KLUTERT CAVE

Our activity program takes us on Saturday morning to the famous Klutert cave.
The Klutert cave is located in Ennepetal south of the Ruhr area.

LOCATION AND EXTENT

The cave has corridors that measure more than 5500 meters. It consists of more than 300 corridors, underground lakes and streams on an area of about 400 × 200 meters. Hydraulically, it is connected to other caves in the Klutert mountain, especially the Bismarck cave (passage 1312 meters). Until the Salzgrabenhöhle was discovered in 1959, the Kluterthöhle was the largest known cave in Germany. With numerous lakes and the “Klutertspring” the cave is rich in water. Since 1976 caves of the Klutertberg are from the working group Kluterthöhle e. V. scientifically supervised. The club has since discovered several hundred meters of new land in the cave, most recently in May 2011, when about 140 meters of new land could be discovered by dives, which will increase the corridor length of the Klutert cave to about 5700 meters after the survey. The cave has a constant temperature of 10 ° C.

CULTURAL HISTORY & EXPLORATION

The cave was probably used as a shelter in prehistoric times, but the first historical evidence can be found in a text from 1698. Shards and broken fragments indicate that the cave was used from at least the 12th century. Since the Enlightenment, the cave serves as a destination for travellers. During the Second World War, the Klutert cave served up to 4,000 people as an air raid shelter. In the neighboring Bismarckhöhle even a children’s carousel was set up to shorten the waiting during the bombing nights. Since the mid-1950s, the cave is used for lung cures.

EXPERIENCE TOUR

Action, adventure and pure excitement: off the beaten track, we make our way through the nested vaults of the Klutert cave. Deeper and deeper we penetrate into the cave, and crawl partly lying on our stomach through the narrow corridors. On this special tour we will get to know the Klutert cave in the most adventurous way, because climbing some parts is also an option. Old clothes and rubber boots are strongly recommended. A flashlight should also be brought along, but can also be rented on site.

FOSSIL JOURNEY

Discover the newly renovated, previously inaccessible cave areas of the Klutert cave. Some surprises await you: formerly buried streams of the Klutert cavern systems were uncovered. At various points the tremendous forces of mountain building become visible.

The highlight of the tour: In the middle of the bizarre and breathtakingly beautiful coral reef you can find the ancestors of the living fossil “Nautilus” (pearl boat) as well as many other interesting creatures.

There is also a newly installed light show with musical accompaniment in the area of the huge Tiefenbachgang.