Grotte de Clamouse

Useful Information

Location:	Between Montpellier and Béziers. Between Aniane, Saint-Jean de Fos and Saint-Guilhem le Désert. From the A 750 between Clermont l'Hérault and Montpelier, turn north at Gignac. D32 to Aniane, D27 to Saint-Guilhem le Désert.
Open:	FEB to MAY daily 10:30-16:20. JUN daily 10:30-17:20. JUL to AUG daily 10:30-18:20. SEP daily 10:30-17:20. OCT to NOV daily 10:30-16:20. Guided tours hourly. Given closing time is start of last tour. [2011]
Fee:	Adults EUR 9, Children (4-12) EUR 5.50, Children (0-3) free, Unemployed EUR 7.70, Students EUR 7.70, Family (2+2) EUR . Groups (10+): Adults EUR 6.70, Children (4-12) EUR 4.50, Unemployed EUR 5.70, Students EUR 5.70. Groups (30+): Adults EUR 5.70. School Groups: Primary EUR 2.40, Secondary EUR 4.50. [2011]
Classification:	Karst cave Living Isolated Underground
Light:	LED Lighting
Dimension:	L=4,000 m.
Guided tours:	L=1,000 m, D=60 min. V=150,000/a [2000]
Photography:	Photography allowed.
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Grotte de Clamouse, BP 1, 34150 Saint-Jean-de-Fos, Tel: +33-467-577105, Fax: +33-467-577800. 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

1945	cave discovered.
1965	opened to the public.
1989	French television series L'Or du Diable shot at the cave.
2000	Michel Siffre spent more than two months in the cave.
2010	LED light system installed, first cave in Europe completely lighted by LED.

Description

In 1947 the Martel Prize for Speleology was awarded to the Speleo Club of Montpelier for the discovery and exploration in 1945 of a new underground river in the Hérault Gorge, called the Grotte de Clamouse. The source of the river is the Causse de Larzac, it eventually resurges as a beautiful spring in the middle of the wild groves of Hérault, close to Guilhen le Désert.

Today, speleologists are not the only ones who can enjoy the wonders of Clamouse, for it has been opened to the public. Because of the rarity and richness of the formations, Clamouse is a contender for the title of "Subterranean Capital of the World". The present day tourist route by-passes the difficult path taken by the early explorers, and leads directly into the "Sand Hall". This is one of the largest chambers in the cave. The route takes a semi-circular tour through the "Red Niagara Room" and the "Subterranean Canyon", both of which are profusely adorned with stalactite formations. The passage narrows and one passes a splendid array of aragonite crystals and beneath a veritable forest of straw stalactites about 2 m long. The pathway climbs up to the Sale du Chaos - a massive boulder chamber, eventually the tourist reappears in daylight via a man-made tunnel.

Text by Tony Oldham (2003). Based on an article in The British Caver Vol 58 1972 by Tony Oldham. With kind permission.