55234. Cottage where the party stayed during the visit. From the left window on the first floor ...
Most images are approximately 768 x 1024 pixels in size, numbers in front of the picture
descriptions are serial numbers of the original photo files.
The following people participated in the creation of the photos: Juraj Littva
and Pavol (Palo) Staník of Slovak Caves Administration from Liptovský Mikuláš,
Andrea Martín Pérez and Adrijan Košir of Ivan Rakovec Institute of Palaeontology
from Ljubljana, and Vladimir Levašov of Kiev and Ljubljana Cave Exploration
Societies. The cave name could be best translated as Demanovian cave of peace, but the use of original
name, Demänovská jaskyňa mieru, pronounced Dahmenovskuh yaskeenya myaroo, is preferable. The author
deliberately used the adjective form Demanovian and not Demanovska (feminine version of Demanovski)
in English translation - not Demanovska Cave or Demanov Cave. The first
possibility is not appropriate because it is simply non-English (slovenski = Slovakian or
Slovenian) and the second one fails because Demanov is a word which,
according to Slovakian orthography
inevitably leads back to Demänovski (or Demänovská).
The purpose of the excursion was to visit one of the premiere Slovakian caves, to get acquainted
with caving people from a friendly, closely related country, and, last but least,
to see the cave's moonmilk cave sediment, for which
the cave is (not yet, but should be soon) known worldwide. The majority of
the photos were taken "on the move", without tripod, using either the available
cave lighting or illumination provided by the extra in the scene and
the author, plus the support of either of the two thin dry spruce poles
Vladimir collected in the bush close to the cave entrance, or the trail railing, as the
"night" program used requires several seconds long exposure.
Demänovské jaskyne (Demanovian Caves), situated in Demänovská dolina (Demanovian valley),
comprise four main interconnected caves,
Demänovská ľadová (pron. lyuhdova)
jaskyňa,
Demänovská jaskyňa slobody,
Pustá jaskyňa and Demänovská jaskyňa mieru, discovered in 1299, 1921, 1923 and 1952,
together with several smaller caves that also connect to the main caves, have a total length of
51,480 km (as of March 10, 2025). Jaskyňa mieru is 17,431 km long and the
latest 1800 meters were added to it in 2023.
Demänovské jaskyne are the longest and most visited caves in Slovakia.
The caves were photographed by many and there are two categories
on the Wikimedia Commons media repository of free-to-use images that cover the
Demänovská jaskyňa slobody and
Demänovská ľadová jaskyňa. Yet the best photos of Demänovské jaskyne can not be found on the web.
In 2023 a book Demänovské jaskyne v obrazoch (Demanovian Caves in Pictures) was
published by the State Nature Conservancy of the Slovak Republic. It is a hardcover of 207 pages,
28.5 x 28.5 cm in size and weighs 1.65 kg. The book is mainly composed of
full-page photos by Pavol Staník (all but 11), including several
two-page ones and a centerfold, with accompanying text by Miroslav Kudla and cave maps by Pavel Herich.
It depicts all the four abovementioned caves, plus a few more from the
valley, with an artistic eye and is a remarkable, accomplished piece.
Hopefully in time some photos from it will, perhaps as an illustration of a
wikipedia article, find the way to the general public.
Page, texts and photos copyright (c) Primož Jakopin - Klok 2025, except for the photos VL55, VL56, VL57 and VL58, which were taken and copyrighted by Vladimir Levašov, the photo AK1, by Adrijan Košir and the photo AMP1, by Andrea Martín Pérez; they are all published with consent of the authors.
55234. Cottage where the party stayed during the visit. From the left window on the first floor ...
55233. ... such a morning view (west) of the village opened up.
AMP1. The team: Andrea, Vladimir, Adrijan, Pavol, Juraj and Klok
55236 and 55237. Pavol, the most known photographer of Demänovské jaskyne, just outside the cave and at the ...
55238. ... end of the tunnel which leads to the cave entrance. The tunnel was made in 1969.
55239. It was not an easy task to develop the cave as a show cave, the tunnels between Jaskyňa mieru and Jaskyňa slobody and between Jaskiňa mieru and the surface were made in the 1980-s, when the trail on metal supports was also built. In the turmoil which led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early nineties, further development was halted. It resumed in 2024, when the stainless rails and modern LED cave lighting, financed by the EU, was introduced.
55241. Rivulet in the cave ...
55242. ... here seen up close.
55246. Shades of flowstone color, from pure white to yellow, beige and light brown
55247. A deep side stalactite and stalagmite altar
55250. White wall with flowstone draperies on top, above a large white heap
55251. Flowstone laces. The pan in the center is about 50 cm wide.
55252. Two stalagmites, a flowstone flower and laces
55267. Moonmilk at the bottom of the Vatové jazero (Cotton Lake), up close
55265. Slightly wider view ...
AK1. Image, obtained from a sample from Vatové jazero by Adrijan with an electron microscope in the Laboratory of the Ivan Rakovec Institute of Palaeontology in Ljubljana. A click on the photo, and another one, shows it in full resolution.
55256. Flowstone opulence on the other side of the lake
VL57. Backstage of the previous photos
55258, 55260 and 55259. Three portraits of Juraj.
55269. On the way back Adrijan discovered the most unusual draperies ...
55271. The path in Zrútený dóm winds among large rocks, below colorful criss-crossed ceiling strata.
55272. Steep walls and the rocks, ...
55274. High passage with flowstone draperies and moonmilk above a white rimstone pool ...
55275. ... here seen up close.
55276. Translucent stalagmite at the pathside
55281. Trinity - a trio of united stalactite-stalagmite pairs
55282. Out of the cave again - it was a good day: Juraj
55286. View southeast with many shades of blue-gray mountain slopes.
55289. ... and to the east-northeast with Vysoké Tatry mountain chain on the horizon, ...
55291. ... here in a telephoto view.
Related pages:
Planinska jama and Jama pod Jerebovim gričem, April 5, 2025
Rakov Škocjan, April 20, 2025
This page, text and photos by Primož Jakopin,
member of the Ljubljana Cave Exploration Society (DZRJL).
Send inquiries and comments to primoz jakopin guest arnes si
(insert dots and at sign as appropriate).
Page was initiated on April 13, 2025; date of the last change: April 27, 2025.
URL: https://www.jakopin.net/primoz/slike/2025/PJ20250411_en.php
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