Abrskil Cave
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Abrskil(a) Cave | |
|---|---|
| Abrskila, Achuats Tizgo | |
  Location of the cave  Abrskil(a) Cave (Abkhazia) | |
| Location | Abkhazia,[n 1] Georgia |
| Coordinates | 42°55′14″N 41°33′17″E / 42.920556°N 41.554722°E |
| Length | 2,000 m |
| Geology | Karst cave |
Abrskil Cave or Abrskila (Georgian: აბრსკილის მღვიმე[1]) is a stalactite cave near Otapi village in Abkhazia,[n 1] Georgia. It is named after the national hero of Abrskil — a parallel folk hero of the Greek Prometheus and Georgian Amiran — known as Abkhaz Prometheus. It is also called the Otap cave. Abrskila is more than 2 km in length out of which about 1.5 to 1.7 km is accessible for viewing. Its beauty and fame is compared favourably with another cave known as the New Athos Cave.[2][3]
Abrskil Cave is located in the picturesque southern slopes of the Panavi ridge near the port of Ochamchire, in karstic limestone. The cave is about 2 km long (3 km length including passages has also been reported), out of which 1.5 to 1.7 km has been made accessible. The cave has a winding gallery from where Achkitzgo River is seen to emerge. This gallery has six chambers, out of which the main hall is studded with naturally developed, elegantly formed stalactites, stalagmites, helictites, columns, curtains and so forth, formed in karstic limestone formations. These halls have been illuminated by lights to make them look attractive and the most impressive hall is called the Heliktitův Hall. The access entrance to the cave has watch towers known as Abkhazian Wall, where a water fall is also seen. It is the second longest cave in Abkhazia.[3][4][5]
During the visit of President Sergey Bagapsh on 6 June 2010 to the village of Otap and the Abrskil Cave with Member of Parliament Zaur Adleiba and the Ochamchira district governor Murman Dzhopua and pledged to provide the assistance needed to restore a tourist route to Abrskil cave. The villagers of Otap rely heavily on tourists visiting this cave for their livelihoods and selling locally produced farm goods to them.[2] The Abkhaz state-owned company, Chernomorenergo, has been responsible for providing the cave with electricity to light up the tunnels and attract more tourists to fuel the local economy.[2] The cave has been developed with improved infrastructure facilities to encourage tourism to the place.[5]