Description:
Stopića Cave is protected as a natural monument.
Stopića Cave is located on the northeastern side of Zlatibor, 30 km away from the town of Užice, 250 km away from Belgrade and 19 km away from the main-road route Belgrade-Podgorica. The road Užice-Sirogojno passes above the cave itself.
Stopića Cave is a fluvial cave, since Trnavski Spring flows through it. It consists of the three speleological and hydrological horizons: the periodically flooded, the fluvial horizon and the youngest – fraction horizon. The youngest horizon excluded, Stopića Cave is 1691.5 m long, and covers the space of 7,911.5 m2, and its volume exceeds 120,000 m2. The entrance to the cave is at 711 m above sea level. The limestone layer in the cave dates back in the Triassic period and the over 100 m thick. The entrance to the cave is impressive: 30-40 m high and 18 m wide. The climate in the cave is influenced by the external climate: in the winter, it is cold; in the summer, it is warm. The water of Trnavski Spring also contributes to the cave’s microclimate.
The cave consists of the five wholes: “The Light Hall”, “The Dark Hall”, “The Big Hall with Tubs”, “The Channel with Tubs” and “The River Channel”. The part of the cave intended for tourists is not rich in cave ornaments, but has several attractive elements, such as: the spacious entrance, the openings on the ceiling (dugure), the rock creep cone “The Dogs’ Graveyard”, the waterfall “The Spring of Life” and, first of all, a series of tufa tubs categorized as the biggest and the deepest (over 7 meters) of all other caves in Serbia. The tubs are periodically flooded, and some of them have transformed into lakes.