The cave with an unusual name on the Ai-Petri plateau attracts the attention of a huge number of tourists. Even in the summer months in its "bowels" you can see a hill of real ice! What else is interesting Crimean cave Trekhglazka? And how to get into it? This will be discussed in our article.
Three-Eye Cave - the pearl of the Ai-Petri Plateau
Ai-Petri Plateau is one of the most popular places among tourists on the Crimean Peninsula. It is literally dotted with karst funnels, picturesque stone placers and caves. It is spacious and very beautiful. Ai-Petrinsky landscape is a combination of forests and mountain meadows. The local flora has up to 600 species of plants, 50 of which are endemic.
Three-Eye Cave on Ai-Petri is one of the most famous attractions of this mountain plateau. It has three vertical entrances ("eye sockets"), which is why cavers have named it with such an unusual name.
People have known about this unique cave for a long time. For example, ancient hunters kept meat in it. And in the XIX century, ice from Trekhglazki was used to store wine and products on the estate of Count Vorontsov. Therefore, the cave is also often called Ice. And today in its central part you can see a huge block of ice and snow, which will melt only in the middle of summer.
Three-Eye Cave: photos and description
The cave is one of the most interesting forms of terrain. This is an underground cavity developed by water flows over millions of years. Caves are formed in places where easily soluble rocks (gypsum, dolomites, limestones, etc.) lie under a layer of soil. The rate of formation of such a cavity directly depends not only on the rock, but also on the aggressiveness (chemical composition) of the water that creates it.
In total, there are about three hundred caves within the Ai-Petrinskaya Yaila. But only two are equipped for excursion visits. One of them is the Three-Eyed Cave. It is quite deep - up to 30 meters. Thanks to this, even in summer the main hall of the cave is covered with a thin layer of ice.
As in any other Crimean cave, here you can admire the stalactites hanging from the ceiling, as well as stalagmites - bizarre growths that are located below. These formations formed over millions of years. It is they who create the "drawing" and "landscape" of any of the karst voids of the peninsula. Inside the cave there is lighting, handrails for sightseers are also equipped.
During a detailed study of Three-Eyed, cavers discovered a torch and a rusty chisel from the 19th century. These two artifacts are today stored in the corridors of the cave.
How to get to the cave
In the century before last, horse- drawn carts overcame a difficult and winding mountain road to get to the Ai-Petri plateau. There, they were loaded to failure with sawed-off bars of ice from the Three-Eye Cave. After that, loaded wagons went down to the sea, carrying their valuable cargo to the Vorontsov Palace.
Getting to the plateau is much easier today. For 300 rubles, the cable car will lift you up. From Yalta to the Ai-Petri plateau you can also get by car along a very steep “serpentine” road. Walking tourists will be able to climb Ai-Petri along one of the hiking trails - Koreizskaya or Taraktashskaya.
Trekhglazka Cave is located 600 meters north of the upper cable car station. In the immediate vicinity are the entrances of two more caves (Yalta and Geophysical).
Visit options and prices
Getting to the entrance to the cave is not difficult. There are corresponding signs on the plateau. In addition, other tourists will always tell you the way, there are always a lot of them here.
In winter, it will not be possible to get into the Three-Eye: the entrances to it close with the onset of cold weather. The rest of the year, visiting the cave is possible. The price of admission for adults is 200 Russian rubles, for children admission is free.
A rather steep metal staircase leads to the cave entrance. According to safety precautions, you should go down along it with your back forward, while holding onto the handrails tightly. In the halls of the cave, the air temperature is kept within the range of 0 ... + 5 degrees Celsius all year round, and this point should be taken into account when planning a site visit.