The entire Matese massif is a treasure chest of thousands of secrets for a speleologist. Being a karst formation mountain, it can hide really pleasant surprises and this is a coincidence. Cul di Bove is a cave 913 meters deep , with a spatial development of 3,900 meters and the entrance is located at an altitude of 1360m asl . Not far from the deepest abyss of the Matese (Pozzo della Neve), this cave is active and always accessible but very dangerous in case of heavy rains. Technically it is even more demanding to explore than Pozzo della Neve, in short, a cave that makes you dream for its large rooms, but which makes you sweat. The proximity between Cul di Bove and Pozzo della Neve is such that even today people are looking for a communicating tunnel. In 2014 speleo groups from the Matese area continued their exploration of the abyss, discovering new significant features that definitely proved that the cave is not finished yet. Cul di Bove remains a great Italian abyss, one of those caves that leave you enraptured between large spaces and a multitude of underground lakes.
THE HISTORY OF THE "CUL DI BOVE" CAVE
The cave, known for over twenty years, closed, until some time ago, at the modest depth of 45 meters on a crack a few centimeters wide. A couple of madmen, one day in June 1989, decide, heartened by the strong current of air, that that fissure should be attempted; so after a long work they "widen" it. Then begins a race, the finish line of which is placed at the bottom of the abyss, during which various caving groups explore what turns out to be a very technical abyss. In conclusion, in a few months the bottom is reached on a siphon located at -906 m . Finally, in 1991, a cave diver plunges into the terminal siphon which, however, seven meters below, becomes impassable. The abyss opens in the locality of Piscina Cul di Bove , just above the road level, 500 m before the high entrance to Pozzo della Neve. Unlike the latter, Cul di Bove is an active and accessible system all year round, but dangerous in case of heavy rains. Technically the cave is decidedly more demanding and selective.