Cat Cave
The Gato Cave is actually the southern mouth of the speleological system called Hundidero-Gato system, although the entire complex is usually known by its name., his most famous mouth. It is the most important system in Andalusia with more than 9,000 m surveyed and one of the largest in Spain, with permanent water, chasms, lakes, siphons and a certain danger because the intense rains in the area cause the underground channel to vary with great speed, together with the temperature of its waters, has caused the death of several people. It is considered an asset of cultural interest, for its cave paintings, and a natural monument.
Situation
The Gato Cave is located in the municipality of Benaoján, in the province of Málaga, within the Sierra de Grazalema natural park, about 15 km west of Ronda.
The chasm, or Hundidero cave, is located about 3 km north of Montejaque next to the MA-8403 highway, being the upper mouth or entrance to the system at a height of 593 m. The system develops over a total of 7818 m and a gradient of -219 m, with a main route of 4500 m in a north-south direction to the southern or lower mouth of the Cat Cave at a height of 423 m, right in the Guadiaro River and next to the MA-555 highway from Ronda to Benaoján and the Ronda-Algeciras railway line.
Features
Like the entire Grazalema mountain range, it is a karst area of limestone rock where water has generated an impressive underground world. The Hundidero-Gato system collects water from a wide and relatively flat basin that forms the Río Guadares river, also called "Campobuche", which rises near the town of Villaluenga del Rosario, about 15 km southwest of the Hundidero cave, where said river disappeared to reappear in the Cat Cave and converge with the Guadiaro River.
History
In 1920, a hydroelectric dam (called the Caballeros dam) was built at the very entrance of the Hundidero cave to try to take advantage of this channel. The dam basin, of a karst nature, caused the water to leak, that reappeared again inside the system. Among other actions, paths, passageways, and suspension bridges were built and lighting was installed, some of which can still be seen, to plug with concrete the galleries that received the waters, although without success, so finally in 1950 the construction was abandoned. work.
However, these modifications caused the water to no longer flow through the Sima de Hundidero itself or through the first section of the cave, but rather new leaks appeared in the cave shortly after, making the behavior of the system more unpredictable. The journey begins without water and little by little a large flow begins to form that can make continuation impossible. They also destroyed a large number of calcareous formations.
Status
The Cat Cave was declared a natural monument of Andalusia in 2011; It had previously acquired the status of asset of cultural interest by Law 16/1985, of June 25, of the Spanish Historical Heritage, which protects with this figure "the caves, shelters and places that contain manifestations of rock art."
Gallery
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