Sugomakskaya Cave

The Sugomakskaya Cave lies on the eastern slope of Mount Sugomak near Kyshtym and stands apart among Ural caves: it is the only cavity in the Urals formed by water in marble. The explored part runs for 123 metres and consists of three chambers joined by narrow passages. The first chamber is partly lit from outside and accessible even to children. In winter and early spring its walls and ceiling are covered with snow crystals, and ice stalagmites grow on the floor — cold air flows in but never reaches deeper: the temperature in the second chamber stays positive. The third chamber begins with a six-metre vertical shaft and is partly flooded — only speleologists have descended into its far reaches, where unexplored passages remain. The cave has been protected as a nature monument since 1985 and belongs to the Sugomak territorial natural complex — together with the mountain and lake of the same name, three nature monuments in one spot, a unique concentration for the Southern Urals.