Logbook · 28 places

Aradelas Chasm

Folgoso do Courel, Quiroga, Lugo

1 Villages · 5 Monuments · 15 Nature · 2 Activities · 3 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

Spain › Galicia › Lugo › Quiroga › Folgoso do Courel › Aradelas Chasm

Aradelas Chasm

Nature · Folgoso do Courel, Quiroga, Lugo

Image of Folgoso do Courel, not of the place itself.

The Aradelas pothole, in the parish of Esperante, in Folgoso do Courel, is Galicia's deepest cavity, at 128 metres, and its deepest part is flooded by underground waters forming a lagoon, named Hydra. Long known to local residents, it was not scientifically explored until 1972, when the first 120 metres were reached; successive campaigns went on discovering new shafts and galleries, and in 2024 a new exploration found an additional entrance, the Cova Emilio, and 2.2 km more of galleries. The Vigo caving club Espeleo Club Aradelas took its name from it. The pothole opens into the limestone karst of the Courel mountains, which has produced the largest known concentration of caves in Galicia, and also includes the caves of Tralacosta and Ceza.

Photo: Miguel Branco (CC BY-SA 4.0)

What to see and do in Folgoso do Courel