11 km Eastern from the town of Dve Mogili and 3 km Northern from the village of Pepelina in the rocky gorge of Cherni Lom River is Orlova Chuka - one of the most interesting caves in Bulgaria. Since 1963 it is a natural landmark and since 1978 it is an archeological cultural monument with national importance.

      The cave's name is connected with the name of the cliff where is its entrance. In the near past there were eagles living there.

      The entrance of the cave was found during the hot summer on July 1941 by the shepherd Stoyan Spasov. At noon he noticed that his sheep began gathering at one place. He decided to check why that was and when he bowed down over the crack, he felt cold air coming from inside. He moved a few stones and went down into the cave. In front of him was the unknown and wonderful world of Orlova Chuka Cave.

      The cave is formed in cretaceous limestone deposited on the bottom of the former Sarmat Sea. The cave's galleries are formed long after as a result of the karst processes, which occurred during the Quaternary.

      The skeletons of bears, gads, flint scrapers, ax, pieces of pottery from the Eneolithic Age (Stone-Copper Age) that were found there show that the cave has been inhabited by humans (200 000 - 40 000 BC). It has been used intermittently as a comfortable place for a settlement until the early Iron Age.

      The total length of the galleries is more than 13 500 km. This makes the cave the second longest cave in Bulgaria, after Duhlata Cave.

      In the cave galleries there are a lot of scenes of stone faeries, as if they were made by magicians, who were very imaginative. Stalactites, stalagmites and stalaktones, made of billions of water drops during thousands of years are the main columns of this architecture not made by human hand. When you knock on the Singing stalaktone, you can hear sounds as if they are from a musical instrument. In the Big vestibule between beautiful stalactites in the shapes of curtains and drapery stands out the Big stalaktone, 3,5 m tall. We can see the Ten rock soldiers, the Leafless forest, the Family, the Saw, the Geyser, the Glacier, the Waterfall, the Mass, the Eaves, the elegant Spindle, calcined in white.

      The spring is the most beautiful place in Orlova Chuka. As many other caves, there is a legend here that says if you drink water from it you can expect one of your biggest dreams to come true. The stalagmites near the spring are milk-white and rarely beautiful. After that there are the Dry Lake, the Lonely stalaktone, the Small forest, the Monks, the Deer, the Twins, the Hive, the Heaven, Adam and Eve... The screes are two big halls 30 m high and 50 to 70 m long. In some galleries a lot of beautiful needle-shaped crystals were found.

      The cave is inhabited by 10 000 bats. These cave flying mice are 3 species – the Ordinary Bat, which is unique for whole Europe, the Greater Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) and the Lesser Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros).

      There is a rest-house near the cave. It is a massive building with two floors, water-supplied and electricified, which can hold 27 people. There is a kitchen and a dining room with fireplace, outer toilets, inner and outer fountains and bathrooms. The countryside is covered with coniferous forests and pretty glades. It gives excellent conditions for rock climbing, orientation, green schools, archery, horse-riding, interesting eco-paths, barbecue, etc. Next to it there is a bar and a terrace with 70 places.

     Tel. +359 886 003 233
     Address: Orlova Chuka cave The village of Pepelina, Post code 7158, Dve Mogili Municipality, Ruse Province, Bulgaria

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