Prohodna Cave

Prohodna, also known as Oknata, the windows, or the Eyes of God, is a karst cave in the Iskar Gorge near Karlukovo, in Lukovit Municipality, Lovech Province, and the best-known sight of the Karlukovo Gorge, one of Bulgaria's largest karst regions and part of the Iskar-Panega Geopark. Formed in the Quaternary, it is a natural rock tunnel 262 m (860 ft) long, the longest cave passage in Bulgaria, running between two entrances that face each other: the Small Entrance, 35 m (115 ft) high, and the Big Entrance, given as 42.5 or 45 m (139 or 148 ft). In the ceiling of its middle chamber two almost equal holes, worn by erosion, let in the light; the 1988 film Time of Violence shows a priest praying beneath them. Finds show that people lived here in the Neolithic and Chalcolithic, and the cave has been a protected natural landmark since 1962; today the Big Entrance is one of the popular spots in Bulgaria for bungee jumping.

Background

Prohodna is a karst cave in the Iskar Gorge near Karlukovo, in Lukovit Municipality in north central Bulgaria, famous for a pair of eye-shaped openings in its roof, the so-called Eyes of God. The leading sight of the Karlukovo Gorge, part of the Iskar-Panega Geopark and a favourite area for cavers, it is the longest cave passage in Bulgaria and opens at both ends through a Small and a Big Entrance facing each other, which gives it its name, the passage cave. Finds show that people lived in it in the Neolithic and Chalcolithic.

Source: Wikipedia, "Prohodna"

Highlights

• The two roof openings - the eye-shaped holes seen from directly below.
• A tunnel open at both ends - the 262 m (860 ft) passage between the Small and Big Entrances.
• The Big Entrance - 42.5 or 45 m (139 or 148 ft) high, used for bungee jumping.
• The Karlukovo karst - one of Bulgaria's largest karst regions, with the much longer cave of Temnata Dupka close by.

When to go

The cave can be visited in every season and free of charge, but take care in winter, when icicles form on its vaults.

Things to know

The popular name is not the local one: Bulgarian sources call the openings Oknata, the windows, or Komini, the chimneys, and treat Eyes of God as a misnomer.

Nearby

Karlukovo is about 1.4 km south-south-west and Lukovit about 8 km east-north-east, both in a straight line, and a path from the Big Entrance leads to the Petar Tranteev National Caving House, one of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria.

Key facts