Exsurgence de Lapeyrade

a stream sinks from a fine entrance forming a small porch at the foot of a small cliff. After 3 metres, one must already crawl in the stream bed over a floor of clay filling the gallery, which becomes a flat-out squeeze. For 120 metres, the passage takes a south-west direction and progress is particularly aquatic, alternating narrow flat-out squeezes and forced-conduit galleries; no fewer than six wet arches must be passed before finally standing up in a fine gallery with very jagged walls, the fourth leaving only a space of three centimetres between the flat ceiling and the stream water. The gallery continues to the north-west with increasingly corroded walls forming, in places, true tapered blades that must be skirted with care. a few blocks sometimes obstruct the floor of the gallery, and one soon reaches the network's only chamber, 16 metres long by 7 metres wide and 4.50 metres high, whose floor is covered with large blocks fallen from the vault. a little further on, the gallery resumes the direction followed by the entrance squeezes; at this level, a fissure in the ceiling lets through a large quantity of fine roots that hang down to mid-height of the gallery. The rock of the passage is always very sculpted; one must sometimes step over fallen blocks, sometimes take upper passages. The gallery then resumes a north-west direction, pierced by numerous chimneys visible over 5 to 7 metres of height. The main gallery takes a due-north direction that it will not leave until the end of the exploration; its profile forms a perfect "8" with the junction of two superimposed galleries 1.50 metres in diameter whose separation, where it still exists, is only a few centimetres thick. Little by little, the ceiling begins to lower, the walls close in, and one progresses for about a hundred metres in a meander 1.80 metres high by 0.80 metres wide. The ceiling drops sharply and one must again crawl in the stream bed; the last 100 metres are very tight and require passing two new wet arches. Progress is currently stopped at a flat-out conduit partially blocked by alluvium. The total development of the cavity is 992 metres for an elevation change of +17 metres, which places this cave in third position in the department; its particularity is the exceptional length of the gallery where we can progress upright, nearly 700 metres, which is unique among the caves of the Gers. The corrosion forms are also remarkable.

Concretion, although present, is much less significant than in the caves of Sinaï at Gazaupouy and of Buguet at Bazian, its two main competitors in terms of development.

a stream of two litres per second (on average) sinks from the entrance. The fourth wet arch leaves only a space of three centimetres between the flat ceiling and the stream water; the passage must siphon very quickly. The cave can be dangerous because of the numerous wet arches that can fill up at the first heavy storm; it then turns into a trap and can force any explorers who have not monitored the weather conditions to wait for the flood to recede in a place sheltered from floods.

After 3 metres, one must already crawl in the stream bed. No fewer than six wet arches will have to be passed; here particular attention must be paid to the weather conditions. Progress is always very easy in the passage, and so one reaches the first left-bank tributary after travelling more than 400 metres from the entrance; unfortunately the passage very quickly becomes too narrow. At 580 metres from the entrance, we reach the second left-bank tributary, the most important, whose stream course could be followed upstream for 40 metres in a small, very muddy gallery oriented due east (towards the dolines and avens of La Ouarde). a difficult dig (we are at this point 920 metres from the entrance) is nevertheless conceivable in order to extend the exploration.

a statuette of the Virgin has been sealed at the entrance of the cave and seems to protect any visitors.