Cova de les Encantades
Small cave with a 5-metre passage in la Tosca del Pinetar, Sant Julià de Vallfogona, formed by travertine about 10 metres high.
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Cova de les Encantades
Small cave with a 5-metre passage in la Tosca del Pinetar, Sant Julià de Vallfogona, formed by travertine about 10 metres high.
Vallfogona de Ripollès · Ripollès
Length: 5 m
Updated record
https://espeleoworld.com/en/c/cova-de-les-encantades-vallfogona-de-ripolles
Information can change. Always verify coordinates, access, weather, and cave conditions before setting out.
Small cave with a 5-metre passage in la Tosca del Pinetar, Sant Julià de Vallfogona, formed by travertine about 10 metres high.
Topographic
Espeleoindex · CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ · Image © its author.
Photos
Espeleoindex · CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ · Image © its author.
Description
Morphology
The tufa is an accumulation of travertine about 10 metres high, formed by the limestone deposit of the spring located just above it; it is a very small and completely impenetrable spring. In its central part there is a gallery 5 metres long that crosses it from side to side, forming the cova de les Encantades and a small balcony from which the waters of the waterfall pour down. The dimensions of this small cave, if one enters through the right-hand mouth, are just enough for a person to pass: a width of almost 1 metre and a height of 1.8 metres, turning left to come out again to the exterior. Although it appears to be a natural cavity, it cannot be ruled out that it has been subject to human intervention and/or artificial enlargement.
Hydrology
The spring located just above the tufa is what causes the tufa deposit. The small balcony of the cavity is the point from which the waters of the waterfall pour down.
History
Known since time immemorial.
Legend: like the countless caves called cova de les Encantades, scattered throughout the Pyrenees, this one has its tale similar to the others:
"At la Tosca del Pinetar de Sant Julià de Vallfogona there is a waterfall, many pools in the riverbed and springs. One of these springs is called 'Les Encantades'. These have their hiding places in la Tosca and can be heard singing, laughing and washing clothes well into the night. Many years ago one of the former owners of l'Om managed to take a towel from them, which he brought to his house where they may still keep it. The owners of that house are neither poor nor rich, and so they go on, because the clothes stolen from the encantades protect against poverty, but bring no wealth". (1)
They say that the spur formed by la Tosca is the face of the encantada who was left without clothes and who, as a punishment, must endure turned to stone; water trickles down her hair. And while inside the cave her companions dance and laugh, she never stops crying and her tears join the water of the waterfall. If you want to hear her cry, you must go on the night of Sant Joan to this magical place.
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Bibliography
- Cutrina i Sorinas, Gonçal (1981).- Llegendes i tradicions de les vall del Ter i del Freser: Recull. 209 pp.Ripoll. Maideu.
- Totes les dades han estat extretes del blog: cavitatsdecatalunya.blogspot (de Jordi de Valles) (apunt del 4-06-2015). Fitxa original: X. Samarra , J. Cuenca (GE Badalona).
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Source: Espeleoindex (espeleoindex.com), modified. CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/