Duhlata cave

Duhlata is the longest cave in Bulgaria. It is located in the south-western part of the Vitosha mountain, near the village of Bosnek, some 45-min drive away from Sofia. The exploration of the over 18-km long cave started as early as 1965 and is still ongoing. Around 15 km of the cave have been explored. 50 incredibly beautiful halls with gorgeous limestone forms and sparkling lakes in them have been found. Duhlata consists of 6 cave levels and numerous narrow galleries, called “tesnyatzi” (from “tesen” – narrow (in Bulgarian)), forming a unique labyrinth. It took decades for scientists to make a map of this natural phenomenon. There are all sorts of interesting legends related to the cave. According to one of them, Al. Strezov saw parts of the so-called “Akademishka duhla” in his dream before they were found. Another legend says the road through “The Throat of Hell” was shown to speleologists by a flight of bats…
Duhlata, with all of its stalactite and stalagmites, ciboriums and draperies, little lakes, etc., is considered to be one of Bulgaria’s most beautiful caves.