Les Coves del Collbato

Collbato Caves - Coves del Salnitre

Useful Information

Location:	Montserrat, north of Barcelona. Collbató, Ctra. N-II,km 576-A. ()
Open:	JAN to FEB Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 16:30, 17:30. MAR to mid-JUL Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 17, 18. Mid-JUL to JUL Tue-Fri 12, Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 17, 18. AUG daily 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 17, 18. SEP to mid-SEP Tue-Fri 12, Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 17, 18. Mid-SEP to OCT Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 17, 18. NOV to DEC Sat, Sun, Hol 10:45, 11:45, 12:45, 16:30, 17:30. Closed 01-JAN, 06-JAN, 25-DEC, 26-DEC. [2014]
Fee:	Adults EUR 7.50, Children (5-16) EUR 5.50, Children (0-4) free, Students EUR 6.75, Seniors EUR 6.75, Disabled EUR 6.75, Unemployed EUR 6.75. Groups (20+): 10% discount if prepaid. Tickets sold at Punt d'Informació de l'Àrea d'Esplai la Salut (morning) or cave entrance (afternoon). [2014]
Classification:	Karst Cave
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:	T=14 °C, H=97%.
Guided tours:	L=400 m, VR=20 m, D=1 h,
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Les Coves del Collbato, Tourist Collbató, Tel: +34-93-7779076. 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. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

Description

The Coves del Collbato are a cave with a view. The entrance opens right inside a vertical limestone wall, and the visitor has to walk up about 20 minutes a sometimes steep trail to the cave entrance. The cave was discovered during sodium nitrate mining at the entrance, hence the name . It is also known as Coves de Montserrat, due to the monastery on the other side of the mountain, but this name often cause confusion, as the monastrey has the Santa Cova de Montserrat, which is a cave church.

The rocks of the Montserrat massif are conglomerates with a carbonate matrix. They were sedimented in a delta of several rivers draining into a shallow inland sea. The rivers deposited coarse, heavy, well-rounded stones and cobbles, which become finer towards the south of the massif. During diagenesis, the debris was transformed into conglomerate by a limestone cement which originated from the shells of lake organisms. The conglomerate layers fall to the northeast, which is clearly visible in the cave map. Many passages follow this main direction.

The cave is a karst cave, but caves in conglomerate are rather rare, as the karstification depends on a high limestone ratio in the conglomerate. But this cave shows rather huge chambers, as the Cova de la Cathedral (cathedral hall) is 60 m long and 35 m wide. The cave is used for concerts.