Caves in Serbia
Serbia’s caves are a notable feature on its map of tourist destinations, many of them of interest to visitors thanks to their attractive cave formations and beautiful natural phenomena. The greatest concentration of caves is found in eastern Serbia. Currently, there are seven caves which have been made suitable for visiting by tourists.Caves and potholes are classed as speleological natural monuments. The most well-known caves open to visitors are the Resavska, Zlotske Pećine, Rajkova, Potpećka, Bogovinska and Stopića Pećina caves.
Resavska Pećina
The Resavska Pećina cave is in eastern Serbia, in the region of Gornja Resava, 20 km from the town of Despotovac. It is set into the limestone hill of Babina Glava on the fringes of the Divljakovac karst polje, its entrance at 485 m above sea-level. It is one of the oldest caves in Serbia, some 80 million years old, with some of the older formations dating back around 45 million years. Its formation began before the Great Ice Age through the chemical and mechanical action of a subterranean river running through the limestone bedrock.
The interior of the cave abounds in numerous and varied halls, channels, galleries, columns, stalactites, stalagmites, draperies and flowstone waterfalls. The cave formations begin at the very entrance to the cave. The formations came about through the dissolving and precipitation of calcium carbonate, and the colour determined by the minerals through which the water passed. Three colours can be seen, red (from iron oxide), white (from crystalline calcite) and yellow (from the addition of clay).
The Resava cave has the status of a protected natural monument and this includes the surrounding area of 11 hectares.
Stopića Pećina
The Stopića Pećina cave is on the northeastern side of the mountain of Zlatibor. It is 30 km from Užice, 250 km from Belgrade and 19 km from the main Belgrade-Podgorica highway. The Užice-Sirogojno road passes above the cave itself.
Stopića cave is classed as a river cave as the Trnavski Potok stream flows through it. It is comprised of three cave and water levels: one which is periodically flooded, a second river level and the most recent level, a fissure.
The cave is comprised of five sections: the Light Hall, the Dark Hall, the Great Hall with Pools, the Channel with Pools and the River Channel. The section of the cave open to visitors does not have a great many formations, but there are a number of interesting elements such as the large entrance, the dugure (openings in the ceiling), a limestone chalice called the Dogs’ Graveyard, the Well of Life waterfall and the most striking feature, a series of sinter pools which are among the largest and deepest (more than 7 metres) of any found in the caves of Serbia. The pools flood periodically and some of them have become lakes.
Rajkova pećina
The Rajkova Pećina cave is in eastern Serbia, 2 km from Majdanpek. It is reached via a tarmac road along the banks of the Mali Pek river and the Veliki Zaton artificial lake. The whole region surrounding the source of the Mali Pek is rich in mixed woodlands of beech, maple and oak, and is unique both for its natural life and its caves.
The entrance section of the cave, from the direction of the village of Rajkovo, was occupied by humans even in prehistory, as evidenced by a stone hammer now kept in the archaeological collection in the Majdanpek Museum. Rajkova Pećina is an open cave, through which the Rajkova Reka river flows. Upon leaving the cave, it merges into the Paskova Reka river which also flows from the cave, and thus the Mali Pek is formed.
Rajkova Pećina is rich in cave formations of all shapes, made of the highest quality snow-white crystal calcite to be found in Serbia. Walking along the cave trail the visitor has a unique chance to experience the gurgling sound of the clear Rajkova Reka river echoing around the Ježeva Dvorana (‘Hedgehog Hall’), with thousands of calcite straws adorning the ceiling.