Skip to main content
Bòfia del Tec

Bòfia del Tec

A 332-metre-long cave in the bed of the Aigua de Llinars river, Fígols, with a vertical range of 46 metres (+17/-29).

Fígols • Berguedà 332m 46m

A 332-metre-long cave in the bed of the Aigua de Llinars river, Fígols, with a vertical range of 46 metres (+17/-29).

Characteristics

Location

The cavity is located in the municipality of Fígols (Berguedà), a few metres from the other bank of the river is already the municipality of Guixers (Solsonès).

Access: Shortly after km. 19 of the BV-4241 road from Berga to Sant Llorenç de Morunys, a few metres before the bridge over the Aigua de Llinars river, a turn-off leaves to the right leading to the small village of scattered houses of Llinars or Llinars d'Aigua d'Ora. Beside Can Sorribes (La Cabra) a path leaves that climbs up the right bank of the Aigua de Llinars river, soon passing by the Balma de Sallent and after more than an hour of walking reaches the Casa Grossa de Canals de Catllarí, currently very dilapidated. From the house, a small path leaves that descends rapidly to the Aigua de Llinars river where there is (or was) a footbridge to cross the river, a few metres above it there is a wide, very deteriorated and overgrown path, which must be followed upstream until the path ends, then one must follow the river bed, which soon narrows and one enters the so-called Gorja del Tec, a wild but magnificent spot, with high walls and points where the width does not exceed 2-3 metres. The easiest way, despite the wetness, is to advance through the middle of the water and go up the course of the river, until reaching the mouth of the cave, which is on the right (hydrographic left) in a dark corner of the gorge and about 2 metres above the thalweg.

Another possible access would be via the path from Fumanya to the Font del Pi, once at the Molí de la Font del Pi, one must follow downstream the course of the Aigua de Llinars river for 1600 metres, the cave will be on the left of the river.

Map

Entrances

Always verify coordinates and access conditions before setting out.

  1. Tec, Bòfia del

    Elevation: 1327 m

    42.160366, 1.735093
    UTM 31T (ETRS89) 395506 4668356
Download all entrances as GPX

Photos

Bòfia del Tec - Photo, Fígols, BerguedàView image
Click to enlarge

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

Image 1 of 7

Description

Morphology

A 2x1 metre mouth that gives access to a gallery partially flooded in the first metres and which then rises slightly; at 35 metres from the entrance, a narrow passage between concretions allows continuation, finding a first partially flooded section and further on a low-ceilinged section with a pothole full of water must be overcome. The next section rises a little and is found dry, but immediately a sloping plane is found again and the gallery descends gently, with the floor covered by countless gours. When it becomes horizontal again, the ceiling lowers and the section gains a little width for about seventy metres, until reaching a small chamber that is usually covered with water. Here the main gallery ends, but a few metres before, above a narrow passage between blocks that sometimes sumps, we find an ascending flat-out passage about 5 metres long by 1.50 metres wide and depending on the season, a small water inflow descends. It keeps these dimensions almost throughout its entire route, ending in a tiny little room at +25 metres of height from its start. Through a series of openings located in the left wall, one accesses a new descending gallery and of chaotic appearance in a first section, due to the presence of large fallen blocks; further on one reaches a chamber of medium dimensions, where at mid-height we find a joint through which one can climb between ledges and small little rooms until finally reaching +30 metres of height, during the whole ascent we are accompanied by a large amount of mud. Back in the gallery, a drop of -3 metres must be overcome above an erosion pothole. From here one enters the final section of the gallery, in a descending direction and the floor full of pebbles, reaching a sumping vault that prevents continuation. The vertical range of the cavity is 46 metres (+17/-29).

History

During one of the summer stays in 1969 at the chalet of the Rasos de Peguera, Maria, then in charge of that refuge, commented to Josep M. Miñarro the existence of a cave inside the gorge of the Tec. With very little more information on the matter, JM. Miñarro and S. Orduña (SIRE – UEC Sants) on 23 September of that same year venture into that magnificent gorge and manage to locate the cavity. That day they can explore the first 30 metres of gallery, being stopped at a narrow passage obstructed by some stalagmitic formations.

They do not return until 2 May 1970 and it is when the narrow passage is overcome with certain ease and a large group of members of the SIRE-UEC Sants explore most of the main gallery, although the large amount of water prevents advancing through it in its entirety. Two weeks later they can reach the final gallery and arrive at the small sump that closes the passage. One more trip was still necessary (July 1970) to finish the last details of the survey.

In March 1973 a team from the SIE – CEA visits the cave again and carries out a more accurate survey than the previous one.

In November 1985, four members of the SIE make a visit with the intention of revisiting two chimneys marked on the previous survey, managing to overcome them and reach the level + 17 and + 13.5.

Around the year 2000, our colleague Lluís Roqueta (SECEM, Manresa) commented to us that they had been to the cave and, exceptionally, had found the terminal sump at a very low level and had overcome it, being able to explore a new section of gallery of at least 50 metres until reaching a new sump. We have had no further news on the matter.

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

  1. Martí,R; Miñarro,J.M. (1970).-”Resultado de las exploraciones espeleològicas en el río Aigua de Llinars (Berguedà)”. Bol. Info. SIRE-SANTS (3):11-12. SIRE-Sants/UEC. Barcelona.
  2. Borrás,J; Miñarro,J.M; Talavera,F.(1980).-”l'Urgell, el Solsonès, la Segarra i el Berguedà”. Catàleg Espeleològic de Catalunya (vol.5):1-233. Ed. Políglota. Barcelona.
  3. Juderias i Sala, Joan C.(1986).-”Novetats a la Bòfia del Tec (Berguedà)”. EspeleoSie (28):33-34. SIE-CE Àliga. Barcelona.
  • Fitxa actualitzada maig 2020, fotografies facilitades per Josep Guarro de l'exploració realitzada per la SIE-CEA el novembre de 1985. Participants J.C. Juderias, P. Castells, A. Batllori (†) i J. Guarro.
  • Fitxa actualitzada l'agost de 2020. Coordenades facilitades per Albert Caellas Cardona. (http://relleus.cat).

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