Dimnice Jama (Smoke Cave)

Dimnice is an 8-kilometer-long cave with a 180-meter-deep stream. There are two levels of tunnels. The top passages are dry and lined with lovely dripstones, as well as tourist paths. The lower tunnels include an underground stream that flows into the Rizana River spring. The cave and its environs are a veritable treasure trove of karst phenomena. The dripstone formations, which may easily make the Guinness World Records, are the most popular among visitors.

This is one of the newer caverns to visit, with tours available every Sunday. Because of the fog that seems to rise up from the cave during the winter months, the cave is known as Smoke Cave. The cave is reached via a long winding walk and an outstanding spiral stairway. Before entering a wide hallway with large chambers, including one dubbed Dancing Hall, you must descend 39 meters to the entrance.

Two nearly 40-meter-deep chasms are joined by an underground corridor near the towns of Slivje and Markovscina, not far from the Kozina–Rijeka regional route. During the winter, the cold air entering one of the chasms drives the warmer cave air out of the other, resulting in a distinctive mist that resembles a column of smoke. Because 'dim' means smoke in Slovenian, this phenomena lends the cave its name.

Length: 8,000 m
Location: Kozina–Rijeka, Slovenia