Eisriesenvelt Cave
Austria, the federal state of Salzburg, the district of Saint-Johan, the city of Werfen
Description:
Fifty kilometers from Salzburg on the slopes of the Tennengebirge mountain range in the Austrian Alps is an amazing natural monument reminiscent of the harsh Scandinavian myths - the Eisriesenvelt cave. The name of the cave is translated from German as "World of ice giants". It really could be the legendary Niflheim - it is the largest ice cave in the world.
The total length of the Eisrisenvelt cave is more than forty-two kilometers, the air temperature in it never rises above zero, and the ceiling, walls and floor are covered with eternal ice, forming bizarre growths and stalagmites. A visit to the cave begins with the climb on the funicular to the mountain shelter, from where you have to make a small twenty-minute transition to the cave itself.
Inside you will see a huge ice stalagmite called the Posselt Tower, the Great Ice Embankment twenty-five meters high and the beautiful Friggy Veil formed by dozens of stalactites. You will also visit the hall where the ashes of the cave explorer Alexander von Merck rest.
Eisrisenvelt Cave is open to the public from March to October, the trip should be laid five to six hours, the tour of the cave lasts about an hour and a half.