Introduction
The 16th European Cave Rescue Meeting is going to take place in Mira de Aire, Municipality of Porto de Mós, Maciço Calcário Estremenho, Portugal from October 12th till 15th 2023.
Pre-Meeting from October 11th till 12th 2023.
This meeting is organized by the Portuguese Federation of Speleology – APD (FPE) on behalf of the European Cave Rescue Association (ECRA).
This meeting will take place under the auspices of the Municipality of Porto de Mós (CMPM), Union Internationale de Spéléologie and European Speleological Federation.
The focus will be on the interaction of different disciplines in cave rescue and changing the doctrine and philosophy of cave rescue by striving to use as little material as possible.
The program will offer workshops on technical topics, passage widening, a diving exercise and medical aspects.
During the Pre-Meeting you can enjoy caving and cave diving; we are preparing interesting locations.
More information will be available soon. Please also visit our website www.caverescue.eu for last minute changes or send us an email on info@caverescue.eu in case of any question.
Please note the date for ECRA meeting in your diary!
We look forward to meeting you in the Portuguese Karst.
The Organizing Committee
Table of Contents
Time frame
PROGRAM
YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS
MAIN TOPICS
Technical workshop
Theory/Practical
Role game (Simulation of Joint efforts during Cave rescue operation).
Practical
Communication systems, Stretchers management, Testing of maneuvers with dynamometers.
Giuseppe CONTI, Chairperson of the Technical Commission
e-mail: technical-commission@caverescue.eu
Medical workshop
Theory
The programme is closely coordinated by the chair with the participants.
Practical
Denes Akos NAGY, Chairperson of the Medical Commission
e-mail: medical-commission@caverescue.eu
Katrin HABEGGER, Vice Chairperson of the Medical Commission
e-mail: medical-commission@caverescue.eu
Cave diving exercise
Theory
Experiences exchange etc.
Practical
Cave diving rescue exercise – exercise with stretchers.
Robert ANZIC, Chairperson of the Cave-diving Commission
e-mail: cavediving-commission@caverescue.eu
Passage enlargement workshop
Theory
Earthquake management, Enlarging narrow passages in ruins.
Practical
Demonstration of passage enlargement.
Werner ZAGLER, Chairperson of the Passage Enlargement Commission
e-mail: pec@caverescue.eu
General Assembly
Agenda will be distributed latest on 12th August 2023.
PRESENTATIONS
All presentations and documents should be written in English language.
Members / participants have opportunity to present important achievements in cave rescue and cave rescue operations.
- Please Note: We especially encourage newcomers in ECRA to present their service, structure, and operational history.
- Time for each presentation will be max. 15 min. In a case a presenter needs more time since he wants to present very important topic, the organizer can decide and allow more time.
- For the smooth running of the meeting, we kindly ask that you send us a short summary and your presentations till 23rd September.
The email for sending your presentations is info@caverescue.eu.
VENUE
Mira de Aire (Porto de Mós), Maciço Calcário Estremenho, Portugal
Google Maps
The Municipality of Porto de Mós, endowed with enormous tourist potential, is home to diversified natural beauty, in the heart of the Serras de Aire e Candeeiros Natural Park (PNSAC).
From the historical heritage (highlighting its castle) to the Campo Militar de S. Jorge and Calçada Romana do Alqueidão da Serra, among other points of interest, together with the good local gastronomy, make Porto de Mós a worthwhile destination for a visit.
Mira de Aire is a village crossed by the Serras de Aire and Candeeiros Natural Park (PNSAC), where the most spectacular natural cave in Portugal is the Gruta de Mira de Aire (Mira de Aire Cave), also known as Gruta de Moinhos Velhos(Old Windmills Cave). The Mira de Aire Cave along with the Caves of Pena and Contenda are part of a great system of galleries over 11 km long.
Mira de Aire is also known for having an extremely rich in natural heritage. In addition to being inserted in the PNSAC and being the “home” of the Caves of Mira de Aire, the Mira-Minde’s polje has several water springs that “burst” in winter, flooding part of the polje. During rainy winters the water of this system join the water of the Olho de Mira and Regatinho springs, flooding the great closed depression (Mira-Minde’s Polje) existing between the villages of Mira de Aire and Minde.
Caves are also a major magnet for tourism. The Mira de Aire Cave, Alvados Cave and Santo António Cave are open to the public with an annual attendance of approximately 400,000 people.
Meeting Location: House of Culture (Casa da Cultura), Mira de Aire
The Opening Session and some activities will take place here during Friday morning.
House of Culture (Casa da Cultura) is one of the most emblematic buildings of the village, built in 2010 with modern features and which houses an extension of the municipal library, an exhibition gallery and an auditorium, that can accommodate up to 200 people.
It also has several technical rooms that can be used for committee meetings; it has space for a bar and an exhibition hall.
URM Football House, Mira de Aire
It is in these facilities that the restaurant, the Speleo Bar, the meeting rooms and the outdoor space for the Camp Site are located. It´s near de Caravan Park and the Sports Pavilion.
Exercise areas
Olho da Pena Escarpment and surroundings
This site is situated at the NE boundary of the Mira-Minde’s polje, which is the largest in the region being 4000m long and 1800m wide. It is a depression with a flat bottom full of temporary springs caused by several streams that are lost in the ground, being considered a unique natural monument, characteristic of the limestone regions, to separate the Planalto de Santo António (Saint António plateau) from Serra de Aire (Serra de Aire mountain range). In winter, the polje fills with water giving rise to a large lake in which forest species and animals develop. In some areas the water reaches a depth of eight meters. The Mira-Minde’s polje is drained on the outskirts of the massif by the springs of the Lena, Alviela and Almonda’s rivers, just to name the most well-known.
This place was modeled by the spring of the subterranean river (who created the Moinhos Velhos Cave (Old Windmills Cave), called Olho da Pena do Poio (vertical and horizontal spring that is dry in summer).
This escarpment is often used for vertical progression training and rescue manoeuvres by cavers.
Quarry of the Windmill Ruins
This abandoned quarry is part of J2b limestones from the Batonian geological period. It will be the site to the exercises of the Passage Enlargement Commission.
Cave Diving sites: Almonda River’s spring and Alviela River’s spring
These two karst springs are the largest in Portugal. The source of the Almonda River drains the São Mamede plateau and the Serra de Aire mountain range, by the east edge, with an average flow in the summer of 30 000 m3/day and 4,5 million m3/day (peak flood) in full winter.
The source of the Alviela drains the Santo António plateau, by the south edge, with an average summer flow of 30 000 m3/day and 1,5 million m3/day (peak flood) in winter.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by constituting a peculiar transition between Mediterranean and Atlantic conditions, being therefore humid, of medium temperatures and with great water deficiency in summer. In this region, the average temperature of the month of October is approximately 20ºC and rain can appear but in a small amount.
PARTICIPATION FEE
The participation fee is EUR 60, payable in cash upon the participant’s check-in.
The participation fee includes accommodation, breakfast, lunch and dinner during the ECRA Meeting.
Drinks are at your own expense.
The participation fee doesn’t include costs for the Pre-Meeting. Upon prior agreement, we can offer free accommodation.
ONLINE REGISTRATION
Registration DEADLINE is September 30th, 2023 (Pre-Meeting & ECRA Meeting).
Please note that online registration is no longer possible after this deadline.
Please also register here for your excursions.
BOOKING OF EXCURSION
Please register for your excursions directly at the online registration for the ECRA meeting. Not possible to register only for excursions, without participating in the meeting.
Later reservations for excursions can only be made by email helpdesk@caverescue.eu (only if you are already registered for the ECRA Meeting).
Registration DEADLINE is September 30th, 2023.
For further details see chapter PRE-MEETING, page 18 of pdf file.
CHECK IN
For more details see “MEETING OFFICE – INFO POINT / CHECK IN”, page 18 of pdf file.
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
The official language of the European Cave Rescue Meeting and Pre-Meeting is English.
Simultaneous translation into other languages will not be available.
MEETING DOCUMENTATION
After the meeting you will get the collected minutes, reports, and presentations.
ARRIVAL
Address:
União Recreativa Mirense (URM Football House, Sports Pavilion, Camp Site and Caravan Park)
Av. Mota Pinto, 2485-004 MIRA DE AIRE, Portugal
Coordinates:
39.542562, -8.703025 (Reference system WGS84)
Travel Options
All variations are possible for arrival: own car, bus, train or plane.
Lisbon Airport (LIS):
International airport about 110 km away from Mira de Aire centre.
Oporto Airport (OPO):
International airport about 220 km away from Mira de Aire centre.
By Bus:
There are regular bus lines from Lisbon and Oporto to the city of Fátima:
By Train:
There are regular train lines from Lisbon (Oriente Station) and Oporto (Campanhã Station) to Entroncamento, the nearest town to Mira de Mire (28 km and 30 min. long).
ACCOMMODATION
Provided by the organizers (included in the participation fee):
Accommodation in a sports pavilion – please bring your own sleeping bag and pads.
Area for own tents is also available – please bring your own campsite equipment.
We will also provide a “caravan park”, near the pavilion – please bring your levellers.
Alternatives: (not included in the participation fee)
Youth Hostel: Pousada de Alvados
Caves Houses (bungalows): Grutas de Mira de Aire
If you are interested, contact Helpdesk as soon as possible. Our advance booking is valid until July 31th, 2023 We cannot guarantee this accommodation after this date. Accommodation capacity is limited.
MEAL AND DRINKS
Participants will eat in the restaurant directly in the facilities where the meeting will take place (URM).
Also “Speleo Bar” will be available during afternoon and evening.
LETTER OF INVITATION
If needed, the participants can request a Letter of Invitation by e-mail to helpdesk@caverescue.eu.
SECURITY WARNINGS
No specific warnings for the Portuguese Republic. Public safety in Portugal is very high.
HEALTH
We recommend the participants to bring the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC).
VISA
No visa is required from citizens of the European countries.
See details on visa requirements on web site Travelling to Portugal – ePortugal.gov.pt
Please consult the Portuguese Embassy in your country if in doubt.
CURRENCY
EURO – €
Money withdrawal from ATM is possible:
- Santander Bank at Mira de Aire Centre – 1,2 km (4 min by car or 16 min walk)
- House of Culture of Mira de Aire – 1,6 km (5 min by car or 22 min walk)
- Supermarket Pingo Doce at Minde – 3,2 km (5 min by car or 38 min walk)
- Supermarket Intermarché at Minde – 3,4 km (6 min by car or 45 min walk)
POWER SUPPLY AND POWER PLUGS
For more details see – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_electricity_by_country
WI-FI
We are currently working towards being able to offer free Internet. Now, it is only possible to access WEB by paid local services, except at House of Culture and URM where it’s free.
PICKUP SERVICE
We will provide transfer to the meeting location from:
Entroncamento train station – 30 min
Fátima bus station – 25 min
Contact the helpdesk for pickup.
If a pickup service is needed, please book when registering for the meeting. Add additional information – date and time of arrival, date and time of departure, flight number, bus / train connection number, I travel together with …, any extra requirement.
HELP DESK
If you have any questions, please contact the Helpdesk.
Help Desk: helpdesk@caverescue.eu
Manuel SOARES +351 961 697 685, support_16ecrameeting@fpe-espeleo.org
Marco DIAS +351 914 959 053, support_16ecrameeting@fpe-espeleo.org (excursions info)
Paulo RODRIGUES +351 919 146 500, support_16ecrameeting@fpe-espeleo.org
MEETING OFFICE – INFO POINT / CHECK IN
During the Pre-Meeting and Meeting
It will be in the entrance of the Sports Pavilion (Pavilhão Desportivo)
Av. Mota Pinto, 2485-004 Porto de Mós
Opening Hours:
Tuesday: 18:00 – 22:00 Pre-Meeting – Check in
Wednesday: 08:00 – 10:00 Pre-Meeting – Excursion check in
Thursday: 08:00 – 10:00 Pre-Meeting – Excursion check in
Thursday: 18:00 – 22:00 ECRA Meeting – Check in
Friday: 07:30 – 16:30 (1) ECRA Meeting – Check in
17:00 – 22:00
Saturday: 07:30 – 20:00 ECRA Meeting
Sunday: 07:30 – 12:00 ECRA Meeting
(1) During de Meeting (EXCEPTIONALLY Friday morning)
At the entrance hall of the House of Culture (Casa da Cultura).
R. Gen. Humberto Delgado 480, 2485-130 Mira de Aire
Opening Hours:
Friday: 08:30 – 16:30 ECRA Meeting – Check in
CITY MAP
EXERCISES
Usually, no special equipment is needed for the exercise during the meeting. Required equipment for excursions will be specified in Pre-Meeting section.
PRE-MEETING
Time Schedule
General Information
Arrival
See ‘ARRIVAL’, page 11 of pdf file
Pickup Service
See ‘PICKUP SERVICE‘, page 16 of pdf file
Accommodation
Same as for the main event – see Accommodation (camping, pavilion, toilets, washroom, shower) or Alternative Accommodation (not included in the participation fee)
Food / Drink
At participants own expense
Costs
See at the events below
Included
Tent place, caravan park and pavilion
Not Included
Transport for excursions
Costs of the visits and expositions
Food and Drinks
Alternative Accommodation
Later reservations for excursions can only be made by email: helpdesk@caverescue.eu (only if you are already registered for the ECRA Meeting).
Registration DEADLINE is September 30th, 2023.
Check-in for Excursions at the “Info Point” is required no later than 15 min. before “Departure Time”.
For more questions send an e-mail to helpdesk@caverescue.eu
Ex-01 Algar da Arroteia – Vertical Sporty Tour
Tour-Id: Ex-01
Excursion Title: Algar da Arroteia
Date: Wednesday, 11.10.2023
Difficulty: Challenging – suitable for those that are physically active and are fully autonomous on caving progression. Shaft descents.
Duration (total): 8 h
Highlights: Speleothems / crystals / fossils; crawls; rappel descents; standing squeeze
Meeting point: Sports Pavilion – Info Point
Departure Time: 09:00 h
Back at the starting point: 17:00 h
Max. number of participants: 10 people maximum
Price
EUR 25, Included – guide service and collective material
EUR 30, Included – guide service and collective material, transport
Food and drinks
Not included. At your own expense. Water in cave is not not drinkable
Transfer
By own cars / transport provided by organizers.
From Sports Pavilion of Mira de Aire to the parking place – 21 km
From parking place to the cave entrance – 200 m
Payment
At check in before tour, cash only
Registration
Book together with registration for the ECRA meeting
Cave Tour
Walk time to the cave: Approx. 5 min from the parking
Time in cave: 06:00 h
Temperature in cave: 13°C
Denivelation of the cave: -78 m
Equipment needed: Full personal SRT kit required, knees protection, hand gloves
GPS: Reference system WGS84
Parking: 39.561479N, -8.815647E
Entrance of the cave: 39.560718N, -8.818399E
Link to Google Maps
Short description
The “Algar da Arroteia” (Arroteia’s Cave) is a phreatic karst cavity explored for the first time in the 1960’s, with a long history of several exploring attempts and which over the last 8 years, NEL group (Núcleo de Espeleologia de Leiria) has invested in the continuity of exploration, having uncovered new galleries and sectors.
The cave has an entrance shaft measuring 45 meters vertically, preceded by a second shaft measuring 10 meters that gives access to a gallery consolidated by a chaos of blocks, where two passages are visible that reflect the course of the underground river, flowing from right to left.
The cavity tour follows the left route, which, you will enter into a small meander, ending at a junction, where you should take the left continuation – route on the left. This sector leads to the progression through a meander characterized by a long vertical fault, with the use of various techniques of progression – crawling, opposition, light climbing, crossing a handrail, and which leads to a wall called “Trincheira” (Trench), where individual equipment will be needed to ascend and descend past the top. After this passage, the sector extends for another 150 meters of meanders and rooms with chaos of blocks (if it is not submerged at the time) and which ends in a small “Cul-de-sac”, as it is also the end of cave tour and turnaround point.
From Sports Pavilion to the parking place:
From parking to cave entrance:
Cave map:
Ex-02 Excursion PNSAC – Trip Tour
Tour-Id: Ex-02
Excursion Title: Trip Tour around PNSAC
Date: Wednesday, 11.10.2023
Difficulty: Easy
Duration (total): 8 h (walks totally 5,2 km)
Highlights: Karst Landscapes, Algar do Pena Show Cave, Carsoscópio (Karst Museum), Alviela’s Karst Springs and River Beach
Meeting point: Sports Pavilion – Info Point
Departure Time: 09:00 h
Back at the starting point: 17:00 h
Max. number of participants: 16 people maximum
Price
EUR 15, Included – guide service
EUR 20, Included – guide service and transport
Food and drinks
Not included, at your own expense
Costs of visits and expositions
Not included, at your own expense
Transfer
By own cars / transport provided by organizers
Payment
At check in before tour, cash only
Registration
Book together with registration for the ECRA meeting
Short description
Excursion 5 runs through the Natural Park of Serras de Aire e Candeeiros (PNSAC), highlighting some points of interest to be visited. We start by crossing the Alvados’s polje (Fig. 1) to Fórnea Valley (Fig. 2). On the first trekking of the day, we follow the course of a stream until we reach the impressive natural amphitheater. The journey takes about 2 hours.
Then we will visit Algar do Pena Show Cave, the largest known underground room in Portugal. The visit lasts about 2 hours.
Finally, we will go to the Alviela’s karst springs and river beach, with a visit to Carsoscópio (Karst Museum) and trekking along Ribeira dos Amiais, with a total duration of 2h 30m.
The return route allows you to continue to view the PNSAC landscapes.
Ex-03 Algar Improvável – Vertical Sporty Tour
Tour-Id: Ex-03
Excursion Title: Algar Improvável
Date: Thursday, 12.10.2023
Difficulty: Challenging – suitable for those that are physically active and are fully autonomous on caving progression. Shaft descents.
Duration (total): 8 h
Highlights: Speleothems / crystals / fossils; rappel descents, big rooms, narrow passages
Meeting point: Sports Pavilion – Info Point
Departure Time: 09:00 h
Back at the starting point: 17:00 h
Max. number of participants: 10 people maximum
Price
EUR 25, Included – guide service and collective material
EUR 30, Included – guide service and collective material, transport
Food and drinks
Not included. At your own expense. Water in cave is not not drinkable
Transfer
By own cars / transport provided by organizers
From Sports Pavilion of Mira de Aire to the parking place – 12 km
From parking place to the cave entrance – 150 m
Payment
At check in before tour, cash only
Registration
Book together with registration for the ECRA meeting
Cave Tour
Walk time to the cave: Approx. 5 min from the parking
Time in cave: 06:00 h
Temperature in cave: 14/16°C
Denivelation of the cave: -150 m
Equipment needed: Full personal SRT kit required, knees protection, hand gloves
GPS: Reference system WGS84
Parking: 39.527090N, -8.753420E
Entrance of the cave: 39.526600N, -8.752080E
Link to Google Maps
Short description
Algar Improvável (Improbable Cave) was discovered in 2006 by CEAE – Centro de Estudos e Actividades Especiais, in an area much explored over the years by lots of cavers. But a small opening in the ground, little bigger than a human hand, allowed the beginning of an exploration of this cave, that already reached close to -200 meters. Its name results from the low probability of finding a new cave in this area at that time.
The Algar Improvável develops in a predominantly vertical way, with several shafts interconnected by small narrow meanders. At -150 meters, a big room opens up. A narrow difficult passage about 20 meters long leads to the final large room.
Along the descent it is possible to observe several interesting geological features, such as fossils, various types of speleothems and large shafts that cross several layers of limestone interspersed with small layers of more clayey deposits.
From Sports Pavilion to the parking place:
From parking to cave entrance:
Cave map:
Ex-04 Gruta do Almonda Novo – Horizontal Sporty Tour
Tour-Id: Ex-04
Excursion Title: Gruta do Almonda Novo
Date: Thursday, 12.10.2023
Difficulty: Moderate – accessible to all those in good health, who are doing some sport regularly
Duration (total): 8 h
Highlights: Large chambers and galleries, stalactite decorations
Meeting point: Sports Pavilion – Info Point
Departure Time: 09:00 h
Back at the starting point: 17:00 h
Max. number of participants: 10 people maximum
Price
EUR 20, Included – guide service and collective material
EUR 25, Included – guide service and collective material, transport
Food and drinks
Not included. At your own expense. Water in cave is not not drinkable
Transfer
By own cars / transport provided by organizers
From Sports Pavilion of Mira de Aire to the parking place – 12 km
From parking place to the cave entrance – 500 m
Payment
At check in before tour, cash only
Registration
Book together with registration for the ECRA meeting
Cave Tour
Walk time to the cave: Approx. 5 min from the parking
Time in cave: 06:00 h
Temperature in cave: 17°C
Denivelation of the cave: -60 m
Equipment needed: Full personal SRT kit required, knees protection, hand gloves
GPS: Reference system WGS84
Parking: 39.512968N, -8.616040E
Entrance of the cave: 39.511214N, -8.612181E
Link to Google Maps
Short description
The Cave of the Spring of Almonda is the most extensive karst network known in Portugal and develops for more than 15 km, constituting a true sanctuary of Portuguese speleology. It consists of several underground streams that give rise to the source of the Almonda River and that continue to be explored by underground diving.
Currently the Almonda Cave is divided into two sectors, separated by the 100 m long Christmas Siphon. Access to the second sector, called Almonda Novo, is currently possible because a new entrance has been opened, after the exploration of the cave from the transposition of this siphon in the 80s.
In addition to the speleological interest, they are also a reference for the archaeological study of Prehistory, highlighting the existence of several deposits, ranging from the Lower Palaeolithic.
From Sports Pavilion to the parking place:
From parking to cave entrance:
Cave map:
Ex-05 Excursion Trekking to Canada Valley
Tour-Id: Ex-05
Excursion Title: Trekking to Canada Valley
Date: Wednesday, 11 and 12.10.2023
Difficulty: Easy
Duration (total): 8 h (walks totally 10 km)
Highlights: Karst landscapes, original forests
Meeting point: Sports Pavilion – Info Point
Departure Time: 09:00 h
Back at the starting point: 17:00 h
Max. number of participants: 16 people maximum
Price
EUR 15, Included – guide service
EUR 20, Included – guide service and transport
Food and drinks
Not included, at your own expense
Transfer
By own cars / transport provided by organizers
Payment
At check in before tour, cash only
Registration
Book together with registration for the ECRA meeting
Short description
Starting the trek, we have two options:
- One is the easiest path and crosses the olive grove that extends through the Alvados Polje.
- The other path crosses a pocket of the original oak forest, which covered the entire Polje before human occupation. It is a beautiful path of easy to medium difficulty.
Continuing along the path, we observe the beautiful landscapes of the Canada Valley and the Patelo Valley, as we climb to the top of Costa de Alvados. Along the top of the Alvados Coast, we can admire the views over the Polje, until we reach the natural amphitheater of Fórnea.
The return is via the flat area of the polje. Two shortcuts are available to reduce the distance to the end.
CONDITIONS OF PARTICIPATION
To participate in excursions, attendance at the conference is compulsory. Participation in excursions is at the participant’s own risk and responsibility. The excursion leaders provide local knowledge and additional information.
We go into natural caves with possible objective dangers such as falling rocks or the risk of falling. Participants are responsible for their own safety and for the use of the built-in safety devices. Where special skills such as climbing, single rope technique or squeezing through narrow passages are required, this is indicated in the excursion description.
It is the responsibility of the participants to honestly assess whether their physical, technical, health and mental fitness is up to the respective tour.
For all tours except the show caves the personal caving equipment has to be brought by the participants themselves (overall, helmet, lamp, spare lamp, personal safety equipment, cold protection and rescue blanket).
Should difficulties arise during the tour, for whatever reason, the excursion leaders will actively support and accompany those concerned in returning to the cave entrance.
The excursion leaders also reserve the right not to allow persons with inadequate equipment or obviously inadequate knowledge of caving techniques to take part in the tour.
In case of participation in the exercises and excursions, the participant is responsible for his personal equipment, see relevant chapters. He/she is also responsible for adequate insurance.
In case of late booking, we will try to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner on a wide basis. However, we ask for your understanding if this is not possible. Out of fairness to the host, preference will be given to those guests who have made regular bookings.
ORGANISING COMMITTEE, CONTACTS
Local Organizing Committee
e-mail: 16ecrameeting@fpe-espeleo.org
Phone: +351 961 697 685
Manuel SOARES, Head of the Local Organizing Committee
President of Directorate, FPE, Portugal
e-mail: fpe@fpe-espeleo.org
Phone: +351 961 697 685
Sérgio BARBOSA, Member of the Local Organizing Committee
Head of Cave Rescue Working Group, FPE, Portugal
Vítor GANDRA, Member of the Local Organizing Committee
Vice-president of Directorate, FPE, Portugal
Dinko NOVOSEL, President of ECRA
Hrvatska Gorska Služba Spašavanja / HGSS, Croatia
e-mail: president@caverescue.eu
Phone: +385 91 517 94 31
Werner ZAGLER, Vice President of ECRA
Höhlenrettungsverbund Deutschland / HRVD, Germany
e-mail: vice-president@caverescue.eu
Phone: +49 151 750 41 557, +49 89 856 1328 (landline)
Kurt DENNSTEDT, General Secretary of ECRA
Österreichische Höhlenrettung / ÖHR, Austria
e-mail: general-secretary@caverescue.eu
Phone: +43 680 230 00 25
Giuseppe CONTI, Chairperson of the Technical Commission
Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico / CNSAS, Italy
e-mail: technical-commission@caverescue.eu
Denes Akos NAGY, Interim Chairperson of the Medical Commission
Hungarian Cave Rescue Service / HCRS, Hungary
e-mail: medical-commission@caverescue.eu
Katrin HABEGGER, Vice Chairperson of the Medical Commission
Speleo Scours Swiss / SSS, Switzerland
e-mail: katrin_ha@hotmail.com
Robert ANZIC, Chairperson of the Cave-diving Commission
Jamarska Reševalna Služba Slovenije / JRS, Slovenia
e-mail: cavediving-commission@caverescue.eu
Werner ZAGLER, Chairperson of the Passage Enlargement Commission
Höhlenrettungsverbund / HRVD, Germany
e-mail: pec@caverescue.eu
Antoniya VLAYKOVA, Responsible for ECRA web visibility
Cave Rescue Bulgaria / CRB, Bulgaria
SPONSOR
SUPPORTERS
Parish Council of Mira de Aire
URM – União Recreativa Mirense
UIS – Union Internationale de Spéléologie
FSE – Fédération Spéléologique Européenne
PARTNERS
UEPS-GNR – Unidade de Emergência Proteção e Socorro da Guarda Nacional Republicana
FIGURES AND PHOTOS BY
Municipality of Porto de Mós
Grutas de Mira de Aire
Grutas de Alvados
Grutas de Santo António
Fernando Pires
Manuel Soares
Vítor Gandra
André Reis
Marco Dias
Pousadas de Juventude
Google Maps
APPENDIX 1 – Estremaduras’s Karst Massif
Introduction
The Maciço Calcário Estremenho (Estremaduras’s Karst Massif), therefore designate MCE, is one of Portugal ‘s limestone area. It has the largest area, altitude, and largest known endo and exokarst relief forms. Other larger karst areas in Sicó, Alvaiázere, Arrábida and Algarve are also well known and present also good examples of karst relief.
A geological introduction
MCE is located on the so-called Orla Ocidental, sedimentary basins formed during the Upper Triassic. Orla Occidental is in the west of country begins near Aveiro and ends near Setúbal, (Almeida et al, 1995). Orla Ocidental is composed of a thick series of sediments with a variety of facies with ages ranging from Upper Triassic to Recent. These sediments were deposited in an elongated basin with the orientation NNE-SSW, (Almeida et al, 1995). At the heart of this basin, one finds MCE.
MCE is a geomorphologic unit with well-defined limits. It is mostly formed by middle and upper Jurassic limestones. In the west, the Candeeiros mountain emerges abruptly from the platform of Aljubarrota reaching approximately the altitude of 600 m over a length of about 30 km; the southern and eastern slopes contact with terrains of the tertiary Tagus Basin along an extensive fault scarp, Almeida et al, 1995. To the North the limit is not so obvious. The relief of the MCE decreases gradually, changing to a basin (Vila Nova de Ourém basin), (Almeida et al, 1995). Several faults cross MCE mainly with directions NW-SE, NNE-SSW and NE-SW, which are the result of the reactivation of late Hercynian basement, (Almeida et al, 1995).
On the massif one can find three large depressions: Mira-Minde’s polje, Alvado’s polje and Mendiga´s polje. These depressions where open due to fault movements, that raised the Middle Jurassic limestones, that form the elevated areas and brought down the Upper Jurassic limestone and marly limestones, that constitute the depressions, these ones covered here and there by some terrigenous Quaternary sediments. Picture 1 presents a simplified geological map.
A geomorphological introduction
At the MCE besides the above-mentioned poljes one can find abundant examples of exokarst forms as uvalas (e.g Chão das Pias), abundant dolines, several forms of lapiás, and well-marked erosion surfaces. Regarding endokarst one can find along all of massif numerous shaft (vadose shafts), perched caves, fossil caves of phreatic origin, and some phreatic caves who present groundwater flow.
A hydrogeological introduction
According to Almeida et al, 1995, groundwater flow in the MCE can be considered as having a high degree of organisation. This assumption is supported by the fact that its recharge area of about 700 km2 is drained only by 5 perennial springs and a few more temporary springs. Superficial drainage is almost absent. Picture 1 presents the springs location.
The five main springs are located at the limits of the massif at the contact with the less permeable rocks of Tertiary and Cenozoic. Two of them are located at the western margin (Liz and Chiqueda) and three in eastern and southern margin (Almonda, Alviela and Alcobertas).
According to Almeida, et al, 1995, the spring of Olhos de Água do Alviela is the most important of all MCE. Its maximum discharge is over 1 Mm3/day, and the dry season discharge is very seldom below 30 000 m3/day. The mean annual discharge is 120 Mm3/year. The spring used to be one of the most important contributors in water supply to the Lisbon region through an aqueduct 120 km long. Alviela’s spring is located on middle Jurassic limestone “island” outside the MCE morphological limits, this spring connects with the MCE across a sincline fold.
Following in importance the aforementioned spring are the Almonda and Liz springs. The data available do not allow an estimate of the total discharge. By comparison with Alviela the total discharge of Almonda spring could be between 80 and 100 Mm3/year and the Liz between 60 and 70 Mm3/year (Almeida et al, 1995).
References
Carlos Almeida1, Mário L. Silva1 and José A. Crispim, 1995, NATIONAL REPORT FOR PORTUGAL, COST action 65 “Hydrogeological aspects of groundwater protection in karstic areas”, Final report, Dir-General Science, Research and Development, p. 211-220.
Some notes about Minde’s polje
The Minde’s polje is the outmost example of exokarst relief in the MCE. This karst depression is about 4 km by 2 km with a flat bottom withs an average altitude of 200 m. The polje is of tectonic origin, two main faults roughly of NW-SE direction, delimit it’s North and South border. Other faults are also present in the polje and played a role in its origin. The polje bottom is of Upper Jurassic marly limestone. The polje Is surrounded by elevated blocks of Middle Jurassic limestone, the southern block presents a much higher scarp than the north one. The polje has quaternary detritic sediments, some of then called “Pincha de Mide” e “Pincha do Lombeiro. the first formed by crioclasty of the steep scarps and the second one by remobilized and rolled crioclasts by what some believe to have been a permanent lake.
Several temporary springs, all of them associated with important caves are located on the north limit, namely Regatinho, Contenda, Pena and Olho de Mira. The last spring is used for water supply via a drilled well. All these springs are located at or near the Northen fault where the permeable Middle Jurassic contacts with the less permeable Upper Jurassic. These springs drain the Northern São Mamede Plateau. Contenda and Poio caves are a part of Moinhos Velhos-Pena-Contenda cave system. In Moinhos Velhos, Contenda and Olho de Mira, active cave levels are reached.
The springs are dry in the summer, but in the winter discharge in sufficient to give rise to a temporary rivulet, and usually to flood most of the polje, formatting a temporary lake. The water of the rivulet goes into a series of sinkholes, located mostly along the polje central axis, at or near the rivulet course.
APPENDIX 2 – Auspices of the Fédération Spéléologique Européenne
APPENDIX 3 – Auspices of the International Union of Speleology
