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The Dechen Cave (german: Dechenhöhle) in
Iserlohn Iserlohn (; Westphalian: ''Iserlaun'') is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region. Geography Iserlohn is loc ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
is one of the most visited
show cave A show cave—also called tourist cave, public cave, and, in the United States, commercial cave—is a cave which has been made accessible to the public for guided visits. Definition A show cave is a cave that has been made accessible to ...
s in Germany. It is located in the northern part of the
Sauerland The Sauerland () is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited. The Sauerland is the largest tourist region in ...
at
Iserlohn Iserlohn (; Westphalian: ''Iserlaun'') is a city in the Märkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region. Geography Iserlohn is loc ...
(Grüne district). 360 metres of the 870-metre long cave have been laid out for visitors, beginning at the spot where, in 1868, the cave was discovered by two railway workers. The workers dropped a hammer into a rock crevice which turned out to be the entrance to a dripstone cave when they were searching for the lost tool. The cave is named after ''Oberberghauptmann'' Heinrich von Dechen (1800–1889), in recognition of his contribution to researching the
geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...
of the
Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhineland ...
and
Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regi ...
.


Owner

Due to its discovery by rail workers, the cave was first owned by the local railway company – which built the Letmathe–Fröndenberg railway – and later on by the National railway company, the last one was the
Deutsche Bundesbahn The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB (German Federal Railway) was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG). The DB remaine ...
. In 1983 the cave was taken over by the Mark Sauerland Touristik GmbH.


Railway halt

Because the cave was found and owned by the railway, a halt was built next to the visitors' entrance. Today, the Ruhr-Sieg-Express (RE16) and Ruhr-Sieg-Bahn (RB91) services stop at the halt. Both the RE16 and the RB91 services are operated by
Abellio Rail NRW Abellio Deutschland is a public transit operator in Germany operating bus and rail networks. Headquartered in Berlin, it is a subsidiary of the Dutch state-owned Abellio. History Abellio Deutschland was formed by the Essen public transit co ...
. It is the only cave in Germany with its own halt.


See also

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List of show caves in Germany The list of show caves in Germany contains all 51 show caves in Germany which are hosted by the German Speleological Federation. (german: Verband der Deutschen Höhlen- and Karstforscher) Background As of 2008, there have been 51 show caves ...
{{Coord, 51, 21, 56, N, 7, 38, 41, E, type:landmark_region:DE-NW, display=title Caves of Germany Limestone caves Karst formations of Germany Landforms of North Rhine-Westphalia Iserlohn Tourist attractions in North Rhine-Westphalia Show caves in Germany