双河水洞

Shuanghe Water Cave

Useful Information

Location:	Suiyang County, Zunyi, Guizhou 563402. (28.243466, 107.274991)
Open:	All year daily 8:30-17. [2023]
Fee:
Classification:	Karst cave Tiankeng
Light:	Incandescent Electric Light System Coloured Light
Dimension:	L=400,759 m, VR=912 m, T=15 °C.
Guided tours:	self guided, L=4.8 km, D=2 h.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Shuanghe Water Cave, Shuanghe Village, Wenquan Town, Suiyang County, Zunyi City, Guizhou 563402.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1987	beginning of speleological exploration.
MAR-2018	the cave reaches 238 km in length and becomes the longest cave in Asia.
MAY-2023	the cave reaches 400 km in length and becomes the third-longest cave system in the world.

Description

双河水洞 (Shuāng héshuǐ dòng, Shuanghe Water Cave) is the resurgence of 池武溪 (Chiwuxi river), which is an indirect tributary of 芙蓉江 (Furong River), which drains the South China Karst. The cave is a huge tunnel, and it would be possible to enter by boat on the calm river. Nevertheless, the show cave uses two alternatives. The cave is entered on an elevated trail, like a bridge with concrete pillars, wooden planks and rope railings, which runs on the right side of the passage into the cave. This huge entrance passage is about 600 m long, until finally a collapsed part of the cave is reached.

This roofless section of the cave, which is more like a gorge with vertical walls, is about 400 m long. We would call this section a Karst Collapsed Cave. In a way, it is actually a collapse doline, and as it is 400 m long by 100 m wide, and some 200 m deep, they call it a Karst Tiankeng. The gorge ends with another resurgence, where the cave continues. As this resurgence has some waterfalls or rapids, this place was named the 中国天坑第一瀑 (Zhōngguó tiān kēng dì yī pù, The first waterfall in Tiankeng in China). We guess this is just marketing nonsense, as there is no such ranking. It is neither the only river or waterfall in a tiankeng, nor the first which was discovered, nor the biggest or whatever. But it is definitely spectacular and worth the visit.

From this point the tourist trail leaves the river passage and follows the dry passages. One of the highlights of the cave is a calm cave lake surrounded by stalagmites. There is a section with rimstone pools, unfortunately, lighted in all possible colours, regardless of whether the colours clash. Actually, the cave is almost impossible to enjoy, because of all the intensive colours. Its like too much sugar for a diabetic, visitors are always in danger to get a shock. However, the cave and the speleothems are spectacular. We thought about bombing the power line and then going in with our own lights.

Finally, the cave is left 800 m from the entrance. This entrance is called 石膏洞 (Shígāo dòng, Gypsum Cave), which is obviously a name, not a geological classification. We are not sure if this part of the cave is actually in gypsum, which definitely exists in the area, or if it was named after gypsum speleothems in this part of the cave. The tour returns in a steep valley to the cave entrance and crosses the river on a strange zigzag bridge. They do not give any info about this part of the tour, but the satellite image gives the impression that this valley is also a former cave passage which has collapsed. The walls show the meanders of the former cave passage. If there was research on this, it is most likely published in Chinese and not accessible for us.

Despite all the nonsense, the funny names and the coloured light, this cave is one of the most spectacular caves we have listed. It is definitely worth a visit, the tiankeng alone is worth the trip

The show cave is a part of the Shuanghedong Cave Network (双河洞, shuānghédòng, Twin Rivers Cave), which has become the third-longest cave system on Earth lately [2023]. And it was the longest cave of Asia for several years before [2018]. The whole system contains numerous waterfalls, four major tiankeng, and at least three underground rivers fed by numerous losses and the aquifer. The cave has three major levels, the lowest is the active cave with the cave rivers and resurgences. It has 105 entrances and extends mainly over the district of Suiyang, but also over that of Zheng'an with its northern part. It also has spectacular troglobionts, like tadpoles, frogs, salamanders, insects, spiders, bats, leeches, cave shrimp, and blind fish weighing several pounds. The cave is located in Lower Ordovician and Middle-Upper Cambrian (541 to 443 Ma) dolomitic limestones and lodestones. There are also some layers of gypsum, so there are gypsum caves and gypsum minerals in the limestone caves. The area of the cave system is part of the 双河洞国家地质公园 (Shuāng hé dòng guójiā dìzhí gōngyuán, Shuanghedong National Geopark), which has an area of 318 km². For unknown reasons, the scenic area which manages the caves is named 十二背後 (Behind the Twelve).