Veternica Cave is located at the foot of a hill with the church of St. Jerome and, with its length of 620 metres forms a true small labyrinth. Due to its complex network of passages and the magical lake in the centre of the cave, mysterious legends have surrounded it for centuries. Throughout history, many have attempted to uncover the secrets of Veternica, but it was only discovered/explored by a group of young speleological explorers.

group of young speleological explorers

Veternica has long been known among locals, as evidenced by human influences inside the cave (ropes, damaged flowstone, inscriptions). In 1737, the English travellers Pococke and Milles stayed in Vransko. Their journal states that they visited two nearby caves – Škadavnica and Podgrajska Cave (Shaw, 2008). They do not mention Veternica, but it was certainly already known at the time.

The cave was registered on 19 March 1938 by Egon Pretner. During his visit, he described the access and the section of the cave from the entrance to the lake. He drew simple sketches of the parts of the cave known at that time. In 1998, the Tornado Caving Club noticed that the cave plan was very approximate, and they began surveying the section from the entrance to the lake. They also mapped part of the Church Hall and up to the Keyhole passage, leaving the rest aside as they realised that mapping such a complex cave would not be easy. Although the cave had long been known among speleologists and cavers, it had never been fully explored or completely mapped. This is likely due to its labyrinth-like structure, which makes surveying extremely difficult.

The exploration is the result of cooperation between young, promising, and professionally trained cavers from Styrian caving clubs.

Although the team initially had limited experience in mapping such demanding caves, they approached the project as a challenge. It was known that additional passages existed beyond the previously mapped parts, but they did not expect such an extensive and complex underground system. In 2017, we dedicated the year to the Veternica project, which included ten exploration and surveying missions. During this time, the cave was thoroughly examined, new and previously unknown sections were discovered, and a precise and detailed map was created. Surveying proved challenging due to the complex structure: numerous looping passages crossing multiple levels had to be connected. The result of highly systematic and accurate work is a clear cave plan showing 620 metres of passages, compared to only 92 metres previously recorded.

The Veternica project serves as a basis for further exploration of caves and shafts in this area. Possible connections with Škadavnica Cave and the Abyss of Surprises are also expected.

Future plans include searching for connections between passages and possible surface entrances (karst vents). Further exploration of potential continuations is planned. There is also a wish for a cave diver to explore the siphon in the Soteska section, as it is believed that it separates Veternica Cave from Podgrajska Cave.