Gruta da Fumaça

Smoke Cave

Useful Information

Location:	Zona rural, Iraquara - BA 46980-000. 10 km from Iraquara, 70 km from Lençóis. 800 m walk to the cave. (-12.3320551, -41.5967163)
Open:	All year daily 8-17. [2024]
Fee:	Adults BRL 25, Guide BRL 150. [2020]
Classification:	Karst Cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:	L=775 m.
Guided tours:	L=800 m, D=45 min, MaxDay=200.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:	Leda Zogbi (30-APR-2013): Remapeada Gruta da Fumaça, Iraquara, Bahia Conexão Subterrânea (N. 108): p 2. ISSN 1981/1594 online
Address:	Gruta da Fumaça, Zona rural, Iraquara - BA 46980-000, Tel: +55-75-99813-8913.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

2008	setting for the soap opera A Favorita, starring Mariana Ximenes.
2013	surveyed by the speleologists João Paulo Mallet, Leda Zogbi and Admir Brunelli.

Description

The tour through Gruta da Fumaça (Smoke Cave) is very easy and recommended for all audiences. It has several huge chambers with great speleothems. The highlight is the final hall with a ceiling full of stalactites that are so fine that they resemble a "sky of needles".

The cave is located on private property and actually a show cave, in the Brazilian way, which means without paved trails and light. Helmets and lamps are provided, guides must be paid extra, but it's strongly recommended to do so. There are footpaths to the cave and inside, there is a ticket office and souvenir shop. But compared to other caves in Brazil, the cave protection is quite good here. The footpaths are marked with tape to prevent damage to the speleothems. Also, the Salão da Luz, which had been part of the tour in the beginning, was closed to protect the speleothems. And there is a limit to 200 visitors daily. In the main season it is recommended to visit the cave early, as it might be closed when the limit is reached.

The cave was first explored by a group of explorers who unfortunately never published their results. The owner asked a team of speleologists, and in 2013 João Paulo Mallet, Leda Zogbi and Admir Brunelli repeated the survey. This time it was properly published, see the literature section.