Snow Cave, Limestone cave beneath Mount Raduha, Slovenia.
Snežna jama is a 1,062 m cave system on the southwestern slope of Raduha at 1,556 m, with 630 m prepared for visits. Entry is via a 40 m steel ladder at 45° into the 10 m high Ledeni dvorana (Ice Hall), which holds a 35 × 20 m ice lake. Beyond, the narrow Snežni gozd leads to the Jedilnica and the Dvorana kijastih kapnikov.
Shepherds from nearby farms found the entrance, first officially registered in 1939. In 1981 members of the Črni galeb caving club from Prebold dug beneath 6 m of snow and entered a 1.5 km system. The cave opened to the public on 14 July 1990; its age is estimated at 10 to 12 million years.
The cave's name comes from the snow that shepherds found at its entrance, and the entrance sinkhole was first officially registered in 1939. Cavers from the Črni galeb club in Prebold opened the system in 1981 under a 6 m snow layer. Since 14 July 1990 visitors have entered by a 40 m steel ladder at 45° into the Ice Hall.
Visitors reach the cave via a road from Luče followed by a short walk through the mountain landscape. Guided tours are the standard way to explore the interior, with the best visiting season being summer months.
In a side passage, cavers found the skeleton of a cave bear, which according to Dr. Franc Osole belonged to a female that died 15,000 to 20,000 years ago, when the species was already extinct in Slovenia. The cave also shelters endemic beetles such as Oryotus raduhensis and Anophtalmus pretneri naraglavi.
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