Rood Afshan Cave
Rood Afshan Cave (Roodafshan) is located in Rood Afshan Village of the Damavand Township in the central Alborz Mountains (in Tehran Province). Inside the cave is covered by limestone in the form of stalactites hanging from the ceiling. The height of the cave is as such that allows easy movement.
Since 2003 the Verein für Höhlenkunde in Obersteier (Austria) with the Khaneye Koohnavardan-e-Tehran (Iran) has been surveying Roodafshan Cave. The length of this spacious cave is 1,502 m with a vertical distance of -90.6 m. The Roodafshan Entrance Hall with 168 m length, 94 m width, 40 m high and 11,395 m2 floor area is the second biggest documented cave chamber in Iran.
It takes almost one-hour-climbing to reach the entrance. The cave features a large entrance with 40 meters width and 12 meters height, along with several vast halls. The cave features a large entrance with 40 meters width and 12 meters height, along with several vast halls. As you pass the first entrance through the sloped surfaces and uneven path, the second entrance shows up. There are some pouches and remnants of skeletons and potteries in the first hall proving the fact that ancient human had lived there in the past.
This hall lacks lime stone decorations. The second hall with 8 meters distance from the first one has an anticline (an arch-like shape) with dimensions of 50 to 60 meters. There is a big gap between the walls of this hall and this hall also lacks lime stone decorations as well. There are plenty of stalagmites in third hall hanging from the ceiling of the cave. There is a corridor at the end of the third hall where you can see a very big stalagmite. While visiting this cave don’t forget to equip yourself with proper shoes, backpack and sufficient means of caving.
About 35,000 years ago, due to the Damavand’s volcanic activities, the entrance of the cave that was hidden behind a big and huge rock, was cracked and little by little, it propagated. At the right hand-side of the cave, there is a strong wall, and at the left of it, there is another deep split. According to the opinion of archeologists the skeleton discovered here belonged to the Achaemenian or the Sassanid period. The cave has plentiful of stalactites and stalagmites. Although the cave is wet, you can’t see any running water. The depth of the cave is 700 or 800 m.
At the end, there is an elevated passage to a small room. By using a ladder, we can climb into the small room. This room leads to the other sections of the cave through a narrow hallway. In this part of cave, the water is stagnant on some parts, but water current could be detected underneath.
The average temperature inside the cave is 6 degrees centigrade and the length of the main road is about 550 m. The distance between two halls is 20 m.
For the tourists it is better to go with a guide and have sufficient means of caving.
The cave is formed within a distinctive geological breakdown area, which can be observed up to the summit region of the mountain in which the cave is found and leads directly under the main ridge of the massif. The cave is north south oriented and fissure controlled.
