Balla-völgyi Sinkhole

The Balla-völgy sinkhole is among the specially protected caves of Hungary. It is located in the Bükk region of the Bükk National Park, in the outskirts of Répáshuta.

Description

In Répáshuta, south of the settlement’s inner area, in the Balla valley, north of the entrance of the Csúnya valley, about 70 metres away, at the valley floor, on the right side of the valley, on the western slope of the makadámút, two metres from the road, in a rock climb, at an altitude of 400 metres above sea level, in forest and open terrain, there is a broken‑type, fissure‑shaped entrance closed with a 45‑degree installed steel plate door, vertical in the axis direction, 60 centimetres wide and 80 centimetres long. The entrance is in the road’s cut and is surrounded by large stone blocks so that vehicles do not run onto it in heavy snow. The door’s design allows soil and debris to enter the cave. The door in proper condition is a sandwich structure, double‑plate, concrete‑filled and hinged at the lower edge.

Middle Triassic, Upper Triassic, dark gray, calcareous, slightly crystalline textured limestone, formed after tectonic preparation, by the action of infiltrating water. Periodically active water-draining cave. The cave functions as a sink for the stream that hides it. The cave extends northward from the entrance, under the stream bed. After the entrance it continues in a characteristic fissure section. The part after the entrance is covered by a thin moss for a few meters. The typical slab type is the fissure slab type. In the north–south oriented, prominent, vertical main fissure three well distinguishable trumpets join, but the whole fissure narrows, tapering high toward the surface. The cave is a large, stepped-bottom fissure shaft. Spherical domes and ceiling channels can be observed in it. Under the entrance, seven meters from the entrance, on the western wall, on an area of about 30 centimeters, a pea‑shaped stalactite encrustation has formed. The cave is essentially stalactite‑free.

The floor is covered throughout with thin clay and silt. Through the approximately 10–12 meter‑high funnel before the end point, clay and silt probably arrive directly from the Balla‑völgy stream. The wall of the funnel has been completely washed away by water and the clay is washed off the wall. Inflowing stream water from the direction of the stream may be the cause of this, which however generally causes water coverage only at the lower level, because it is absorbed. With a large amount of water, however, water flows out of the cave. The nearby springs probably bring its water to the surface. Probably an intermittent waterfall with a maximum fall height of 10 metres usually forms in the terminal funnel. The waterfall has not yet been seen, but observations lead to the assumption of its existence. At the end point, intermittent standing water of varying surface area forms at varying heights. 398 metres is the maximum elevation of the karst water level above sea level. The fluctuation is 18 metres in the cave. Bats occur in it. Its horizontal extent is 18 metres. To explore it, 30 metres of rope and rope‑technical equipment are required.

In 1984 the cave was first called Balla-völgyi-víznyelő in the literature. The cave appears in the literature under the names balla-völgyi Békás-barlang (Kordos 1984), Balla-völgyi-viznyelő (Bertalan 1976), Balla völgyi viznyelő (Szentes 1965), Balla-völgyi-víznyelőbarlang (Ferenczy 2007), Balla-völgy tengelyében nyiló viznyelő (Bertalan 1976), Balla-völgy tengelyében nyíló víznyelő (Ferenczy 2007), Békás-barlang (Kardos 1982), Békás-nyelő (Szilvássy 1967), Békás nyelő (Szilvássy 1967), Békás-viznyelő (MKBT Beszámoló 1980), Békás viznyelő (Garas, Szloboda, Kiss, Dervadelin 1977), Békás-viznyelő-barlang (Kiss, Horváth 1979), Békás-viznyelő barlang (Garas, Szloboda 1977), Békás viznyelő barlang (Garas, Szloboda, Kiss, Dervadelin 1977), Békás-víznyelőbarlang (Ferenczy 2007), Békás-zsomboly (Kovács 1998), Csúnya-völgyi-feltárás (Kovács 2002), Csúnya-völgyi feltárás (Ferenczy 2007), Csúnya-völgyi tektonikus hasadék (Ferenczy 2007), Répás-nyelő (Ferenczy 2007) and Répás-viznyelőbarlang (Garas, Szloboda 1977). The frog-related names were given because many frogs were occasionally thrown into the cave. The Savanyú-terem was named after the nickname of one of the explorers, Ferenc Hujber, the “Savanyú”. The Daniel tunnel was named after the French speleologist Daniel Monfort.

Research History

Probably during the construction of the road, at the beginning of the 1900s, the cave was opened. According to the oral tradition of Répáshuta, the road worker placed his food and drink in the cave entrance because it was cool there. In 1964 the Cave Exploration Group of the Customs Office began to clear the cave. At that time the cave was 3 m deep. In 1965 the Cave Exploration Group of the Finance Guard SE Nature Lovers Department continued the dismantling of the cavity system under difficult conditions. The possibility of further progress was blocked by a huge, multi‑ton stone that could only be removed by crumbling blasting. The draft rising from below between the rocks could be felt very well.

According to the 1965 Karst and Cave Research Bulletin, at the axis of the Balla Valley, at the junction of the Csúnya Valley and the Balla Valley, the water‑draining cave opens, which is a narrow fissure 10 m deep. It probably belongs to the Pénz‑pataki water‑draining cave system and its formation occurred similarly to the other caves of the system, but it no longer conducts water because of blockage, therefore the stream continues unchanged. The publication included the cave’s plan map draft and cross‑section map. The journal contained a site drawing showing the cave’s geographical location.