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Grotte-aux-Fées (Tréal)
Trip No.203 Entry No.13 Date Added: 30th Mar 2020
Site Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Country: France (Bretagne:Ille-et-Vilaine (35))
Visited: Yes on 13th May 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 4
Grotte-aux-Fées (Tréal) submitted by greywether on 27th Jun 2005. From NW. June 1994 - shortly after it was restored.
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Log Text: A fine lateral entry allée couverte at the top of a hill just to the northwest of the Saint Just megaliths and signposted from there. The main chamber is about 13 metres long 1.2 m wide and oriented 102°. The entrance is on the south side with a couple of laterally set portal stones near the east end. There are 8 capstones in place and all the stones get larger to the west end. The stones are made from the strange lumpy local Schist.
Grotte du Pape
Date Added: 18th Sep 2010
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Landes (40))
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2007
Grotte du Pape submitted by thecaptain on 1st Apr 2007. The "Dame de Brassempouy".
A female head carved from ivory, found in the Grotte du Pape near to the village of Brassempouy in 1894.
The figure is only 3.6 cm big, and is thought to be the oldest representation of a human face, dating to almost 30,000 years ago.
The figure normally resides in the St Germain-en-Laye prehistory museum, but is seen here in an exhibition of Women in Art throughout history, which I saw at the Bougon Tumuli in 2005.
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Log Text: None
Grotte des Rideaux
Trip No.205 Entry No.44 Date Added: 21st Oct 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Haute-Garonne (31))
Visited: Yes on 5th Sep 2005. My rating: Ambience 5 Access 3
Grotte des Rideaux submitted by TheCaptain on 28th Nov 2010. In the gorges of the river Save, just below the village of Lespugue, can be found many caves and shelters which have yielded ancient remains of habitation from up to 30,000 years ago.
Below the Chateau de Lespugue, but very difficult to get to due to the steep sides of the gorge and all the undergrowth is the Grotte des Rideaux within which was found the Venus de Lespugue ivory figurine.
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Log Text: In the gorges of the river Save, just below the village of Lespugue, can be found many caves and shelters which have yielded ancient remains of habitation from up to 30,000 years ago. Below the Chateau de Lespugue, but very difficult to get to due to the steep sides of the gorge and all the undergrowth is the Grotte de Rideaux (not far from the place where there is a rock in the middle of the road) within which was found the Venus de Lespugue figurine.
Grotte des Merveilles
Trip No.203 Entry No.130 Date Added: 7th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Lot (46))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 23rd May 2005. My rating: Access 5
Grotte des Merveilles submitted by thecaptain on 5th Jan 2006. The entry building for visits to the Grotte des Merveilles in Rocamadour.
Does it have enough signs pointing to it ?
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Log Text: Saw the entrance to this at least the ticket office and shop. Does it have enough signs pointing to it ?
Grotte des Combarelles 1
Trip No.203 Entry No.72 Date Added: 5th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Dordogne (24))
Visited: Yes on 18th May 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 3
Grotte des Combarelles 1 submitted by TheCaptain on 29th Aug 2010. Grotte des Combarelles is a well decorated cave near to Les-Eyzies, with some of the finest original 12000 year old engravings available to be seen.
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Log Text: Its good being here in mid May while its not very busy as I can get to visit places like this. Visits are strictly limited to a couple of groups of up to six people at a time per day and often have to be booked several weeks in advance. But I enquired in the morning and got to be on the afternoon tour. Brilliant.
A couple of kilometres north of Les Eyzies beyond Fonte de Gaume in the base of a cliff face is found this cave entrance which in fact is two caves but with one common enlarged entrance dug out in the last century. The engravings within the cave were discovered by L Capitan D. Peyrony and Abbé Breuil on the 8th September 1901 and at that time there was not much credibility for any of the cave art which had been found as being ancient. But the findings within this cave proved that they were indeed many thousands of years old for sure and the rest is history. What went to prove the ancientness of the artwork in this cave is that the animals are engraved in the calcite coating of the cave walls which of course in places has been calcited over thus proving that they were not recent additions.
The tour of the cave lasts about an hour an on my visit there were just 4 of us including the guide (in French of course). I don’t know when but some time in the fairly recent past the cave has been enlarged by digging downwards below the passage making the visit possible in a stooped walk rather than the hands and knees crawl of the past. After a few hundred metres of twisting turning cave passage we get to the first engraving of a horse. It takes a while to see what is being shown but after a while the outline of a horse engraved into the calcite becomes clear. Then you see another one and another. There are engravings everywhere and just centimetres away. More than 600 engravings have now been identified and dated to between 10000 and 12000 years old. There’s a full zoo down there not only the many horses (which have very stylised zigzag markings on many of them) but bison mammoth cows
Grotte de Rouffignac
Trip No.203 Entry No.79 Date Added: 6th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Dordogne (24))
Visited: Yes on 19th May 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 4 Access 4
Grotte de Rouffignac submitted by theCaptain on 5th Jan 2011. The entrance and waiting area for the Grotte de Rouffignac.
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Log Text: This is a strange cave its all very bare and rectangular and seems more like a stone mine than a natural cave although it is completely natural and of which there are 10 kilometres of passage. The guided visit takes place in little electric trains which take you a kilometre underground. There are no stalagmites or stalactites to be seen anywhere but lots and lots of graffiti through the ages as this has always been an easy to access cave.
Of the prehistoric graffiti dated to about 13000 years ago we first see a couple of mammoths engraved into the soft side walls on the left and then some more on the right. The train then moves on to where there are some painted rhinoceros before getting to the frieze of many mammoths walking one behind the other just as elephants do perhaps even holding tails in trunks. The bottom part of the picture has become a bit obscured with calcitic build up but the heads and bodies are fantastic.
Then its back out of that passage and down deeper into the cave where there is a large chamber with a massive flat ceiling absolutely covered in the most magnificent animal paintings. There are horses goats deer reindeer cows bison rhinoceros and of course mammoths. Its not the prettiest cave I have seen recently and I think the train ride spoils the atmosphere a bit so I cant give it full marks for ambience but if you like seeing these ancient paintings then it is a must.
Grotte de Pech-Merle
Trip No.203 Entry No.149 Date Added: 15th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Lot (46))
Visited: Yes on 25th May 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 4
Grotte de Pech-Merle submitted by thecaptain on 14th Nov 2008. The entrance area to this fantastic cave, which I would thoroughly encourage anybody to visit.
One of the oak trees here (with the white paint) has one of its roots hanging down into the cave, which can be seen looking like a hairy stalactite.
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Log Text: Superb. Not only for the prehistoric stuff, but also for the cave and its stalactites as well. There is some fantastic cave decoration in here, including pearls and a superb "spinninng top", and also some wonderful discs. Amazing.
The prehistoric stuff dates from all ages, 25,000 BC to 10,000 BC when it all got blocked off by a rockfall. The two famous spotted horses have been dated to 24,600 BC from their charcoal black. They are really fantastic, and the way that a natural rock shape has been used for one of the horses heads is incredible. But there are also mammouth, bulls, ibex, aurochs etc etc. There are also human hands in silhouette, and the famous "wounded man" with four spears in him.
Of much more recent date is a wonderful engraved bears head. not to forget the human footprints in the soft clay, from an adolescent person, which are dated to about ?????. Up near the original entrance to the cave are many bear and hyena bones which can still be seen, and what at first looks to be a hairy stalactite, which is in fact a root of one of the oak trees which is growing in the little leisure area outside the cave. this was one of my favourite places of all those I visited this year.
Grotte de Niaux
Trip No.200 Entry No.15 Date Added: 17th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 16th Apr 2000. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 5 Access 4
Grotte de la Petite Caougno submitted by thecaptain on 14th Feb 2005. The main entrance to the fabulous Niaux cave used for visitors is now further up the hillside than it once was. In ancient times, there would have been several lower, smaller entrances. This picture is of one of the small side entrances to a cave shelter in the vicinity, in which ancient remains have been found.
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Log Text: Full guided visit Grotte de Niaux with Sean. Fabulous. So glad I booked this up last week.
Grotte de Niaux
Trip No.200 Entry No.10 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 2nd Apr 2000. My rating: Access 4
Grotte de Niaux submitted by thecaptain on 14th Aug 2008. Bison inside the Grotte de Niaux.
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Log Text: Grotte de Niaux near Tarascon in Ariège. Check out the world famous Niaux caves for a possible visit soon. The main entrance to the fabulous Niaux cave used for visitors is now further up the hillside than it once was. In ancient times, there would have been several lower, smaller entrances.
Grotte de Niaux
Trip No.205 Entry No.77 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 11th Sep 2005. My rating: Access 4
Grotte de Niaux submitted by thecaptain on 14th Aug 2008. Bison inside the Grotte de Niaux.
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Log Text: The world famous cave, known for its tremendous paintings of bison and horses, is easily found just up a small valley to the west of Tarascon, and is signposted from all around, you can hardly miss it. The cave is up the hillside from the village of Niaux with its museum, and is situated opposite to the Grotte de la Vache.
The modern day entrance, with its rusting iron "artwork" is high up the hillside in an enormous opening, which was not the original entrance to the cave in ancient times, which was further down in the valley. Visits are year round, but only a few people are allowed in on any day to help preserve the conditions inside, so it is usually necessary to book your visit in advance.
Grotte de Mas D'Azil
Trip No.205 Entry No.70 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 10th Sep 2005. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 4 Access 5
Grotte de Mas D'Azil submitted by thecaptain on 13th Dec 2003. The northern, downstream, exit of the Grotte de Mas D'Azil, Ariege, southwest France.
The river has taken a shortcut through the hill and has created a massive and magnificent cave. Artefacts found within this cave include the world famous Faon aux Oiseaux spear thrower, which along with other items has given the Azilian name to an entire prehistoric culture.
There are also several dolmens in the area.
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Log Text: Parked at the upstream end of the Mas d'Azil cave, and it hits home again just how MASSIVE this cave is. I walk through the cave again, partly to check where the low bits are for the van. I have forgotten that you can see all sorts of bits and pieces of passages inside.
Decided not to bother with the paid visit, although perhaps I should have, cos I spent enough other time here anyway. A bungy jump has been set up outside the south entrance to the cave, and I watch people doing this for a while - seeing people dropping and hanging in front of the cave entrance really shows the scale. Eventually leave and drive through the cave to the village.
Grotte de Mas D'Azil
Trip No.200 Entry No.1 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 27th Feb 2000. My rating: Access 5
Grotte de Mas D'Azil submitted by thecaptain on 13th Dec 2003. The southern, upstream, entrance to the magnificent cave at Mas D'Azil, Ariege, southwest France.
The river takes a shortcut through the hillside here, and has created a massive cave, which is so big that a fairly large road also runs through the cave.
Within this cave were found signs of life going back tens of thousands of years, and indeed the world famous Faon aux Oiseaux spear thrower. The finds here gave the name Azilian to an entire prehistoric culture.
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Log Text: Drive south into the lower mountains from Toulouse. Visit St Sulpice, Mas D’Azil, many mountain roads, Foix, Pont du Diable.
Grotte de Mas D'Azil
Trip No.200 Entry No.25 Date Added: 18th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 24th Apr 2005. My rating: Access 5
Grotte de Mas D'Azil submitted by thecaptain on 13th Dec 2003. The southern, upstream, entrance to the magnificent cave at Mas D'Azil, Ariege, southwest France.
The river takes a shortcut through the hillside here, and has created a massive cave, which is so big that a fairly large road also runs through the cave.
Within this cave were found signs of life going back tens of thousands of years, and indeed the world famous Faon aux Oiseaux spear thrower. The finds here gave the name Azilian to an entire prehistoric culture.
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Log Text: A lovely sunny day to explore the Ariege mountains. Puivert castle. Fontestorbes. Montsegur Castle. Pass de ? closed. Plain de ? Ax-les-Thermes, Col de Portel, scary roads. The usual drive through of Mas D’Azil on the way home to impress visitors. Get back to Toulouse late.
Grotte de Lombrives
Trip No.200 Entry No.13 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 2nd Apr 2000
Grotte de Lombrives submitted by durhamnature on 18th Nov 2012. Section of the cave at Lombrives, from "Anthropologie" via archive.org
Site in Midi:Ariège (09) France
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Log Text: Drive S through Pyrénées mountains to Andorra. Lots of snow at top of pass. Look at Ax-les-Thermes, Niaux and other caves on way back, checking out the possibilities of a proper visit.
Grotte de Lombrives
Trip No.205 Entry No.74 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 11th Sep 2005
Grotte de Lombrives submitted by durhamnature on 18th Nov 2012. Section of the cave at Lombrives, from "Anthropologie" via archive.org
Site in Midi:Ariège (09) France
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Log Text: This is said to be the biggest cave in Europe, and has a complex arrangement of 25 different types of visit. Or in my case, none at all !
Grotte de Lascaux 2
Trip No.203 Entry No.90 Date Added: 6th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Dordogne (24))
Visited: Yes on 20th May 2005. My rating: Condition 5 Ambience 4 Access 4
Grotte de Lascaux 2 submitted by theCaptain on 14th Jan 2011. The waiting area and sheltered entrance to the modern recreation of the fabulous Lascaux cave.
Picture from May 2005 with building work in progress.
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Log Text: It’s obviously not the same as seeing the real thing but this copy of the two main chambers of Lascaux cave (which contains 90% of all the paintings) is pretty impressive. OK so it’s a concrete corridor built on the site of an old quarry a couple of hundred metres down hill from the real Lascaux but they tell you that it is nowhere more than 5 millimetres in error from the real thing and at least you can get to see it. It took about 20 years to build and the paintings were recreated using the same methods and materials as the ancient people estimated to have been 17000 years ago.
In the first room with a rounded ceiling there are four massive bulls one being 5.5 metres long and also lots of horses cows and some exquisite reindeer. Three colours are used here red black and yellow and the whole thing is quite magnificent. There is also a frieze on one of the walls with 4 or 5 large horses painted on it with the legs of each all in different positions which when seen one after the other make a perfect representation of a horse galloping across the room. There is also a weird animal at the entrance end of the chamber which seems to consist of the head of a lion the body of a bison and horse and the aft legs of a human and with a couple of long horns and strange markings.
The second chamber is more like a corridor with paintings along both sides. There are lots of little horses following one another with a big brown cow jumping over them. On the other side is a scene where there are several bulls painted one on top of the other which gives the impression o a large herd. Further toward the end of the chamber is a jumping horse and at the bottom of the chamber a fallen horse on its back legs in the air.
As with many of the other caves with paintings or engravings in them the artists have used the natural shapes of the rocks upon which to base their animals. They also have several animals merging into each other and using the same lines for more than one animal. And every animal in Lascaux is depicted in motion none are stationary. There are also lots of strange markings which are referred to as “enigmatic symbols” which again seem to appear in all the painted caves. Fantastic.
Grotte de Lascaux
Trip No.203 Entry No.89 Date Added: 6th Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Dordogne (24))
Visited: Yes on 20th May 2005
Grotte de Lascaux submitted by theCaptain on 5th Jan 2011. The entrance gates to the real Lascaux cave site.
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Log Text: This world famous cave has not been opened for visitors since about 1962 after the paintings had started to seriously deteriorate. It was found in September 1940 by two boys out walking their dog which fell down a hole underneath the roots of a freshly uprooted tree. It is now fenced off and not even opened up to specialist groups since 2001. The fence of course has its UNESCO World Heritage site plaque proudly on display.
Grotte de La Vache
Trip No.205 Entry No.76 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 11th Sep 2005. My rating: Access 4
Grotte de La Vache submitted by TheCaptain on 24th Nov 2010. Part of the Grotte de La Vache, opposite side of the valley to the Grotte de Niaux, in Ariège.
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Log Text: Just opposite to the Grotte de Niaux, on the other side of the valley, is the Grotte de la Vache, with its celebrated Salle de Monique. The cave is open for visits at €8 a time, but because I had spent so long at the nearby Parc Pyrénéen de l'Art Préhistorique, the visits had finished for the day when I arrived.
The information at the cave states that it is the smallest cave open for visits in the Pyrenees, but has had the most finds and articles taken from it. Amongst these are many engraved bones and antlers, including the famous lions. Within the cave is a description of life during the Magdaleinean, 13,000 years ago, with workshops etc held around the fireplace.
To get here, park in the village of Alliat, and then its about a 500 metre easy walk around the hillside. The cave is signposted from all around.
Grotte de la Petite Caougno
Trip No.200 Entry No.11 Date Added: 15th Jun 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Midi:Ariège (09))
Visited: Yes on 2nd Apr 2000. My rating: Ambience 4 Access 5
Grotte de la Petite Caougno submitted by thecaptain on 14th Feb 2005. The main entrance to the fabulous Niaux cave used for visitors is now further up the hillside than it once was. In ancient times, there would have been several lower, smaller entrances. This picture is of one of the small side entrances to a cave shelter in the vicinity, in which ancient remains have been found.
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Log Text: Drive S through Pyrénées mountains to Andorra. Lots of snow at top of pass. Look at Ax-les-Thermes, Niaux and other caves on way back, investigating the possibility of a full visit to Niaux.
This is a small cave shelter beside the little road up to the modern Niaux entrance, in which ancient remains have been found.
I am sure I saw a bear wandering around in one of the fields below.
Grotte de la Mouthe
Trip No.203 Entry No.218 Date Added: 21st Apr 2020
Site Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Country: France (Aquitaine:Dordogne (24))
Visited: Saw from a distance on 2nd Jun 2005
Grotte de la Mouthe submitted by TheCaptain on 13th Jan 2011. Now closed to the public, this cave was discovered in 1895 and was pivotal in the argument for the decorations being of ancient origin.
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Log Text: Now closed to the public this cave was discovered in 1895 and was pivotal in the argument for the decorations being of ancient origin. Apparently there are artworks from many different periods of the prehistoric past in here from the Gravettian through Mousterian to the Magdelenian. This cave is up a very windy rough track from Les Eyzies which I very nearly got stuck up due to a narrowing of the track on the way down the other side between a couple of farm buildings through which a camper van won’t fit. I just about managed to turn round using a farm lawn and got to go back down the way I had come up!