Aillwee Cave ( Irish: ''Aill Bhuí'') is a cave system in the karst landscape of the Burren in County Clare,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The name ''Aillwee'' is derived from the Irish which means "yellow cliff". Privately owned, it forms part of the Aillwee Cave and Birds of Prey Centre attraction.

Description

The cave system consists of over a kilometre of passages leading into the heart of the mountain. Its features include an

underground river A subterranean river is a river that runs wholly or partly beneath the ground surface – one where the riverbed does not represent the surface of the Earth. It is distinct from an aquifer, which may flow like a river but is contained within a per ...

and a waterfall as well as some large

stalactite A stalactite (, ; from the Greek 'stalaktos' ('dripping') via ''stalassein'' ('to drip') is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble an ...

s and

stalagmite A stalagmite (, ; from the Greek , from , "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically ...

s. The remains of

bears Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the North ...

can also be seen inside the caves and allusions have been made to it being the last bear den in Ireland. The cave is typical of the Clare caves, consisting in the main of stream passage and ending in a sump. The general direction is east to west but turns due south some into the cave. The cave is considerably older than most of the Clare caves and originally contained a large stream. The stream has all but disappeared from the cave and is heavily backfilled with glacial infill. The formations visible on the show cave tour are rarely more than 8,000 years old but calcite samples in the recesses of the cave have been dated to over 350,000 years old.

Discovery and exploration

The cave was discovered in 1944, when a farmer named Jack McGann followed his dog, who was chasing a rabbit. The farmer did not explore very far into the caves, and did not tell anyone of the find for nearly 30 years. He told cavers of the cave in 1973 and that summer the cave was explored as far as a boulder choke. Show cave development began quite soon after. The boulder choke was removed in 1977 and access was gained to the rest of the cave. The "Marine Blast" tunnel was completed in 1992 to allow a circular trip. In 1976 the bones of two

brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is kno ...

s were found. These were subsequently determined to be over 10,000 years old. During this period only about 1000 people lived in Ireland.

Public access

The cave was opened to the public in 1976. As of 2018, roughly of cave passage is open to the public, one third of the total length of the cave. The tours end at a point called the Highway and exit the cave via a man-made tunnel. The access building has been awarded the

Europa Nostra Europa Nostra (Italian for "Our Europe") is a pan-European Federation for Cultural Heritage, representing citizens' organisations that work on safeguarding Europe's cultural and natural heritage. It is the voice of this movement to relevant intern ...

prize. Facilities include a café and gift shop.

Birds of Prey Centre

At the location there is also a Birds of Prey Centre offering shows and "hawk walks".

In popular culture

The caves appear in the ''

Father Ted ''Father Ted'' is a sitcom created by Irish writers Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews (writer), Arthur Mathews and produced by British production company Hat Trick Productions for Channel 4. It aired over three series from 21 April 1995 until ...

'' episode " The Mainland" under the name "''The Very Dark Caves''". They are also mentioned in a story in Part II of ''The Basset Chronicles'' by June J. McInerney.

Partnerships

The cave complex is a member of the local hospitality association, and an active partner of the

Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark The Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark (formally The Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark) is an internationally designated area of geological interest in The Burren region of County Clare, Ireland. It is the third Geopark to be de ...

Rock climbing

Just 400-meters to the north of the upper car-park of the caves is the popular novice rock climbing location of

Aill na Cronain ; Cronan's cliff , photo = Aill na Crónáin, Skull Buttress - geograph.org.uk - 1192527.jpg , photo_width = 250 , photo_caption = "Skull Buttress" in the middle of Aill na Cronain showing the flat ''Skull Slab'' VDiff–climb in centre , map ...

References

* ''Irish Speleology'', Volume 2 No.4 p 19

External links

Aillwee Cave official website
{{Tourism in County Clare Tourist attractions in County Clare Show caves in the Republic of Ireland Protected areas of County Clare