Crag Cave is a cave in

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 ...

, located just outside

Castleisland Castleisland () is a town and commercial centre in County Kerry in south west Ireland. The town is known for the width of its main street. As of the 2016 Census, Castleisland had a population of 2,486. Castleisland was described by one of its ...

, County Kerry. Formed in elevated

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

rock, the system extends to of surveyed passage, on two levels. It is the 7th-longest cave system in the Republic of Ireland, and the 10th-longest in the whole of

History of exploration

While the

Geological Survey of Ireland Geological Survey Ireland or Geological Survey of IrelandS.I. No. 300/2002 - Communications, Energy and Geological Survey of Ireland (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2002 ( ga, Suirbhéireacht Gheolaíochta ...

in 1859 acknowledged the presence of "caves worn by water, some of which can be traversed for some distance,"
cited in positive efforts at exploration were not made until 1981, when the upper part of the cave was explored to a sump, named the "Green Lake". When hydrological testing of water both in the cave's active streamway and in the sump showed that the two were chemically distinct from each other, it was postulated that the sump was only "perched" above the water table and that further dry passage might be found on the far side. The sump was dived by

Martyn Farr Martyn Farr (born Crickhowell, Wales, March 3, 1951) is a leading exploratory cave diver and caver, known for his record-breaking cave dives and the exploration of many miles of previously undiscovered underground passages (e.g. in Ogof y Daren C ...

in 1983, providing the first access to the large caverns beyond. A boulder obstruction nearby was passed, allowing a dry connection into the new chambers. Following the breakthrough, of passage was explored and

surveyed Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the land, terrestrial Two-dimensional space#In geometry, two-dimensional or Three-dimensional space#In Euclidean geometry, three-dimensional positions of ...

. Between 1981 and 1985, further exploration and surveying brought the total length of the cave to , with a vertical range of approximately . The entire cave system runs under Castleisland itself, starting at Glounsharoon and ending on the far side of town at the Killarney Road.

Show cave

Around of the Crag Cave system was developed as a show cave by local residents Dr. Donal and Mrs Margaret Geaney, under whose land the cave was first discovered. The cave was developed between 1987 and 1989 by building a shaft (which is the only man-made entrance) and putting in pathways, railings, lights and a music system.

References

{{reflist

External links

Crag Cave official website

Association of British and Irish Show Caves: Crag Cave
Landforms of County Kerry Limestone caves Show caves in the Republic of Ireland Tourist attractions in County Kerry Protected areas of County Kerry

History of exploration

Show cave

See also

References

External links