Upper parts of the cave Čaganka
second visit to the deepest cave in dolenjska region - 2015-01
After a challenging visit to Čaganka there was a promise of a more enjoyable trip to the upper older parts. The weather forecast was not the best and even though it promised heavy snowfall, we were greeted by a bearable 20 centimeters of snow. We were lucky, as in the next few days, there was more than a meter of snowfall and we wouldn’t even be able to picture a visit to the cave until the spring.
A true caving idyll, a beautiful, sunny morning … It had us walking on the freshly fallen snow towards the entrance to the cave instead of the decorated forest. Well, at least low temperatures and snow aren’t usually present in caves, but in some, there is plenty of mud – and Čaganka has it in abundance. But the upper parts are not comparable to the muddy atmosphere of the lower parts, which was of course a plus for us.
The first stages passed quickly and was brightened by occasional photography and joking about this and that. The parts in the beginning are picturesque, but quite similar to one another, so we saved some details for the way back. We were mostly interested in the 70-meter level and our thoughts were focused on the execution of that photo. With an army-like execution consisting on ‘you, that’, and ‘you, there’ we spread out before entering the level and made everything easier with radio stations. The dripping of water creates a considerable ruckus and screaming instructions really isn’t very helpfully.
In the following meander we had some problems with positioning the model and the flashes, which ended in an absurd complication with the equipment. If you are aware of bad ideas in such a situation, it’s best to stop what you’re doing, be content with what you’ve done and spend your time elsewhere with better results. So we headed towards the Ceiling ring with more enthusiasm, where Marjan made the photo more interesting with his antics.
Our path finally transitioned through a new level and a shorter meander towards the Coral Reef and finally, towards the Acoustic Hall, the next large space in the cave. I had previously experienced the cave to the bottom of the Acoustic Hall, so the positioning was fast and easy. I used a tripod after a long time while Bole lit a single lightbulb at the bottom of the hall for a ‘warmer’ touch of ambiance.
We also headed towards the South passage. The goal was to make at least a few photographs to the entrance of the Gorenjska continuation, but we managed to make more throughout the shaft. But we decided against heading into the following parts as Šini was promising a few more hours, which would be difficult to afford for us. The trip was followed by the usual coffee in a bivouac in the Northern passage with comical relief about the life of a caver and of course photography of the motives I had mentally noted during this time’s visit.
As it were, it was quite late when we came up again and there was still an abundance of snow. A warm house was once again the highlight of our day, and the meal by Marjan and Šini one of the best culinary treats, even though it was just pasta and beans from a can … This time, the adventurers in Čaganka were Bole, Mojca, Marjan, Miha and Šini, and you can see more of our work in the gallery, of course.
