IZ PEKLA SE KADI
Pred nami je skrivnostno podzemlje Pekla s čudovitimi podobami in oblikami, ki jih je skozi tisočletja izoblikoval potok Ponikvica.
Naravni spomenik jama Pekel je stara več kot 3 milijone let. Ime naj bi dobila po peklenščku, ki se vklesan v skalo vzpenja nad vhodom v jamo in varuje njene skrivnosti.
Jama ima spodnjo vodno in zgornjo suho etažo. V spodnjem delu jame nas spremljajo potok Peklenščica, zasigane stene ter številne kapniške podobe, ki lahko zaživijo v naši domišljiji. Posebna zanimivost je podzemni slap, ki pada preko 4 m visoke stene. Zgornja suha etaža je s kapniki in podobami še bogatejša. Iz jame izstopimo na površje 42 metrov višje skozi kratek umetni rov.
Za podzemlje Ponikovskega krasa so značilne nekatere slepe jamske živali, kot sta jamski polžek in jamski krešič. Stalni prebivalci jame so tudi netopirji.
Za obiskovalce je bila jama urejena že leta 1860. Stalna temperatura v jami znaša 10 oC. Pozimi, ko je zunanja temperatura nižja od temperature v jami, se iz vhoda včasih kadi.
SMOKE FROM HELL
Lying in front of us is the mysterious subterranean cave called Pekel (eng. Hell) with its magnificent images and shapes formed through millennia by the Ponikvica brook.
The Pekel cave natural monument is over 3 million years old. Supposedly it was named after the image of the devil etched in the rock above the entrance to the cave, protecting its secrets.
The cave has two floors, the lower one is the water part and the upper one is dry. The bottom part consists of the Peklenščica stream, calc-sinter walls and numerous shapes of dripstones that come to life with a little bit of imagination. A special feature is an underground waterfall falling from a height of more than 4 metres. The upper, dry floor is even more abundant with its dripstones and shapes. Visitors exit the cave 42 metres higher through a short, man-made tunnel.
The subterranean world of the Ponikovski kras region includes several blind cave animals, such as cave-dwelling snails and the Anophtalmus bohiniensis beetle. Bats are also permanent residents of the cave.
The cave was open for visitors as early as in 1860. The cave’s permanent temperature is 10 oC. In the winter, when the ambient air temperature is lower than the temperature inside the cave, steam rises from the cave mouth.
