The Bear's Cave in Kletno - a Living Cave
Explore the most beautiful cave in Poland in terms of the richness of the dripstone form
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Water in the cave
In shaping the landscape of karst areas, water is very important. Today this water has its own name, the Kleśnica, a small creek babbling at the foot of the cave. The waters of this stream are largely responsible for the carving of Bear Cave.
It all began some 28 million years ago, when surface waters initiated the formation underground cave system, joining their forces through a system of cracks and fissures in the rock.
In this way, for millions of years, passages, halls, chimneys were formed. Water not only destroys the rock mass but also can create beautifully, resulting in a cave dripstone with a great variety of forms and colors.
Since 1977, the Bear Cave has been a Nature Reserve. Only a certain number of people can enter the Cave daily to admire its beauty.
The microclimate
Throughout the year in the cave there is a constant temperature of about 6 degrees Celsius and humidity close to 100%.
Dripstones
In the Bear Cave, the infiltration cover is varied and well preserved. Calcium carbonate accumulated in water is deposited in the form of crystalline calcite.
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The cave needs a lot of time to grow
We estimate the calcite increment to be approximately 1 mm3 per 10 years.
Text: Artur Sawicki
Photos: Artur Niedbała
