Anou Ifflis
| Anou Ifflis | |
|---|---|
 Northern slopes of Djebel Akouker (2184m) in the Djurdjura range (Tell Atlas, Algeria) | |
| Location |  Algeria |
| Depth | 1,170 m (3,840 ft) |
| Length | 1,800 kilometres (1,100 mi) |
| Discovery | 1980s |
| Entrances | 1 |
The Anou Ifflis cave (French: Anou Ifflis, Anu Ifflis) is a cave located in Tizi Ouzou in the mountains of the Kabylie. It is the deepest cave in Africa at 1,170 metres (3,840 ft).[1]
Location
[edit]The entrance to the Anou Ifflis (aka D3), is located on the edge of the great depression of Ras Timédouine, oriented East-West, under the ridges of the Akouker.
Exploration
[edit]The Speleological Association of Montreuil reached −87 m (−285 ft) in 1980 and −300 m (−980 ft) in 1981. The cave was explored by a french interclub expedition from Vaucluse in april 1983 to a depth of −725 m (−2,379 ft) then during the summer 1983 by both Parisians and Vauclusians to a depth of −975 m (−3,199 ft). The Espeleo Club Gràcia (Barcelona), in 1985, continued the exploration and stopped at −1,007 m (−3,304 ft). In 1986, cavers from Liège increased the depth to −1,159 m (−3,802 ft).[2][3]
Description
[edit]
The entrance opens at the 2,150 m (7,050 ft) elevation by a narrow, vertical passage between the boulders. After a few metres of de-climbing, you reach the top of a first narrow passage with a steep slope ("Le Toboggan"). The first few meters of the cavity are difficult and even encourage you to do so... about-face. At the bottom of a 90-metre-deep shaft (P90), the atmosphere becomes different, a large collapse chamber offers several possibilities for progression. This pothole is composite in nature, it combines different forms of digging depending on the depth. From 0 to -210 m, the cave resembles an inactive tectonic chasm (without perennial flow) slightly touched by flows, presenting narrows, shafts and faults. From -210 m to -975 m, the following are successively encountered:
- A meander gallery 300 m long (from -210 m to -300 m), generally well calibrated and embellished with a few vertical notches. A stream from the rivers of the Akouker ridge joins the path. - A succession of large fault pitchs from -300 m to -800 m, in which the stream cascades. The morphology of the shafts is closely linked to the strong relaxation of the massif. - A streamway appears at about -920 m. The -210 m stream here encounters a significant flow of about 10 litres per second at low water which circulates in a cascading conduit. - A meander section alternates deep pools, potholes and ledges.
Finally, after a P134 and a P32, the path ends on a sump at −1,159 m (−3,802 ft).
Notes and references
[edit]- ^ (in English) National Park Service, U.S. Interior Departement (ed.). "Deepest caves in the world" (PDF). Retrieved 27 August 2009.
- ^ CESAME & Clan des Tritons (1985). "Expédition spéléologique Djurdjura 2005 du 3 au 20 août 2005 –Algérie" (PDF) (in French).
- ^ Alain Gallant and Joseph Godissard (1987). "Anou Ifflis, premier -1000 africain" (PDF). Regards (in French). No. 2. pp. 30–33.
36°28′07.7″N 4°09′10.1″E / 36.468806°N 4.152806°E
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