Mokranjska Miljacka


Useful Information

Location: Vrelo, Kadina Selo, Pale municipality.
(43.9252286, 18.5953481)
Open: Currently not available.
[2023]
Fee: Currently not available.
[2023]
Classification: SpeleologyKarst Cave SpeleologyRiver Cave KarstKarst Spring
Light: caving gear provided
Dimension: L=7,200 m, A=1,100 m asl, Tair=8 °C, Twater=6.2 °C.
Guided tours:
Photography: allowed
Accessibility: no
Bibliography: Ana Ćurić (2021): Mokranjska Miljacka, Prača, Tara, Orjen, Tišina: New protected areas of Republic of Srpska, The Republic Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Republika Srpska. ISBN: 978-99976-661-5-4. researchgate
Josip Terzić, Tamara Marković, Jasmina Lukač Reberski (2014): Hydrogeological properties of a complex Dinaric karst catchment: Miljacka Spring case study Environmental Earth Sciences. 72. 1129-1142. DOI researchgate
Address: Pecina Orlovaca, KSC Pale, Ulica Srpski ratnika no 4, 71420 Pale, Tel: +387-65-943-580, Tel: +387-57-227-132. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then.
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History

1984 first mentioned in the cadastre created for the needs of the Yugoslav People's Army with a description of the entrance and the first 60 m.
2007-2009 explored in a multi-year cooperation between Italian and Bosnia-Herzegovina speleologists.
2011 International Speleological Camp at the cave.
2022 Mokranjska Miljacka Cave declared a Natural Monument.

Description

Pećina Mokranjska Miljacka is the spring of the Mokranjska Miljacka river, so it is also called Izvor Mokranjske Miljacke or simply Mokranjska Miljacka. The cave remained unexplored for a long time, although the spring was known for a long time. The reason was the difficult access, which required the use of boats or special equipment. It was finally explored from 2007 in a multi-year cooperation between Italian and Bosnia-Herzegovina speleologists. In 2011 an International Speleological Camp was held right at the cave entrance. Participants were members of the speleological associations "Gruppo Grotte Novara" and "Gruppo Speleologico Bolognese" from Italy, "Atom" from Zavidovići, "Speleo Dodo" from Sarajevo, "Eko-Viking" from Visoko, and "Netopir" and "Ponir" from Banja Luka, as well as speleologists from Slovenia, Macedonia, Croatia and Montenegro. They explored the cave, its fauna, and its content, and completed the cave survey. As one result the cave became the longest cave of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a superlative which tends to change frequently though. Other results of the camp were various publications, and in the end the declaration of a Natural Monument a decade later. At that time it had already become the second-longest cave of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The resurgence is a river cave and visited on cave trekking tours. It is gated with an iron gate and only accessible during such tours. As the entrance section is flooded it requires to swim and wade m until finally a fossil passage of the acev is reached. Due to frequent floods after heavy rainfall or during snow melt, the cave is also quite dangerous.

Mokranjska Miljacka is located not far from the village of Kada, in the hamlet of Vrelo, at the foot of the Gradina limestone massif, about seven kilometers from Mokrog. It is also only 5 km from the Pećina Orlovača show cave, and the caving club which operates the show cave also explores this cave and offers the cave trekking tours. Currently, as a result of Covid-19, there are no tours, but as the pandemic is over, this might soon change again. If you are interested you should contact them and ask for current updates.