FEATURES, ORIGINS, VALUES AND LEGAL PROTECTION
Ciemna Cave, also known as Ojcow Cave, has passages about 200m in length and is in the very centre of the town of Ojcow, close to Krakowska Gate. It consists of a vast chamber that turns into a narrowing corridor. This chamber is the largest, of all those known, in all the caves of the Krakow and Wielun Uplands. Inside there are a large number of interesting stalagmites, and on the ceiling, several small tubular stalactites.
Archaeological research in Ciemna Cave, and specifically in the sediments in the immediate vicinity of the entrance, yielded interesting findings and placing these caves among the most valuable locations of prehistoric man on Polish territory. The oldest traces of this existence can be dated back about 115,000 years.
In 2004, a reconstruction of Neanderthal settlement was erected in front of the cave.
The cave was visited by King Stanislaw August Poniatowski in 1787 and Bishop Adam Naruszewicz, who accompanied the royal party, gave a description of the cavern.
According to his words, the grotto “was gouged by nature from the heart of a rocky mountain…. Even at the entrance it appears like a vast underground vaulted hall…. To the side of this slightly narrowing vast dungeon there is another cavern in the shape of a narrow corridor with a lower ceiling. How far this one reaches into the rock, no one knows”.
Currently the only residents are bats and other invertebrates.
The central part of the great chamber is decorated with domed stalagmites which stand about 1m high. The ceiling is covered with numerous tubular stalactites.
The cave was registered as a monument in 1924.

TOUR ORGANISER
Directorate of Ojcow National Park
32-047 Ojcow 9
Villa “Jadwiga”
Phone: +48 12 389 20 05
http://www.opn.pan.krakow.pl/
E-mail: opnar@pro.onet.pl

Cave Reception
Phone: +48 12 380 10 11 or +48 803 80 27

ACCESSIBILITY OF FACILITIES BY VISITORS
Open from 24 April to 3 October between 10.00 and 17.00
NOTE! Entry times into the cave cannot be booked.
Trail length is about 150m
The internal temperature is 7.5° C and humidity is between 90% and 98%
Duration of the tour is about 30 minutes
The cave can only be visited if accompanied by a guide of the Ojcow National Park, who can be found all times at the ticket office
The route is not electrically illuminated but the trail is illuminated with candles
The cave itself is easy to explore but due to the steep approach to the entrance is not suitable for the disabled
We recommend comfortable, athletic shoes and warm clothing in the summer