0394 Collada, Cueva de
La Gatuna 30T 449920 4799053 Altitude 183m Length 940m Depth 50m

Updated 9th November 2003; 24th April, 9th October, 5th, 28th November, 18th December 2005; 15th May 2006; 27th October 2007; 4th, 5th May, 1st July, 24th October 2009; 6th January, 27th May, 5th October 2011

The entrance is in one of the largest, bramble-filled depressions at the head of the La Gatuna bowl. The cave was first explored in 1982 and took on a new significance with the finds in the Sumidero de Cobabdal in 2005 and Torca la Vaca in 2009. The entrance was eventually refound in 2005, some 140m from its 1982 map. New bolts have been fixed near the head of the first pitch.

From the entrance, a stooping, vadose stream passage passes a small chamber on the left and degenerates to a flat out crawl where a thin coal seam can be seen in the left hand wall. A small sit-up chamber is reached where apparently modern pottery has been found, and then a squeeze through to a bolt on the left hand wall and a crawl through a revolting mud-floored pool to the head of the pitch. Immediately below is a 2m drop to a very tight slot but the tight take-off to the pitch is over on the right. (It may be that the 1982 position for the pitch-head bolt is on the pitch side of the pool, and this would make it easier to rig a double line).

At the base of the roomy 10m drop is a meandering rift that leads to the tight head of the second pitch after 15m.

At the bottom, the vadose continuation was explored for about 30m in 1982 with some awkward contortions in a sinuous rift. This passage continued with "excellent potential - the nearest surface water would seem to be over a kilometre away."
What draws the attention immediately at the base of the second pitch is a superb tunnel, about 7m high and 2m wide heading into the hill. This eventually splits into numerous passages, all of which soon choke. The main route enters a 7m high boulder-floored chamber where a continuation on the opposite wall ends at a draughting boulder choke with no immediate prospects. These passages were re-investigated over Easter 2006.

In November 2005, the awkward contortions were pushed to an enlargement after 40m and a short climb down into a streamway, about 1m wide and 12m high. This was followed down to an undescended "12m pitch". Upstream, heading south,  has been surveyed for about 80m to where the passage is blocked by a boulder run-in. There are avens off to one side and there may be a passage about 6m up in one of them. It seems likely that the upstream passage is fed by the large, vegetated shakehole to the west of the entrance depression.
A subsequent push at Easter 2006 found the unexplored pitch to be 20m. The stream at the base disappears into a low bedding under the right hand wall - "this is not a good digging prospect". A step from the second ledge of the pitch gives access to a wide shelf on the left and a blind cross rift. A passage can be seen at the top of the opposite wall, but the climb is a bit too exposed for one person with no protection. The only other possible lead left in the cave is the aven off the side of the stream passage with a possible passage about 6m up.

At Easter 2009, a hole over the top of the p20 was reached and large chaotic chambers entered with 407m surveyed. A draughting passage can be gained by traversing high up in the rift above the p20. Several cracked mud floors are passed before a hole up through jammed boulders leads to a 5m wide chamber, White Russian, which is well-decorated.
To the north, a passage leads to a large sandy chamber, Sex On The Beach, with a floor of white crystals. North from here leads to a choke; an arch to the west leads to a large pool with no continuation; to the east a sandy crawl (unsurveyed, est. 75m) eventually leads to an 8m aven with no obvious way on at the top. Halfway between the two large chambers a rift passage to the east intersects an aven after approximately 8m.
The main way south-east from White Russian soon chokes. Instead, a way through can be found by entering a small passage on the left immediately at the top of the boulder climb. This leads to the edge of a 4m drop down into a 7m high chamber, On The Rocks, which can be descended via a traverse round the the right followed by a climb down a slope. To the west here is a passage leading to a 7m climb down to the top of the terminal chamber (see below). The main way through On The Rocks heads south over collapsed boulders and passes a cracked mud floor directly below a set of anastomoses in the roof. At the end of the chamber a climb up over flowstone leads through a boulder ruckle (care!) into a 15m aven. A muddy passage to the east here gains a window overlooking a large chamber. In the summer, 2009, this turned out to link back to
Back at the southern end of On The Rocks, a passage to the west reaches a large boulder choke entering high-up on the left. A route up between the boulders was followed for several metres. This area draughts strongly and is directly beneath a large surface depression. A stream emanating from the base of the choke can be followed down a series of cascades to a blind pebble-floored chamber (approx. 5m diameter) where it sinks into the floor. There are several possible digs in this area. Just before the final 3m climb down into the chamber is a side-passage on the right that connects back to On The Rocks via the 7m climb described earlier.
Part way along the tight passage below the p5, excavation on the right entered a " nice flat out continuation". This entered a chamber with a route to a draughting dig and a tight spiral up on the east side. The total length of this extension is 55m.

As water has been tested to flow from the Sumidero de Cobadal to Fuente Aguanaz, it seems likely that this cave could drain westwards in a similar fashion. The 2009 discovery of eastward-heading inlet passage in Torca la Vaca gives some credence to this.

A diagram of the hydrology of the San Antonio - Hornedo - Cobadal area drawn after Easter 2011 can be found here.

Dowsing was carried out in La Gatuna on 24/7/11 when various reactions were seen south of Cueva del Nabo and up to Cueva de Collada. See links below.

References: anon., 1982 (logbook); Corrin J, 1983c (survey); material in file; anon., 2005b (Easter & summer logbook); anon., 2005c (autumn logbook); Corrin Juan, 2006a; anon., 2006b (Easter logbook); Corrin Juan, 2007 (survey); Corrin Juan and Smith Peter, 2007; anon., 2009a (Easter logbook); anon., 2009b (Whit logbook); anon., 2009c (summer logbook); Corrin Juan, 2010 (survey); anon., 2011d (summer logbook)
Entrance picture : depression
Underground picture(s): entrance passage  top of first pitch
Video: entrance   1st crawl 1  2  entrance passage 1  2   15Mb wmv top of first pitch to entrance
Detailed Survey : from 1982: low res  high res   from 2005: pdf file   from 2006: pdf file   from 2009: Easter summer
Line Survey :
On area survey : Dowsing reactions close to this cave : Dowsing reactions in La Gatuna (Article about the dowsing carried out in July 2011 can be found here.)
Survex file : yes (summer 2009)
Passage direction rose diagram (Patrick Warren): yes