Farkas-völgyi Sinkhole

The Farkas-völgy water sink cave is located in Budapest XII district, in the Farkas valley separating Széchenyi Hill and Csillebérc, within the Danube–Ipoly National Park. It is significant because it is the only water sink cave of Budapest and the Buda Hills.

Description

It is situated on a valley plateau, in a forest without limestone outcrops, at about 370 m above sea level, in a lightly oval-shaped, naturally formed, vertically oriented opening 4 m wide, surrounded by a fence. It lies near a short, sign‑posted trail beside the tourist path marked with a green triangle that runs from Márton Áron Square to the Széchenyi Hill railway station.

The thoroughly surveyed cave is 6 m long, 6 m deep and extends 4 m horizontally. The periodically active water sink cave formed along a tectonic fissure in dolomite and consists of a single circular‑section shaft. Its formation involved fluvial erosion, freeze‑thaw disintegration, collapse and corrosion.

The cave, which can be easily reached by car and on the marked tourist trail, is freely viewable. It can be traversed using rope‑technical equipment.

Research history

In 1998 scout rock climbers cleaned it. According to the registration sheet written on 2 November 1999, a large amount of waste, about 2 m³, was present at the bottom of the sink. Exploratory research is possible only after the waste is removed. Research would be promising because the break‑in is relatively fresh. On 2 November 1999 Attila Nyerges and Katalin Takácsné Bolner prepared the floor plan map of the Farkas‑völgy water sink cave (Buda Hills, cave cadastral area 4732) as well as a longitudinal section map. The map indicates the east direction. According to the survey the cave is 6 m deep.