JOIN USWe were on a spelunking spree inside Marble Arch Caves, located in the rugged mountainous uplands and gently rolling lowlands of the counties of Fermanagh in Northern Ireland and Cavan in the Republic of Ireland.
Sharing the history of the subterranean caves, our student-guide explained that these caves would have remained in obscurity and absolute darkness if the French speleologist Édouard-Alfred Martel and Dublin-born naturalist Lyster Jameson had not stumbled upon them in 1895. I imagined how the two intrepid explorers would have ventured into the undisturbed inky-black primeval darkness of the caves by candlelight, ignoring the tales of witches, ghosts and fairies.
But it was only in 1985 that Fermanagh District Council opened part of the caves as a tourist attraction. This park, which has a chequered history of more than a million years, is currently the only UNESCO Geopark in Northern Ireland. It was one of the first eight Geoparks to be recognised in the world by UNESCO when it launched the Geoparks initiative in 2001.
Winding paths
We were shepherded up and down staircases and labyrinthine passages to see the long passages, spacious chambers, fresh-water galleries and siphons. These awesome formations were created thousands of years ago when the cave river eroded and dissolved away millions of tonnes of limestone to carve and shape the majestic cave passages.
We marvelled at the surreal underworld of stalactite and stalagmite formations lit up by the warm glow of the illumination. It exudes a magical ambience reminiscent of Steven Spielberg’s movie, The Goonies. The rock formations with grotesque shapes and sizes also reminded us of the Borra and Belum Caves in Andhra Pradesh. The underground Claddagh River runs through the cave’s winding passages, encountering lofty chambers with huge stalagmites and stalactites, and a glorious waterfall.
The quietude inside the cave was unbroken except for the dripping water inside some passages.
Leading us to into the caves, our guide explained that at 11.5 km, it is the longest in Northern Ireland. The sunlight dimmed as we delved into the caves. From the stalactite chamber we were escorted downwards into a circular cave passage. The stalactites hang from the ceiling of the cave like icicles, and the stalagmites are in myriad formations on the cave floors.
Walking through the vast underground passages was a thrilling experience. As we manoeuvred the narrow paths, we came across a flyover leading to the pool chamber with a limestone wall and a sump pool. From here we followed a descending passage to the New Chamber, deepest point in the caves at 165 feet below the surface. Our guide led us through the broad and narrow passages, pointing at different landmarks in the cave system — Porridge Pot, Organ Pipes, and a cave curtain named Streaky Bacon.
We stepped into the Canyon passage that was formed by a vertical stream. The trail leads to pools, and Moses Walk. The path goes downwards into the Crystal Palace, replete with stalactites and cave curtains. The footpath terminated at Journey’s End, where the cave continued upstream into passages only accessible to experienced cavers.
We came across stalagmites with weird names like the Frog, the Screwdriver, and the Mexican — all formed as drip pits in sand deposits that were washed away. Another stalactite is called Long John Silver because of its peg-shaped leg.
Another stop highlighted Calcite Cradle, which had many formations, including one where a stalactite and a stalagmite had almost joined up.
Beyond the Frozen Waterfall loomed the cave column Guardian Angel which the workmen credited for their safety while working underground. Our one-mile tour ended with ascending 130 steps up and exiting through a hole-like passage to the daylight. We returned exhilarated and awestruck like the intrepid explorers who had uncovered nature’s multilayered secrets deep inside the earth’s crust.
On present ground
Equally interesting was our boat trip to Devenish Island, a monastic settlement founded by St Molaise. Though plundered by the Vikings in the 9th and 12th centuries, it continued to be a major pilgrim centre until the early 1600s. The whole place exuded pastoral charm and meditative calm.
As I trudged up and down and strolled around, I found a mélange of ruins and remnants of the medieval period. The highlights include the sturdy oratory, and perfect round tower, both from the 12th century, St Molaise’s church, a century older, and the ruined Augustinian priory. To the south is a superb high cross that bears delicate carving.
I was bowled over by the tranquility of the island and wished I could linger long in this delightful setting, but the boatman was in a hurry to ferry us back to the mainland before the rains.