Gruta do Lago Azul

Blue Lake Grotto

Useful Information

Location:	On the Anhumas farm. 260km from Campo Grande, 21km from the village Bonito.
Open:	daily
Fee:
Classification:	Karst cave
Light:
Dimension:	VR=126m.
Guided tours:	V=44,000/a[2000]
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Gruta do Lago Azul
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

1924	discovered by the Terena Indians.
1992	Brasilian and Fench divers discovered 10,000 years old animal bones.

Description


Image: Gruta do Lago Azul. Public Domain.


Image: Gruta do Lago Azul. Public Domain.

As the name tells, the most interesting feature of the Gruta do Lago Azul (Blue Lake Cave) is the blue lake it is named after. Every morning, between half past seven and half past nine the sun shines through a hole in the ceiling and the lake gets its typical blue shimmer. The blue colour fills the whole chamber and gives the speleothems a magic touch. The undisturbed surface of the lake mirrors the stalactites, and thus doubles the beauty of the cave.

But the lake is also a prehistoric fossil site. Divers discovered 10,000 years old bones of animals on its ground, the ramains of giant mammals from the Pleistocene era. The found animal species include saber tooth tigers and giant sloths.

The whole area around Bonito is karstified with numerous caves, karst springs and dolines.