Bozkov Dolomite Caves

The Bozkov caves were found in 1947 when quarry work broke into them, and they are unusual in the Czech context: they are formed in dolomitic limestone lying in a band of otherwise non-soluble rock, and they are the only dolomite cave system in Bohemia open to visitors. The passages are irregular rather than following bedding planes, with pockets and cupolas dissolved out of the rock and quartz veins standing proud where the surrounding stone dissolved away. The main feature is the Jezerni dom, the Lake Dome, holding the largest natural underground lake in the country - about fourteen metres deep with clear blue-green water lit for visitors. Dripstone is limited but there are curtains and small formations. The tour is about four hundred metres. It stays around seven to nine degrees and is worth the detour from the Krkonose road for the lake alone.

What you actually see

• Dolomite passages - the only such caves open in Bohemia, dissolved irregularly.
• The largest underground lake - about fourteen metres deep, lit and blue-green.
• Quartz veins standing proud - left where the surrounding rock dissolved.
• A four-hundred-metre route - guided through the main system.

When to go

April to October. Two hours.

Honest expectations

Guided tours only, on a timetable, and small groups. Around seven to nine degrees inside. Steps and low sections. There is little dripstone - visitors expecting stalactite chambers should go to Moravia instead.

Nearby

Semily is nearby; the Krkonose foothills are north-east.