Cavernas de Laurel

Cueva grande del Laurel

Useful Information

Location:	Caserío de Laurel, Jamalca District, Utcubamba Province, Amazonas Region (-5.91527, -78.28234)
Open:	All year daily 6-16. MAY to SEP (dry season) recommended. [2020]
Fee:	free. [2020]
Classification:	Karst Cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:	Cueva de El Laurel: L=999 m, VR=124 m, A=1,300 m asl. Cueva 1: L=128 m. Cueva 2: L41 m.
Guided tours:	cave trekking
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:	J. L. Guyot (02-13 November 2018): Dernière sortie de l'année in the Amazon region, Pérou Spéléo Bagnols Marcoule Group infos
Address:	Cavernas de Laurel.
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

2018	explored and mapped the Nor-Peru 2019 expedition.
10-FEB-2019	explored by J. Y. Bigot, A. de Pomar, J. D. Klein, G. Staccioli.

Description

The Cavernas de Laurel are named after the town Caserío de Laurel where they are located. The entrance of the caves are on the slopes of a rocky cliff and offer a view towards Quebrada Honda canyon. There are four caverns, two of them have beautiful stalagmites and stalactites, 128 m and 41 m long. The third cavern is a shelter which is of archaeological interest, during excavations pottery was found. The fourth cave, Cueva de El Laurel, is the biggest, 999 m long, and is used for cave trekking tours. Its character is dominated by slabs of rocks, which detached from the ceiling and form piles of debris on the floor.

The area of Quebrada Honda gorge is a limestone karst with numerous caves. rescent speleologic research revealed numerous caves in the are. There are attempts to open the caves as show caves in order to create infrastructure for tourism. Currently the cave is not developed and visits are offered as cave trekking tours on day trips from nearby cities. There are also canyoning trips offered into the gorge at the cataratas de Songos, which are guided by locals. The trips require some climbing, but the trails are equipped with ropes for the trips.