Grotte di Stiffe, Natural cave system in San Demetrio ne' Vestini, Italy.
The Grotte di Stiffe are a karst cave complex near Stiffe, in the municipality of San Demetrio ne' Vestini, Abruzzo, inside the Sirente-Velino Regional Natural Park. They form an active resurgence, almost unique in Italy: an underground river emerges at the foce di Stiffe, a crevice in the mountain above the village. The explored passages exceed 1,000 m, about 700 m are open to visitors, and the temperature stays at 10 °C all year.
The caves were used from the Bronze Age, with Neolithic and Eneolithic remains found inside. In 1907 Marquis Alfonso Cappelli had a hydroelectric plant built at the underground stream, whose remains stand near the entrance; it was dismantled in 1956, when speleological exploration began. The site opened to the public in 1991, closed after the 2009 earthquake and reopened in 2011.
The caves were used since the Bronze Age, and archaeological remains from the Neolithic and Eneolithic periods have been found inside. The visit route passes a first cavity where these important remains were discovered. The site is managed directly by the Municipality of San Demetrio ne' Vestini.
Visits are conducted on guided tours since water areas can be slippery and pathways narrow in places. Sturdy footwear and layers are essential year-round due to the consistently cool underground temperature.
The Grotta dei Briganti, a cavity above the entrance, was probably formed by a fossil branch of the resurgence and is not open to visitors. The tourist route ends at the second waterfall, a jump of over 25 m falling into a pond about 5 m deep, opened only in 2007.
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