The Veternica Cave on Medvednica
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Do you want to know what lies inside the cave?
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The Medvednica Park greets its visitors with beautiful green landscapes, lots of fresh air, and wonderful cultural sights. Medvednica also has a cave, named Veternica. Veternica is the 6th biggest cave in Croatia and is constantly growing. If you want to explore the secrets of this great cave – it’s time to visit Medvednica.
Why visit the Veternica Cave?
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Veternica has over 7 kilometers of canals
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In the southwestern part of Medvednica, the water from the Ponkve area passed through the rocks and created a fascinating underground world. By size, Veternica is the 6th largest cave in Croatia, but visitors can access only 380 meters inside of the cave.
Although not widely known among tourists, this cave hides a multitude of interesting features.
Visitors who choose to explore the cave under expert guidance will get to see ceiling domes, the Stone Waterfall, fossil mud, the Wishing Well, bones of extinct animals, and more.
Rich history and dark secrets
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Veternica is an exceptionally valuable part of Medvednica’s heritage as it harbors up to several thousand-year-old findings. For example, it has been proven that the Neanderthals, Roman soldiers, medieval bandits, and various adventures all spent time inside the cave.
The cave also houses a skull of the cave bear, a common cave inhabitant. It is said that the cave was inhabited by cave lions, leopards, hyenas, rhinoceros, and huge deer.
Today, the cave is inhabited by bats, and studies have discovered the abundance of underground cave fauna.
International Bat Night
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Although bats are feared by many, these timid creatures are in fact an indicator of the quality and preservation of the environmental.
The International Bat Night is held on the last Saturday in August. The event, staring bats in the lead role, takes pace in front of Veternica and the Glavica Mountain Cabin, where visitors can learn a lot of interesting facts about bats. It is certainly worth a visit.
At fun workshops at the Glavica Mountain Cabin, you can closely acquainted with bats – and discover that they are actually very benign animals.
We recommend wearing sports shoes and warm clothes.
