Novoafon Anakopia Cave

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Of particular interest is the Novoafon (Anakopia) Cave, located near Novy Afon. It was formed in thick (up to 300 m) thickly layered limestones of the Lower Cretaceous.

The cave is confined to two mutually perpendicular systems of tectonic fractures - meridional (dip 80-90°) and latitudinal (dip 30-60°), with the largest strips extending in the northern direction.

The total length of the Novoafon cave proper is 1515 m and its volume is 1 006 600 m³. As for the Anakopi system, which besides the Anakopi Cave includes the New Athos, Maanikvar and other cavities, it reaches a total length of 3285 meters.

Structure of the New Athos Cave

Anakopi Cave (or Novoafon Cave) consists of two morphologically sharply different parts - vertical and horizontal. The first of them, spiral-shaped, begins on the surface with a sinkhole 30 m deep and 55 m across, which gradually narrows and passes into a system of vertical and inclined wells leading to the Abkhazian grotto.

The total length of the vertical part is 139 meters. The horizontal part of the cave is formed by the grottoes Abkhazia, Georgian Speleologists, Clay, Temple, Sukhumi, Iveria, Tbilisi and Heliktitovy, connected with each other by wide and high passages. Plan of the New Athos (Anakopia) cave

1 - Abkhazia grotto; 2 - Georgian speleologists' grotto; 3 - Clay grotto; 4 - Canyon passage; 5 - Sukhumi grotto; 6 - Temple grotto; 7 - Iberia grotto; 8 - Tbilisi grotto; 9 - Heliktit grotto. Grottoes are characterized by flat or arched vault, almost sheer walls and uneven bottom, covered with a thick layer of clay and piled with blocks of limestone.

The largest grotto is the Grotto of Georgian Speleologists. It is 260 meters long, 75 meters wide and 50 meters high. Grottoes of Abkhazia, Georgian Speleologists and Clay Grotto are considerably watered. They constantly receive water, which then seeps into the depth of the massif through numerous ponors, which indicates intensive development of modern karst processes in this part of the cave.

Deep (more than 8 m) lakes are also found here. The other grottos of the cave are dry. The water entering them is mainly involved in the formation of chemogenic formations. Grottoes of the far, slightly watered part of the cave are characterized by rich interior decoration.

Especially abundant are natellar formations in the Tbilisi and Geliktit grottoes, where calcite draperies, waterfalls, stalactites, stalagmites and bizarre geliktites are widely developed. Cave pearls are found in miniature tubs.

Exotic are calcite and gypsum flowers, which decorate the grottoes of the far part of the cave. The air temperature in the horizontal part of the cave varies from 11.8 to 12.8°, and the relative humidity is 93-98%.