Cueva El Soplao

Useful Information

Location:	Prao el Colla, s/n, 39553 Celis, Cantabria, Spain. Motorway A8 Santander-Oviedo exit 269 Los Tánagos/Pesués/Puentenansa, N634 west towards Pesues 1.5 km, turn left after the bridge on CA 181 towards Puentenansa 12 km, turn left to Rábago, pass the village and follow the road for 7 km. Motorway A8 Santander-Oviedo exit 258 Lamadrid, N-634 towards Lamadrid 1 km, turn right CA-848 towards Roiz 3.2 km, turn right CA-850 towards Labarces 2.5 km, turn left towards La Florida 7.7 km. Signposted. (43.2964834, -4.4101268)
Open:	Tourist Visit: OCT to MAR Tue-Sun 10-14, 15-17. APR to JUN Tue-Sun 10-14, 15-18. JUL daily 10-19. AUG daily 10-21. SEP daily 10-14, 15-18. Adventure Tourism Visit: OCT to JUN Fri 15, 16, Sat, Sun 10, 11, 15, 16. JUL Tue-Sun 10, 11, 15, 16. AUG daily 10, 11, 15, 16. SEP Tue-Sun 10, 11, 15, 16. Mine Visit: OCT to JUL Sat, Sun 10, 16. AUG Fri, Sat, Sun 10, 16. SEP daily 10-14, 15-18. Closed 01-JAN, 24-DEC, 25-DEC, 26-DEC. [2024]
Fee:	Tourist Visit: Adults EUR 9.50, Children (4-16) EUR 10.50, Children (0-3) free, Students EUR 10, Seniors (65+) EUR 10, Disabled EUR 10. Groups (20+): Adults EUR 10, School Pupils EUR 6. Adventure Tourism Visit: Adults EUR 33. Groups (15+): Adults EUR 27. Mine Visit: Adults EUR 33. [2024]
Classification:	Karst Cave Zinc Mine Lead Mine
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:	L=13,000 m, A=547 m asl, T=13 °C.
Guided tours:	Tourist Visit: L=1,500 m, D=60 min, Max=47. Audioguides in other languages. Adventure Tourism Visit: D=2.5 h, MinAge=12, Max=20. Mine Visit: D=4 h, L=2,000 m, MinAge=16.
Photography:	not allowed
Accessibility:	yes
Bibliography:
Address:	Cueva El Soplao, Prao el Colla, s/n, 39553 Celis, Cantabria, Tel: +34-952-07-62-72. Reservations: +34-902-820282.
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

1855	Compagnie des Mines et Fonderies de la Provincia de Santander (Company of Mines and Mining Sites of the Province of Santander) is founded in Paris.
11-NOV-1857	Queen Isabel II authorises the operation of the zinc mine "La Isidra".
1928	mines closed due to social conflicts.
1975	cave first explored by Speleo Club Cántabro (SCC).
1978	mines finally closed.
2005	the Government of Cantabria forbids further exploration by the cavers and starts development as a show cave.
01-JUL-2005	show cave opened to the public.
2019	Mine Tour opened to the public.

Description

The description below is very detailed, but there were some changes in the last twenty years. This cave was then called Cueva del Soplao, but the official name is today Cueva El Soplao, but we also found Cueva de El Soplao. Quite spectacular are the speleothems, but the cave is rather unique in other ways. It was part of a mining operation, and the cave tour is more like a show mine, entering by mine train. The tour is accessible for wheelchair users, which is quite rare for a cave tour, probably because the tour leads through mine tunnels. If the train does not run, which is rare, the cave is entered by foot, its only 400 m more to walk.

The cave was discovered during the operation of the La Florida Mines, where zinc and lead were mined. It's fortunate that the cave was not destroyed by the miners, miners tended to use natural caves as Mine Slag Heap, but it seems this was here not the case. The cave was named "soplao" by the miners when it was first found. Soplao is a Spanish mining term and means the "fresh air that is perceived when penetrating a gallery from another with bad air". Obviously, the mine tunnel had bad air, while the cave had fresh air.

The mining started in the 19th century, as a result of increased demand for zinc and lead. In 1855 the Compagnie des Mines et Fonderies de la Provincia de Santander (Company of Mines and Mining Sites of the Province of Santander) is founded in Paris, hence the French name. They try to exploit the sites of Udías and Comillas, among others. The mining engineer Pio Jusué y Barreda explored this area along the Cantabrian coast and discovered zinc ores. As a result of his reports, the Grupo Minero La Florida was created which started mining in the Mountains of Arnero. The first mine, "La Isidra", was authorised by Queen Isabel II on 11-NOV-1857. The first mines were open cast and exploited the so-called calamines ore, which is a mixture of zinc and carbonate. When the mines got underground, galena and sphalerite were mined, sulfidic ores of lead and zinc. The mine had a contract with the Société des Mines et Fonderies de Zinc de la Vieille-Montagne in Liège-Angleur, Belgium. All the ore was sent there for further processing. Later some ore was sold to Great Britain and France, only 3% remained in Spain.

The mines developed considerable from 1855 and soon offered more than 600 jobs. Much of the mining was financed by Belgian capital. The developments in mining techniques changed the operating methods, especially the mechanisation. The first mines were exhausted and closed. Social conflicts and strikes finally culminated in the closure of the mines right before the world economic crisis. This was of great economic importance for the surrounding area and led to unemployment and emigration.

The next decades were quite difficult for Spain, not only World War II but also fascism and the Spanish Civil War. Its unclear if the mines were reopened during World War II or later, but they were operated until 1978. Due to modern mining technology and mechanisation, the production was much higher. While in the first mining phase animals pulled the carts, this was done by mine trains now. In the last 20 years, 75,000 tons of ore with 4.5% zinc and 0.6% lead were mined. The closure was a result of financial difficulties, mining was not profitable any more.

The cave was first explored by cavers of the Speleo Club Cántabro (SCC) in 1975. When it was discovered is unclear, but it was much earlier. The La Isidra tunnel, which is used to access the cave, is one of the oldest tunnels in the area, opened between 1908 and 1910. Around that time the cave was discovered. First, they were not happy, as the cave complicated the mining. Soon they found out how to use it, the large passages were used to transport people and ore, and for ventilation. They also collected dripping water in the cave for the mine.

There is an important aspect of this show cave, which is unlike all other facts we describe, not good. The cave was developed and opened to the public by the Government of Cantabria. For reasons, we do not know, they banned the caving club which explored and surveyed the cave in decades of voluntary work. The caving club is not only banned from the cave, but also from talks, conferences, studies, and technical workshops. This means there is no educated witness which holds the preservation of the cave higher than tourist revenue. We can only guess that they were banned for this reason, the official reason was never disclosed.

The cave is well developed and has a large free car park, shop, cafeteria and a self-service restaurant with large windows and a terrace. The terrace as well as the nearby viewpoint offer spectacular views of the Picos de Europa. The regular tour is as described below, as well as the cave trekking tour. New is a so-called Mine Visit which was started in 2019.

This tour is actually not a show mine tour as the name would suggest. It's an underground "Via Ferrata" tour in the mine tunnels and requires some physical fitness, so it is actually a more difficult cave trekking tour. The point is that it is not climbing in a vertical cliff, the difficult parts is walking up and down steep ramps which may consist of rubble. The 2 km tour through abandoned mine tunnels is definitely a little strenuous, and the harnesses are a good safety feature. The tour is interesting, there are all kinds of tunnels, abandoned machinery, and interesting geology. They say the highlight is the underground lake. Participants are equipped with overall, helmet headlamp, and gum boots, as well as climbing gear for the via ferrata part. However, even if you do not have climbing skills, you can do the tour. The first part is much easier, just walking horizontally, and when the guides see that you are not able to do the difficult part, it is skipped.

The north of Spain is wet, and so the hills are green, even in Summer. The mountains and hills have snow in winter. The cave is open all year, except for two weeks in January, so be aware that the road conditions in the hills might be much different from those on the coast during winter.

The Cave

Geographic Situation

This cave is located to the west of the Community of Cantabria, at a height of 540 m asl, in the Sierria de Amero, which is part of the Sierra del Escudo de Cabuérniga mountain range. The Sierra de Arnera was formed parallel to the coast.

The development of the cave is predominantly longitudinal; it is 3.5 km from the most westerly point to the most easterly one. So far, more than 13,000 m of natural galleries; have been surveyed. If we add the mine workings, there is now in excess of 17 km of passages, between the villages of Rionansa and Valdáliga.

Geologic Characteristics

Cueva del Soblao is formed in both arenaceous limestones, and dolomites of Cretaceous age. There are a multitude of speleothems in the cave. The most typical formations are stalactites, stalagmites, columns, straws, eccentrics, helictites of calcite or aragonite, and pisolites, etc. These form a magnificent spectacle, making this the finest cave in the country. The stalactites, stalagmites, shields etc, which are common in many caves, acquire spectacular dimensions in the Cueva del Soblao, mainly in the entrance area near the Torca juñóse and Torca Ancha daylight shafts. The formations in these locations have a variety of forms: cylinders, as in a plate battery, in the form of mushrooms, etc. The eccentrics or helictites are those speleothems that in section do not have an axis, unlike stalactites or stalagmites. This type of formation is that which really makes the Cueva del Soblao unique, since, although they occur in other caves, they are not so abundant, or of such a fine quality and spectacular appearance as they are in this cave. These concretions appear on the floor, walls, ceiling, on old stalactites, stalagmites, and even on the shields. They are mainly to be found in the western area of the cave (Fat Gallery, Camping Gallery, the Cauliflower and the Forest).

History

This is a special cave and is in an area popular with tourists. It is necessary to understand the connection between the work of man and the work of nature, since the caves have sometimes been used to ventilate the mining workings. They also leave us with an inheritance of how the mine was worked at the beginning of the 20th century. The cave was named by speleologists in the seventies, when considering "soplaos" the natural caverns that were found during mining operations.

Visit

By Footbridge

We enter the cave on board a mine train by the Isidra mine entrance. A new tunnel leads, after 400 meters, to an underground station. A walk of about 60 meters leads to the galleries that connect with the cave. This area is called the Fat Gallery, and leads to the Gallery of Ghosts and the main tourist route. The cave visit is not only of geological interest but shows the history of mining archaeology. The route is about 1,200 meters in length and lasts about one hour.

Adventure Caving

Also available is a Turismo-Aventura type of visit which combines tourism with an exciting two-hour adventure. Here the visitor may see the undeveloped parts of the cave. Suitable clothing and lighting is provided. The Isidra Mine is also visited, going as far as the False Ground where it is possible to see an area of instability. No knowledge of caving is required, this is where the adventure begins. The visitors will have the opportunity to see such impressive formations as the Camping Galleries, the Organ, the Forest, the Siren etc...

Surroundings

The area surrounding Soplao is well worth a visit. Only 15 km away is San Vicente de la Barquera, 40 km from Torrelavega and Santillana de Mar, 30 km from Comillas, 72 km from Santander.

For the keen tourist, to the south of the cave there is the Picos Tres Mares and the Macizo Central de los Picos de Europa, to the west is the Sierra del Cuera in Asturias, and, finally, to the north the Bay of Biscay and the towns of San Vicente of the Barquera, Comillas, and the Oyambre Natural Park.

As well as matchless views, there are more than 2,000 ha of mountains, with forests and meadows. Cows, horses and red deer are some of the species that will be seen on the journey.

Text by Tony Oldham (2007). With kind permission.