Pluragrotta

66°13′10″N 14°46′21″E / 66.21944°N 14.77250°E / 66.21944; 14.77250

Pluragrotta
LocationRana Municipality, Norway
Depthat least 135 metres (443 ft)[1]
Lengthapproximately 3,000 metres (9,800 ft)[2]
Discoveryfirst dive 1980[1]
GeologyLimestone[3] and marble[4][5]
Entrances2[3]
HazardsNarrow passages, cold water[6]
AccessPlura and Steinugleflåget[4]

Pluragrotta is a cave in Rana Municipality in Nordland county, Norway.[5] It is the deepest cave in Northern Europe. Most caves in Rana, of which there are some 200, are not suitable for diving.

A popular cave diving destination, Pluragrotta attracts more divers than any other cave in Scandinavia. Visibility in the cave waters is high. The cave's passages were formed by the flow of the Plura river over limestone, and the cave system includes marble formations. A number of species have been identified in the cave ecosystem.

Diving became possible in Pluragrotta with the damming of lake Kallvatnet in the 1960s. There have been multiple injuries and fatalities among cave divers at the site, which is accessible year-round.

  1. ^ a b Thonhaugen, Markus (24 February 2016). "Har laget dokumentar om Plura-ulykken". NRK (in Norwegian Bokmål). Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Nordlys19970603 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference HS_2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b "Arctic cave diving - TEKDiveUSA". 20 January 2016.
  5. ^ a b "Verdens dypeste sumpgrotte". NRK. 3 December 2013.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference OceanDiscovery was invoked but never defined (see the help page).