00pm, seal available.
on Graham Land
in Antarctica is named after the cave.
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
in the Northwestern parts of the Balkan Mountains
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
, 16km away from the Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n town of Vratsa, its entrance being at 830m above sea level. It features an abundance of galleries and impressive karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
formations including stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
s and stalagmite
Stalagmite
A stalagmite is a type of speleothem that rises from the floor of a limestone cave due to the dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate. This stalagmite formation occurs only under certain pH conditions within the underground cavern. The corresponding formation on...
s, dating back a thousand years. The cave is about 300m long and contains ten separate halls. The biggest one is the Concert Hall. The way to it is through the Passage of Sinners. Only those whose heart is pure can pass through it. Once the cave was full of water but now only a small lake has remained - the Lake of Wishes. The legend says that if you dip your hand in the ice-cold water of the lake and make a wish, the wish will come true.
The first hall (the lowest part of the cave) is the Antechamber. In winter and springtime this hall enchants with its ice crystal decoration that the cave is named after (“led” in Bulgarian means “ice”). For a few metres – through the Plaznyata Passage – you need to walk with your head down – up until the tiny almost round hall – and then through another narrow passage into the big Concert Hall. Everything here is majestic and unique – the Crocodile, the Giant’s head, the Falcon, Santa Claus, the Witch’s house etc. From the big hall – through the iron bridge, the Big and Small Precipices and the Pelmets Passage – you arrive in the beautiful White Hall. In here you can see the Mother-in-law’s Tongue, the Giant’s Wife, the Elephant and the Bathing Lass. The highest point of the cave is called the Seventh Sky – accessible only to the most enthusiastic tourists.
The temperature in the cave varies from –7°С to –15°С, and 8°С in the interior. The air humidity is 92%. Not many animals can be seen other than bats, cave beetles, wood-lice, spiders and the unique “Ledenicus” or “Light-hater” insects. Little vegetation is adapted to the cave: only poorly developed lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
s and mosses.
The cave is part of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria
100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria
"100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria" is a Bulgarian national movement established in 1966 to promote tourism among Bulgaria's most significant cultural, historic, and natural landmarks....
, Bulgarian Tourist Union: Working hours - summer: 8:30 to 12:30am and 1:30 to 6:00pm.; winter: 8:30am to 4:00pm, seal available.
Honour
Ledenika PeakLedenika Peak
Ledenika Peak is the peak rising to 1020 m in Srednogorie Heights on Trinity Peninsula, Antarctic Peninsula. Situated 2.68 km southwest of Razvigor Peak, 6 km southeast of Hanson Hill, 6.66 km east of Wimple Dome and 10.89 km north-northwest of Sirius Knoll...
on Graham Land
Graham Land
Graham Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies north of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This description of Graham Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between the British Antarctic Place-names Committee and the US Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names, in...
in Antarctica is named after the cave.