Grotte de Lombrives

Ussat

Opening on the mountainside above the upper Ariège valley, Lombrives unfolds chambers on an outsize scale, including the one known as the Cathedral, about 80 m high, where concerts are held today. The place has been inhabited within living memory: an inscription from 1578, left during a visit by Henry of Navarre, the future Henry IV and Count of Foix, can still be read there, and the cave also served as a refuge for priests and nobles during the Revolution. The most persistent tradition holds that in 1328 some five hundred persecuted Cathars took refuge there and were walled up alive; historians point out that the crusade against the Albigensians had ended a century earlier by that date, and consider the episode legendary. Another tradition makes the cave the birthplace of the Pyrenees: it is said to be here that Pyrene rests, daughter of King Bebryx and loved by Hercules, killed by a bear while the hero was away; Hercules is said to have raised a mountain of stones over her, declaring that these mountains would henceforth be called the Pyrenees. A stalagmite formation on which water drips, known by guides as 'the tear', has since been called the Tomb of Pyrene. These tales attracted a substantial body of esoteric literature in the 20th century.

Site officiel de la grotte de Lombrives ↗

Getting there : On the RN20, at Ussat-les-Bains, 3 km south of Tarascon-sur-Ariège; the coordinates correspond to the car park and ticket office by the road, with the cave entrance opening around a hundred metres above, reached by a small tourist train or a 1.4 km footpath. Standard guided tour of about 2 hours; longer options (half-day as far as the Salle de l'Empire de Satan, 4 km underground) and night visits. Bring sturdy shoes and a jacket.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound