Description of the attraction
Golubinsky Proval is the most famous and visited cave in the Arkhangelsk region. Until the middle of the 20th century, few people knew about it, and it was not mentioned in the literature. The cave was first examined by Leningrad cavers in August 1967.
The Golubinsky Proval cave is located on the right bank of the Pinega River, on the territory of the Golubinsky geological reserve, about 17 kilometers below the village of Pinega. Its length is 1622 meters, area - 5267 square meters, volume - 8255 cubic meters, amplitude - 17 meters. The entrance to the cave is located at the mouth of the Tarakanya Shchelya ravine. There is a small platform from which you can see the picturesque rocky walls of the log, and from it a steep descent into the cave, equipped with a wooden staircase, begins. The roof of the cave is located at a depth of 17 to 37 meters from the surface of the day. There are 3 tiers of passages in the cave, which reflect the stages of its development.
Golubinsky Proval begins with a vast entrance grotto (hall) about 9 meters high and 15x20 meters in size. The vault descends in steps into the depths of the cave. There is a blocky talus on the floor. From this grotto into the depths of the cave there are several passages. The cave in this area is frozen to such an extent that after the spring flood passes, the water is again covered with ice, and snow crystals appear on the walls.
The Forum hall is located 30 meters from the entrance grotto, stretching in the sublatitudinal direction. Its height is about 5 meters, dimensions - 8x24 meters. Section - arched, floor - accumulative-basement with single blocks. The bottom of the hall has a temporary stream bed, along which a stream flows during the spring flood.
The main passage (tunnel) 500 meters long begins in the northeast of the Forum hall. Section - flattened oval, rhombic and complex. Width ranges from 2, 5 to 4 meters, height - from 1, 2 to 3 meters. The floor is presented by the basement and accumulative-basement type. On the walls you can see the mesh of sculptural symbols of pressure flows.
The northern zone of the course is called the Metro. Width - about 5 meters, height - up to 4 meters. This is the most voluminous part of the cave. In the spring, the course is flooded with water. In the far area of the Metro passage there are fireplaces related to the intersected nodes of tectonic cracks. They are vertical channels that open in the roof of the tunnel. The youngest fireplace is located 15 meters north of 2 adjoining fireplaces (height from 5 to 7 meters, diameter from 1.5 to 3 meters) Sink (height - 4 meters, diameter - about 1 meter) with a constant streamy source … The water flowing down from the fireplace makes musical sounds in the silence of the cave. She washed a hole in the plaster wall.
Walking along the Metro, you will find yourself in the Round Hall. Its height is from 1, 5 to 6 meters, dimensions - 7, 5x16, 5 meters. The eastern border of the hall is a landslide. The section is flattened and rectangular-arched. The blocky floor in the western direction turns into a steep talus. To the north of the Round Hall (at a distance of 55 meters) there is a low course. Its width is from 3.5 to 5 meters, its height is from 0.9 to 1.5 meters. The floor is covered with clay. The course ends with a siphon.
The territory of the cave is mostly dry. There are 2 watercourses: northern and southern. The length of the northern watercourse is 30 meters, the southern one - 20.
Ice formations and water-mechanical deposits are typical for the Golubinsky Proval cave. Ice formations formed in the supercooled part of the cave entrance. Ice crystals, drifts of ice, frost are born here all year round. There are perennial ice: cover, vein, firn. In winter, with unstable cold weather, lenses of the hypothermic crust are formed, occupying small cracks in the walls and on the floor of the main passage and tracing 100 meters deep into the cave from the Forum hall.
Clays, silts, loams, sand lenses represent the water-mechanical deposits of the cave. Their maximum capacity is 3.7 meters. In the clays, 2 horizons with formations of radial-radiant gypsum were found, and episodes of carbonate crust were revealed at the base of the section. The age of the cave filler is approximately 10, 2-7, 8 thousand years. Carbonate incrustations are very rare and valuable decorations of the cave.
Bats spend the winter in the cave. They live in its warm part, in crevices and hard-to-reach places. They can be seen only with a close inspection of the cave.
The cave is easily traversed throughout the main route. It is intensively visited by tourists and locals.
