/n thıs ıssue:-

a cHıuAI cBaAr/Aa nloMaol/Aa rUBKEYl PH///PPhVES

AND nnoBE....

The

/nternatıbna/ Ca ııer Magazne

Number Thirteen 1 995

CONTENTS

Editorial

ln Memory of VIadimir Kisseljov - A/exander Klımchouk

The Pothole System Lukina jama-Trojama, Croatia- V/ado Bosic

Grotte Chauvet : a Stone Age masterpiece

AGUJ '94 : In the depths of Mongolıa - Peter Ho/ubek

China Caves'94 : Guangxi and Guizhou provinces- Boberİo Zorz/h & Sı/rano lle/orri

Caving in the Philippines - Martın Foakes

Hydrological & Speleological investigations in the Central andWestern Taurus, Turkey - Saro Buggı?ri

Reviews

The Caving Scene : the latest lnternatlonal News

Gear Review - Firefly 2 Photo Slave Unit

Coııerphotographs ; Fronl - Fıiecncker Passagq B/ack Bock Crre Sanwak (Jery l/l/oo/drı;dge)Back - Gruİa do Jane/aq ıL,lnas Geraa Brazı/ (Tony Wa/İham)

2

3

5

10

11

17

26

29

35

36

38

42

The lnternational Caver MagazinePub/ıshed 4 tımes per annum./sslv 0963-7095@ Copyright 1995No articles, maps, reports, or photographs may be reproduced wiıhoul ıheexpress permission o' lhe author and/or the Edilor.

Published by Aven lnternational Publications, ShaftesburyCentre, Percy Street, Swindon SN2 2AZ, England, U.K.Tel. +44 (0)1793 828236 Fax. +44 (0)1793 512477EDITOR :TlM STRATFORD

Reprographics : Scanplan, Swindon, U.K. Tel. 01793 541222Origin, Swansea, U.K. Tel. 01792774794

Prinıing : EJW Print, Swindon, UK. Tel.01793 533466

TRANSLATIONS : Thomas Knoell, Maurizio Ruggieri, Pierresartre, and carlos puchREGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES : speleo Proiects, Thenıiler-slrasse 43, ı1054 Basel, Swilzerland ; Spelunca Ljbrairie, Le Devenson B,

Allee des Pins, 13OO9 Marseille, France;J-M.Matllet,243 Chaussee de

Haecht, 1030 Bruxelles, Belgium ; Alexander Klimchouk, P.O.Box 224'18,

Kiev-30, 25203O Ukıaine (lor ClS countries).

Annual Subscriğion Rates (4 issues) :-

United Kngdom Q13.70 Europe t'l5.70 (airmail)America &Canada fl5.70 (surface) Q21.10 (airmail)Auslralia & New Zealand f15.70 (surface) t22.90 (airmail)Japan &the Far East t15.70 (surface) f22.90 (airmail)Resı o| lhe wodd Q15.7O (surface) Q2-|.10 (airmail)Sub§criptions should be sent lo lC Subscripıions, Aven Publications,Shaflesbury Cenıre, Percy Street, Swindon SN2 2AZ, England, U.K. or phone(44) (0)1793 828236 whh your Maslercard or Visa credil card delails.

Tle Inteınatıbnal Cavet (13) 1995

/lydro hgıca / a n d .fpeleo /ogrica //n ııeıtıga tionı in t/ıe

Central & Western Taurus

Written by Saro Ruggieri

The author descrjbes expJorationand research carrjed out in the

Taurus Mountains of southernTurkey by a smaJ-l grroup of

rta-Ijan cavers. They extendedthe IularaspoJi cave,by around

350 metre,g, more than doubJingrits Jengrth. Potentja] for further

extensions -1ooks qrood. Theya-lso carrjed out a.brı'ef

inves tigra tjon of the Kepez -

An ta Jya hydroJ ogrı,' cal sys tem.

Phrea tıb ga//ery in the ıVanspo// a ye, Emenek, rurkey,

Turkey

29Tlıe Inteınatıbnal Caver (B) ]995

Hydrologica| and Speleological lnvestigations in the Central & Western Taurus, TURKEY. 27-32

lntroductionThese are the results of an expedition to

southern Turkey by the Italian club G.G.Ragusafollowing an invitation froın Dr.Temucin Aygen,

geologist and founder ofthe Turkish SpeleologicalSociety.

The expedition had the following aims :-

(1) The documentation of the Kepez-Antalyahydrogeological system, in order to prepare a

speleological research ınission, (2) the exploration ofthe cave system of Maraspoli, and (3) cave researchon the Guney Yurt-Ennenek plateau situated abovethe Maraspoli cave.

Hydrochemical and geostnıctural studies werecarried out in these areas.

Kepez-Antalya Hydrogeologica! SystemThis hydrological systen stretches for about

50 km from the Taurus Mountains to the sea and isan exhaustive example of hydrokarst circulation. It

is also of fundanrental importance, due to itsmorphological conrpleteness, in the comprehensionof morphodynamic ırrechanisms existing in karstırrassifs.

Guided by Temucin, we explored this systenwith the intention of discovering its possible accesspoints. Our first stop was at about 30 kın froınAntalya, near the road from Burdur, where two bigsprings, Kirkgozler and Pinarbasi, drain waters froırr

the Taurus and fonrrs two lakes. Cave divingexplorations, conducted in the forner spring, haverevealed the existence of karst conduits of great

İnterest.

The waters of the above nrentioned springs,after a short stretch on the surface, disappear intothe Biyikli sinkholes, second stop on our cxcursion.Because of thc dry season there was no water at the

bottonr of the sinkholes and we could haveatteınpted their exploration. Unfortunately however,because of our previously established prograırrtne,

there was only tinre to have a brief look at thcunderground passagcs.

Next, covering about 14 kıır, we ınoved on tothc Varsak depression, a largc karst doline, wherethe watcrs coııring froırr the Biyikli sinkholcsemerge. We climbed down into the doline,lhrough a

steep passage aınongst collapsed rocks, where wereached an underground lake. Here, the watcr was soclcar that we wcre able to sec the passage continuingunderwater. There were also a good number of fishswiırrııring in the lake.

After exploring the underground lake as far as

we could, rve ıırade for Düdenbasi, a spectacularpark on the outskirts of Antalya, wherc the waterfroın the Varsak cave, aftcr 2 kın undcrgrouırd,eıl]erges through siphons undcr pressure. The last

30 Tlıe [nternatnnal Caver (13) 1995

Hydrological and Speleological lnvestigations in the Cenıral & Western Taurus, TURKEY, 27-32

Representative Sketch of the Kepez Karstic System.

sınkhole

Varsak collapse

I

Kırkgözier Regulatorresurgence

(swamp marsh) Underground flow

Düdenbaşı Falls and vauclusian source

Düden falls

i

Pınarbaşı resurgence

stop of our joumey was the Medİterranean coast inthe eastern sector of Antalya, where the Taurus

waters rejoİn the sea via a spectacular waterfall closeon 40 m in height.

Maraspoli CaveOur team then moved on to the vİllage of

Ermeneh located about 275 km southeast of Konyaat the foot of the central Taurus chain. we intendedto explore the Maraspoli cave which had beenpartially explored for the first time in 1955 byTemucin himself. At that time the cave had been

explored for 15 consecutive days but was stoppedwhen the explorers reached a siphon with a large

amount of water gushing from it.

In 1935, a hydro-electric plant had been builtto exploit the power of the underground river. Sincethen, this cave has been the main source of life forthe whole village, supplying drinkable water andfeeding a number of other springs in theneighbourhood, as well as supplying electricity.

Our aim therefore was the further explorationof the underground river, which in the dry season

outputs 500 l/s, and the study of the hydrogeologyand hydrodynamics of the system.

We entered the cave through an artificialgallery built to intercept the water and after 300ınetres we arrived at a platfonn beyond which the

river continued. An iron staircase goes up from theplatform into the fossil series which we exploredfirst. This consists of some large rooms in an

advanced stage of fossilisation. They were originallylinked by a vertical pit to an upper level of gallerieswhich connected with the surface above the cave.

Unfortunately the accidental death of a child, whofell down the pit, led to its closure and thcconsequent intemrption between the upper fossillevel and the underlying active levels.

Having explored the fossil part of the cave,we v/ent down into the river and explored upslreanrin our rubber boats. After following a ıneandershaped gallery for about 300 ın the siphon barredthe way. However, by climbing above the siphoır,we found a way to bypass this obstacle and foundour way back to the river on the other side. Wepassed through a further 200 ın of collapsed rootnsand river chambers until we arrived at a lake with a

high waterfall on the other side. We got to the top ofthe fall by a Tyrolean traverse and continuedupstream as far as a large room which we reachedby climbing.

Fig.Z. Geognphic psıtıbn ol the /Vui-Ermenek-Sı/ıfke basn.

.rd.ml.

K

All

o 25 !ot==_AxOENlz(Mcdii.r.on.dn)

The Inteınatıbnal Caı,er (/3) .1995 31

Hydrological and Speleological lnvestigations in the Central & Western Taurus, TURKEY. 27-32

During the following days we explored thisroom, called "The Kaos Room" because of the bigcollapsed rocks which were scattered everywhere.On the far side we found the river again andascended it for about 500 m, crossing both collapsedrooms and richly decorated chambers linked tophreatic galleries.

Our exploration, compared with that ofTemucin, permitted us to go beyond two siphonsbecause of the particularly dry season, and allowedus to extend the cave by about 600 m. An almostcompletely flooded conduit, through which we werejust able to see the continuation of the cave, stoppedour exploration.

Guney Yurt-Ermenek PlateauAs we were unable to go any further in

Maraspoli (not having taken our diving equipmentwith us), we shifted our attention to the plateaulocated above the cave. We hoped that we might beable to re-enter the system via some pits which thelocals had indicated to us. Karst morphologies arethe predominant onos on the plateau and thelandscape shows a continuous series of depressionsalternating with zones of relief.

After an hour's walk we arrived at the "pit ofBirds", a karst sinkhole which unfortunately wascompletely choked at -15 m. We then tookgeostructural measurements of the main directions ofthe fractures along a rocky slope not far from thesinkhole. we wanted to obtain some informationabout the system of discontinuity existing in thissector of the Taurus.

The exploration of the plateau continuedduring the following days but without great success.We explored another pit called the "Pit of Snow",situated in the eastern part of the plateau which ischaracterised by a fluvial karst morphology anddolines, but again it was choked at the bottom.

Geology and HydrogeologyThe sector in which our research was led is

part of the Mut-Ermenek-Silifke basin located in thecentral part of the Taurus (KORKMANZ & GEDIK1990). Both Mesozoic and Paleozoic units as well asTertİary sedİmentary rocks emerge İn thİs area.These lithological units are made up as follows frombottom to top :

- Ordovician metamorphic shists

- silurian black shale

- Devonian limestone shale

- Jurassic dolomite limestone

- Ophiolitic melange

- Eocene sandstone and marl

- Miocene sandstone

- Miocene limestone, marl and shale

The Guney Yurt-Ermenek plateau is ınainlyformed by a series of limestones and calcarenite inbeds of about 100 m in thickness lying abovemarl-calcareous and marl strata. The carbonate seriesbelongs to the upper series of the above listedMiocene basin.

The limestone-marl contact is made evidentby a clear change in the incline of the slopes, caused

Beyond the sıphon inthe /ower actüye palİ olthe /Varaspo/icaye al

Ermenek

Pholo: S.Buggıbri

32 Tlıe Inte,ınaubnal Ccver (13) /995

Hydrological and Speleological lnvestigations in the Central & Western Taurus, TURKEY. 27-32

Roozo.9_oE(ğo)(ı)

q,q(ğo=ğ)(d(E

q(,

Cn

E6ğ=F-Y-l(l)ı^r CXPCJ) tE

=

JJTlıe Intelnatıbnal Caver (13) 1995

Hydrologial and Speleological lnvestigations in the Central & Western Taurus, TURKEY. 27-32

by the differential erosion by exogenous agents suchas water, wind, temperature and so on. The resultingpredonrinant landscape facing the valley depressionsis therefore ınade up by impressive, fractured anderoded, rocky calcareous slopes with, at its base, lesssteep inclines formed from detritic material.

The higher parts of the plateau, at altitudesvarying between 1700 and 1850 m above sea level,shows a landscape characterised by karst andfluvial-karst morphologies. The bottom level of karsterosion coincides with the underground river inMaraspoli i.e. at an altitude of 1300 m above sea

level. At this saıne level the Miocene marls arefound and these act as an iınpermeable bed. Thedifference of about 500 m in altitude between theriver and iıs recharge areas in the upper part of thehydrogeographical basin point to the possibleexistence of further fossil phreatic and vadosepassages waiting to be explored.

The lowest level of fossil galleries, which can

still be crossed and are linked to the river, are at an

altitude of about 1370 nr i.e. 70 ın above theartificial entrance of the gallery built to intercept thewater. Our search for entrances, situated at altitudesbetween 1700 and 1800 nr, and the subsequent

exploration of the pits found, was undertaken in the

hope of reaching the Maraspoli cave via vadose and

fossil galleries located higher than the present activelevel of the cave. we were unsuccessful howeverand our very short stay did not allow us to organiseclearing work in the choked pits.

The large flow of the river (more than 500litres per second) shows the capacity of a very largehydrological basin, probably a basin much largerthan the one to which it belongs. our nextexplorations, which will take place both inside

@eyond the siphon) and outside on the plateau

clearing the pits, will certainly increase ourknowledge of this complex hydro-karst systeın.

The Maraspoli cave, with its new passages

explored during our expedition, is only the tip of theiceberg and ınany more passages wait to beexplored.

Saro RuggieriCentro lbleo di Ricerche Speleo-IdrogeologicheVia Carducci 16597100 Ragusaltaly

CAI//IVG F//ül/S* noır aııaılab/e on l/HSwveo cas§eite from trte lc,Bookstore

HOLLOW MOUNTAİN OF MULU(Gıhnrcaves n lhe /L/u/u Nallbna/ Par&,Saraıaak) Q17.00DROWNED RİVER OF DRACOS(Caııe diuıng ın Greece) [17.00CAVES OF GLASS(/ce caııes in Austrıa) tl7.00FORBİDDEN SECRETS OF CİGALERE(Seventh Heayen n France9 Cğa/ere cave) 117.00OTTER HOLE(One ol Great BrıIaıh9 nıbeslcaves) t17.00MAN BİLONG HOLE BİLONG STONE(Cavng n Papua New Gunea) t17.00THE UNDERGROUND E|GER(Epıb cave dıhing in Grear Brıaıfl ı17.00WAKULLA SPRİNGS(Cave dıvıhg n ihe USA) [15.00 +

WOOKEY:THE BOTTOM OF BR|TAIN(Cave diuıng n Brıam9 most lamous caııe) t15.0O +

Aııerage running lime 50 mnules

Prıbes quo led are lor s landardPA L lorma t Olher lorma lsavaı/ab/a excepl where marked + ,nc/udıhg SECAıWand ıVTSC loran addilıbna/ cos İ of t2 per fi/m,

Poslage & packıhg add t2 per /ı7m

* fiIms made by Sid Perouor Leo Dickenson

Write or phone your order to :-

l.C.Bookstore, Aven Publications,Shafıesbury Centre, Percy Street,Swindon SN2 2AZ, U.K.

re| +44 (0)1793 828236

34 Tlıe Inte,rnatıbnal Cauer (13) 1995