Fáni-völgyi No 11 Cave

The Fáni-völgy 11th chamber is a cave located in the Vértes Mountains within the Danube–Ipoly National Park, in Vértesboglár.

Description

The cave is situated in the outskirts of Vértesboglár, in the highly protected area of the Vértes Natural Park, in a forest. From the intersection at the north end of the Fáni valley, the cave entrance is on the east side of the valley, at 285 m above sea level, about 35 m above the road. The Fáni-völgy 11th chamber lies about 50 m north of the Fáni-völgy 10th chamber, slightly higher, at the upper corner of a rock‑yard‑like indentation.

The cave entrance opens just below the top of the wall and is reachable by steep climbing. The entrance is 2 m wide, 1.8 m high, natural, irregular in shape and oriented horizontally. The cave is 4 m long, extends 3 m vertically, 3 m high, 0 m deep and 4 m horizontally. The chamber lies in Triassic dolomite. It is a rock cavity that narrows inward and slopes outward, formed along a fissure by freeze‑thaw rock disintegration. Its walls are brecciated and fragmented. A small window opens to the outside on the ceiling. The walls are algal, and the floor is covered with rock debris and dust. The cave, which can be approached on steep, difficult terrain, can be visited easily in street clothing without a permit or lighting equipment.

In 1979 the cave was first called the Fáni-völgy 11th chamber in the literature. In the literature the cave also appears as Fáni-völgy 11th chamber (Bertalan 1976), Fáni-völgy‑hole (Alba Regia Cave Exploration Group 1979), Fáni-völgy‑hole (Kocsis 1975) and Fáni-völgy hole (Bertalan 1976).

Exploration history

According to the book *The World of Caves* published in 1962, there are small caves in the Fáni valley in the Vértes Mountains, 10–12 m higher than the stream. One group of the Ferencváros Nature Lovers Sports Club Cave Exploration Group, led by János Horváth and consisting of alternating members, continued the exploration of the Vértes Mountains and a three‑phase survey of the caves there in 1968. This group surveyed nine rock cavities in the Fáni valley, partially previously known (designated I–IX). According to the 1969 report of the FTSK Cave Exploration Group, János Horváth used the spring‑autumn 1968 cave surveys to produce a map of the nine chambers of the Fáni valley (Vértes Mountains) in 1969. The maps present the caves at a scale of 1:100.

In the publication written by Antal Kocsis and published in 1975 it is written that the entrance of the Fáni-völgyi hole is at the beginning of the Fáni valley, DK from the branch of the industrial service road, 100 m, on the rocky D side of the valley, at about 40–45 m height, near the valley rim, in a 5 m rock wall. The cave was formed in dolomite divided by vertical and horizontal cracks. The wide‑entrance chamber is hole‑shaped. The cave entrance is 2 m wide and 1.5 m high. It gradually narrows inward to about 1 m in extent. Around the middle of the 4 m long cave the rock has broken open in a window‑like manner. In its chambers mosses, green algal mats and arthropods occur. The map sheet in the publication shows the geographic location of the Fáni‑völgyi 11th chamber. On the map the cave is marked with number 24.

In the manuscript titled *Hungary’s Cave Register* completed in 1976 it reads that the Fáni‑völgyi 11th chamber (Fáni‑völgyi hole) is located in the Vértes Mountains, in Vértesbogláros. From the branch of the industrial service road, DK, about 100 m, on the D side, at about 40–45 m height is the cave entrance. The wide cave entrance is near the valley rim, situated in a 5 m rock wall. The cave is 4 m long, 2 m wide and 1.5 m high. The inward‑narrowing, hole‑shaped chamber has broken open in a window‑like manner around its middle. The part of the manuscript describing the cave was written based on one publication.

According to the manuscript prepared by the Alba Regia Cave Research Group in 1979, the Fáni-völgyi No 11 cavity (F11) is cave number 20 among the caves of the Vértes Mountains in the OKTH cave archive. In the publication written by Antal Kocsis, Fáni-völgyi-lyuk is the cave name and its number is 24. According to the latest administrative map, the cave is located on the edge of Gánt (Fejér County, Móri district), not in Vértesbogláros (as incorrectly listed in the cave archive). The Fáni-völgyi No 11 cavity is situated in the rock wall forming the valley edge, about 70 m north of the Fáni-völgyi No 10 cavity, at a higher elevation, at 285 m a.s.l. and 35 m relative height.

The left side of the cave entrance is rock‑shelf‑like, and the cave itself begins as a rock‑filled cavity 2 m wide and 1.5 m high. Its host rock is Triassic dolomite, dolomite breccia. The filling consists of rock rubble, with some clay and dolomitic mud at the end. On the walls a few cold‑water stalactites are visible, and in some places iron‑, manganese‑ (bauxitic?) discoloration can be observed. The cave was formed along a vertical fissure due to rock fracturing. It consists of a very steep outward‑sloping lower chamber that narrows inward, and a dome‑shaped opening that starts from the ceiling of this chamber and opens outward above the entrance like a window. Near the entrance mosses, lichens, green and blue algae can be seen. No equipment is needed to enter the certainly long‑known open cave. The locally significant cavity can be shown by Ferenc Szolga. Its greatest horizontal extension is 4.5 m, and its greatest vertical extension is 3 m. The cavity was entered into the cadastral register by members of the Alba Regia Cave Research Group on 4 February 1979. The cave was explored, photographed and surveyed. The number 24 is painted on its left wall.