მოთენას მღვიმის

Motena Cave - Motenas Mgvimis - Пещера Мотена

Useful Information

Location:	Village Balda, Martvili 3100. From Martvili north on Martvili-Taleri-Chkhorotsku road towards Didi Tchkoni. 600 m after Martvili Canyon, before bridge, turn right on single lane road. 1.6 km to Balda. (42.476583, 42.391167)
Open:	no restrictions. [2021]
Fee:	free. [2021]
Classification:	Karst cave Cave Castle,
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:	A=473 m asl.
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Motena Cave, Village Balda, Martvili 3100.
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

მოთენას მღვიმის (Motena Cave) is a wild cave which is open for cave trekking. The two level cave has a long history of human use, and the main entrance was once closed with a massive wall, making it a cave castle. Beneath the ruined castle there are also some trail-like structures inside the cave, a result of the long use by humans. The two levels of the cave are horizontal and offer no difficulty, there is a 10 m high staircase which leads to the second floor of the cave. In other words, the only vertical part has a staircase, the cave does not require any climbing. So it seems this cave has become a sort of popular cave trekking destination.

Its a littel tricky to find the cave. If you come from Martvili drive north on the Martvili-Taleri-Chkhorotsku road towards Didi Tchkoni. 600 m after the huge parking lot for Martvili Canyon, turn right on a single lane road. After 1.6 km at the houses which belong to Balda, you must find the trail which leads uphill on the right side. The cave is located in the forest in a depression which was formed by the collapse of the lower end of the cave. It's a so-called roofless cave. The cave is entered at the ruined wall of the cave castle. The lower part of the wall is gone, so it is easy to cross. The lower level of the cave behind has two chambers, connected by a narrow but high passage. The staircase to the upper level is located in the south-east corner of the last hall. The cave very nice speleothems like stalactites, stalagmites, rimstone pools, shawls and

If you visit this cave you must be aware that this is a wild cave, with minimal development. Full caving gear is required, which means overall, helmet, headlamp, reserve light, gloves, kneepas and gum boots. Bring a towel, dry clothes to change afterwards, and a plastic bag for the dirty and wet equipment. Never cave alone and always tell someone and have a return time. We strongly recommend taking a guided tour, which are offered by local operators, mostly cavers.