Prohodna: Two Eye Cave in Bulgaria

Prohodna is a karst cave in north central Bulgaria, located in the Iskar Gorge near the village of Karlukovo in Lukovit Municipality, Lovech Province. The cave is notorious for the two eye-like holes in its ceiling, famous as the Eyes of Oknata. The cave owes its name, which factually means Thoroughfare Cave or Passage Cave, to this feature. Prohodna is the best recognized attraction in the Karlukovo Gorge one of the largest karst regions in Bulgaria and a prevalent location for speleology.

The cave is formed during the Quaternary, Prohodna is 262 metres long, which makes it the longest cave passage in Bulgaria. The cave has two entrances which lie opposite one another, recognized respectively as the “small entrance” and the “big entrance”. The former is 35 metres high and the latter reaches 42.5 or 45 metres in height. The size of the big entrance makes it appropriate for bungee jumping, and it is between the widespread places in Bulgaria for that particular activity. There’re traces of prehistoric habitation in the Prohodna cave, which testify that humans lived in the cave during the Neolithic and Chalcolithic. Prohodna Cave is one of the most famous and easily accessible caves in Bulgaria. It is not by chance that local people sometimes refer to them as The Eyes of the Devil. Seen from a specific angle, they even resemble a face that looks down, and when it is wet it seems as if they are “crying”.

Prohodna is most distinguished cave due to two equal-sized eye holes in the ceiling of its middle chamber. It is believed that the eye resemble holes, is formed through erosion, let in light into the cave. The cave formation is generally identified as the Eyes of Oknata. Therefore several Bulgarian and foreign films were shot there, however the natural phenomenon was featured in the 1987 Bulgarian film “Time of Violence”. The cave lies two kilometers from Karlukovo, nearby the Karlukovo–Lukovit road. It is also reachable from Rumyantsevo, and there is a parking lot near the Small Entrance. Near Prohodna are the much longer cave Temnata Dupka, and a pathway from the Big Entrance of Prohodna leads to the Petar Tranteev National Caving House, one of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria.

Persons who witness this beautiful natural phenomenon are amazed and a little enthusiastic the improbable symmetry and location of the cave holes fill one with awe and a sense of mystique. In 1962 the cave was declared a natural landmark. Moreover Prohodna Cave is a popular destination for climbers, and there’re sport climbing routes divided into more than a few sectors. Their level of difficulty differs, but they’re considered to be some of the toughest in Bulgaria. Furthermore accommodation is available at the mountain hostel, but visitors are advised to make a reservation in advance. There’s a junction on the Lukovit – Karlukovo road leading to the office of the speleological society. The cave is open for travelers all year round. Therefore a guide is not required. Make sure in the cold winter days it is suitable that visitors mind the huge icicles forming on the ceiling and around the cave holes and the slippery surface.

Devetàshka Cave a Huge Karst Cave in Lovech Bulgaria

Devetàshka cave is a huge karst cave in Bulgaria, famous for its long term occupancy for human and other type biological populations during extensive historical periods. It is also home to nearly 30,000 bats. The inside view towards the main entrance and the first two big openings. The cave is also famous as Maarata or Oknata for its seven different-sized holes in the ceiling, through which sunlight penetrates and illuminates the central hall and part of its two fields.

Devetàshka cave is situated 15 km northeast of Lovech and about 2 km from the village of Devetaki. You can reach at cave by foot on a narrow path by the river, starting from the village of Devetaki, or access it directly from Road 301 via a 1,300 ft long dirt road and concrete bridge, constructed in 2011 for the filming of The Expendables 2. Devetàshka cave was exposed in the action movie The Expendables 2 filmed in 2011. The Supreme Administrative Court of Bulgaria declared that this filming was a breach of Bulgaria's environmental regulations. A countless bats were displaced from the cave, but at the late 2012, the majority of the bats had returned to the cave.

In the start of the 1950s, serious-minded explorations of the cave were held, concerning its transformation into a warehouse. In a study showed that the Devetàshka cave used to be inhabited with some interruptions during almost every historical era. The first traces of human presence date back to the middle of the Initial Stone Age before about 70,000 years BC. The Devetàshka cave is amongst the cave deposits with the richest cultural artifacts from the Neolithic. The cave entrance is 35 meters wide and 30 meters high. Approximately 40 meters after the entrance, the cave widens, forming a large hall with an area of 2,400 square meters. The height of the hall is 60 meters; even though at some places it reaches 100 meters.

About 200 meters of the entrance, the two fields break away from the hall. The left one is over two kilometers long, a little river runs along it, which passes through the central hall and flows into the Osam River. The right field is warm and dry. Its entrance is 2.5 meters high and 5.7 meters wide. The field widens after the entrance and forms a rectangular hall about 50 meters long and 10 to 15 meters wide. This field ends with a minor gallery with a round room, also known as the Altar. The cave was declared a natural landmark by order No RD 238/ 7 June 1996.