Jaskinia Wielka Śnieżna (Tatra Mts)
Poland's longest and deepest cave system (about 23.8 km, 824 m vertical range) ends in sumps far below the entrances. Syfon Dziadka at −784.8 m is the lowest point reachable without diving; beyond the historical bottom, Syfon Dominiki, divers passed the Dominiki and Beaty sumps between 1972 and 1985 into air-filled passages. The deepest explored point of the whole cave is the Jeziorko X sump, dived to −7.1 m, which puts it at −808 m. Dye tracing showed the water emerges at the Lodowe Źródło spring. This is expedition-scale cave diving with days underground, not a day trip.
Facts
- Region: Poland – Tatra Caves & Sumps
- Area: Tatra Mountains (Tatra National Park)
- Depth: 0–7 m
- Level: advanced
- Current: low
- Type: cave
- Coordinates: 49.24, 19.92306 (approximate)
- Highlights: deep sumps (Dominiki, Beaty), Jeziorko X sump at −808 m
- Permit: All Tatra caves lie inside Tatra National Park. Entry needs a Karta Taternika Jaskiniowego or a TPN licence (or a cave-course place under a licensed instructor), the team leader must register the trip at jaskinie.tpn.pl, and research/exploration (including dives) needs separate permission from the park directorate. Individual caves can be closed - check TPN's current notice first. Cave-diving needs full cave-diver certification plus caving/SRT skills (our recommendation, not a TPN text). (source: tpn.gov.pl)
- Issuer / contact: Tatra National Park directorate (secretariat)
- Phone: +48 18 20 23 200
- Email: sekretariat@tpn.pl
- Website: http://tpn.gov.pl/kontakt
- Unverified: Current diving activity and access status are not confirmed (a Radio Kraków headline reports a TPN closure 'until further notice', undated); coordinates are for the system as a whole.
- Tips: TPN opens only parts of the system to cavers (not the Wilcza cave), and access can be suspended – confirm with TPN before planning. Needs cave-diver certification, SRT/caving skills and a separate TPN exploration permit.