Skip to main content
Avenc del Batlle Vell

Avenc del Batlle Vell

Small pit 6 m deep in Pontons (Alt Penedès), with a rounded 1 m entrance, a debris cone and a final chamber 7.5 m long.

Pontons • Alt Penedès 33m 6m

Small pit 6 m deep in Pontons (Alt Penedès), with a rounded 1 m entrance, a debris cone and a final chamber 7.5 m long.

Characteristics

Location

From km 9 of the BV-2122 road, within the town of Pontons, follow a track that climbs in the direction of the Romanesque hermitage of Sant Joan de la Muntanya and continue for 1,200 metres, and just past the Pedrallisa gully, follow to the left for about 60 metres to a vineyard, where we will leave the car. From here we will follow a wide path that leaves to our right and descends with a gentle slope. After 150 metres we must follow a small path that leads to the cova del Batlle Vell, open at ground level, and located about 25 metres from the path, near the remains of a corralot. From this cave we will follow the path downhill for about 50 m, until we find on the right a wide path that we will follow for 100 metres until we find on the right an almost imperceptible small path, where a cairn has been left (UTM ED50 376539 - 4585520). We will follow the small path for about 50 metres, through a dense pine forest. The entrance, covered with branches to prevent animals from falling in, is difficult to locate.

Map

Entrances

Always verify coordinates and access conditions before setting out.

  1. Avenc del Batlle Vell

    Elevation: 705 m

    41.409549, 1.521988
    UTM 31T (ED 50) 376562 4585480
Download all entrances as GPX

Photos

Avenc del Batlle Vell - Photo, Pontons, Alt PenedèsView image
Click to enlarge

Espeleoindex · CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ · Image © its author.

Image 1 of 3

Description

Morphology

A rounded entrance 1 metre in diameter gives access to a 2 metre drop that takes us to the top of a debris cone. To the E we can descend to a small chamber that ends at 6 metres; and to the W the debris cone leads to a chamber full of blocks, some of them stacked by human hands. To the right we can reach the deepest point of the cavity and, shortly before, a narrow gallery takes us to the small chamber we mentioned first. Continuing onward we reach the final chamber of the cavity, 7.5 metres long and with a maximum width of 3 metres. At the end of the chamber there is an impenetrable crawlway that appears to end after a few metres. On the ceiling of the chamber there is a dome 2.5 metres high.

History

It seems to have been known since remote times by local people, who had even used it as a refuge during the civil war. But the first speleological reference is given by members of the SIE – CEA who explored and surveyed it in February 1972 (the survey had remained unpublished until now).

Practically lost, members of the EC Gràcia and the GE Badalona were able to locate it in March 2014 thanks to the help of Pepe Cubillo, from the rural house: Les Canyes (Pontons), preparing a definitive record.

User Comments (0)

No comments yet.

Be the first to share your experience!

Registered Explorations (0)

No explorations registered yet.

Register your visit to this cave!

Bibliography

  • Actualització de dades, fotografies i topografia recent extretes del blog: catalunyasubterranea.blogspot (de Jordi de Valles); apunt del 25-4-2014. Dades: J. de Valles i J. Cuenca

Source: Espeleoindex (espeleoindex.com), modified. CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/