Cave Meziad - Stana de Vale, Muntii Apuseni

Cave Meziad - Stana de Vale - details and images

Meziad Cave is situated in Bihor county Meziad Valley Mountains in South Eastern and Western Forest Mountains Apuseni Mountains.
Natural monument, as a reserve Speleological is much studied in 1921 and was visited by a team of geologists led by renowned caver with Emil Racovita Romanian. It is a large cave, one of the top and furnished caves long been one of the longest caves in Romania (4750 m long with several levels). The cave was renovated in 1972 and opened to tourism.

Cave, in most rocks (walking is only a small portion of an underground river), has three major openings and is rising (difference of the main entrance to the highest point being 78 m). The total length of 4750 m. The areas of interest are not concretions, which are completely destroyed, but they were kept in less accessible areas, located upstairs.

Entry (alt. 397 m) is huge (h 16 m wide. 10 m), the semicircular shape. In May they left was a small entrance, neansemnata. Enters the room where there is very large, being walking near the right wall of a subterranean creek that crosses the entire main hall of the cave, almost to the end or, for a distance of approximately 270 m below the burn out of the cave south wall -East of the entrance arch on a bed of gravel. The cave is divided into three main sectors: the main gallery, located at the lower level, first floor (access from the side galleries of the southern part of the main gallery, the Stone Bridge, the northern network of galleries, Palm Room, up to Devil's Throat); second floor (from the Devil's Throat, to the east, although the upper galleries of secondary networks).

Main Gallery. This section begins with a large gallery and access high after entry, is covered by the burn underground and wholly lacking in concrete once existed but they were completely destroyed or degraded. However, the gallery is impressive by its grandeur, generally having a width of 15-20 m and a height too high. At a distance of 70 m from the entrance, the gallery is a first room widens, with a diameter of 30 m. In this debuseaza the second most important entrance of the cave, towards the north-east in a right cone gravel debuseaza a first side corridor, marked the beginning or a white stalagmites (White Tower). The large hall narrows slightly to the east (lat. 7-8 m), continuing only after an elbow scored and northeast gradually widens. In the right wall side open mouths of the three major galleries, two of which are access points to the cave floor. All three are rampant. Opposite the third gallery on the right side to open a corridor for access to the floor abruptly, but impractical because of the difficulties it poses. Approximately 30 m further on there, all on the left, a large gallery (lat. 15 m), once rich concretionata that leads to the floor (it allows direct access to the colony of bats). A little upstream of the mouth of this gallery, right in the middle of the corridor, there is a large dome stalagmite, the only trim the lower gallery. After a temporary appearance instead of water (spring), the slope becomes steeper, and on top of a huge cone of debris may reach the upper galleries of the cave network, to the Devil's Throat.

I. The first floor on the right side gallery, located at a distance of 40 m from the main gallery hall leads us on a steep slope at first until a fork, the right, narrow, giving access to an concretionata Shalit ( Chapel) and the left, crosses a short distance after a small insignificant twisty corridor, makes a bend to the left, gradually widens until the right faction hunter's horn, debusand in space and wider roads. Can be left down a gravel slope (but with difficulty) in the main gallery, the right branch is a wide road, the end of which ends with a vertical wall in the gallery above the entrance side of the three main galleries. Finally, the two branches is extremely large gallery that crosses over the main gallery (Stone Bridge) like a bridge, is the highest part of the cave (33 m). The gallery gradually widens after passing the area where there are two major factions (and tabernacle pulpit), it shows a corridor on the right steep whose debuseaza in the main gallery.

Gallery expands much higher (25 m) in a room concretionata rich past, but today only holds important bat colonies. A path leads upwards to the right eventually appear in a terminal area, with traces of digging on the floor, where small mouths open side of the narrow corridors. The main road continues through an iron staircase which gives access to a corridor free of concretions, showing only a distinguished background, big and red (Hangman). Corridor debuseaza eventually expanded into a space (approx. 15 m wide), marked by the presence of 7 m high concretiunii called Palm. After Palm, the space expands and more and the ceiling reaches 10-12 m height. The room where we were split three ways more important leading to the lower gallery through steep slopes, a fourth way, just 0.5 m wide, is the Devil's Throat, the gateway to the second floor terminal of the cave .

Second floor. Devil's Throat is a bridge covered with gravel through which enters a sector characterized by a network of narrow, winding corridors, is the most complicated maze of the cave. The first corridor leading to the left of the main gallery, after the Devil's Throat, was named Red Tower Gallery. Along the main gallery there are some important places, used as landmarks in orientation, called expressive: James Fountain (a massive cluster formation, with a remarkable pool of water), Bone Hall, Ponor, wood floor room etc. . The gallery ends with two narrow corridors parallel, converging, then branch out again, being the easternmost extremity of the cave. Central area of the main gallery, wide, shows the left side more access corridors to the north-east of the cave. Snow Bridge is a limestone bridge near which there is a rich area concretionata. Columns hall allows access to the highest portion of the cave (Pluto's mausoleum), where there is a small funnel through which water from being trapped in the gap area was underground.

The pore size and structure subpamantene galleries, cave Meziad shows a speleogeneza great importance for studies and karst evolution. She also has significant remains Biospeologica by past and present fauna, and anthropological, which so far have been only partially investigated. The fauna can mention current and Duvalius Niphargus bihorensis Forel (Duvaliotes) redtenbacheri bihariensis. Anthropological discoveries made by C. and P. Riscutia Firu In 1960 Meziad proving that the cave was used as a shelter by prehistoric man.

Terms of sightseeing. Fitting cave until now summarize a few metal stairs that facilitate overcoming difficult sectors (ascending and Descending into the Gallery Gallery Stone Bridge). Underground route is free but other technical difficulties and require no special equipment. It is advisable to use individual lighting means.
The cave is a natural monument, visiting them can not be done only under the guidelines that are at the cottage. Moreover, free access is limited to the Great Hall at the end of the gallery which is blocked by a metal gate built into a stone wall and the upper level in the labyrinthine unsuspecting visitor can get lost easily.

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