Angel Caves of Pertosa: Natural Prehistoric Beauty within the Mountains
A tour through Grotte di Pertosa, a prehistoric mountain full of beautiful natural formations, cave systems, and even an ancient waterfall. Studies show that this landmark dates back to about 35 million years ago!
Some History of the Angel Caves
As stated above, geographers have discovered that these caves date back nearly 35 million years, however they weren’t discovered recently. In fact, they have been used by the locals throughout recent history. There is evidence showing that the caves were inhabited as early as the Stone Age. In more recent activity, Greeks and Romans used them as places of worship which led to their dedication to the Archangel Michael in the Christian Era. Now it is used as an educational tour through history.
My Experience in the Angel Caves
I was awestruck from the time I entered to the time I exited. We started with a walking tour through the tunnels, zigzagging deeper into the mountain as we passed amazing natural formations on either side. Everyones’ heads were constantly swiveling to keep up and take it all in! In each of the three largest open areas of the cave, they gave educational talks about our surroundings. We then got to see some of the most famous formations named after what the ancient people saw in them (think about looking into the sky and making shapes out of the clouds, but with 35 million year old rocks) including jellyfish, angels, etc. For the last part of the tour, we packed into a small boat and went through the river canal that has run through the cave since the formation.
My Final Thoughts
Overall I thought this was one of the most beautiful natural formations I’ve ever seen! I highly recommend it for anyone in the area. There were even more tour options including donning protective gear and crawling through tunnels, taking the boat a little further to see the waterfall up close, etc. I would honestly go back and do the extras to see what else there is hiding within the mountain walls.
Thank you for reading and happy traveling.
Date Visited: August 24, 2019
