Uaigh na gCat at Rath Croghan, Co.Roscommon

I first visited this cave about 15 years ago, but was ill equipped. Having done a lot of caving in Fermanagh and Clare recently I decided to return. In ancient times it was considered an entrance to the underworld of the Sí - the fairy people. While it is a natural structure, it seems to have been modified in ancient times and reinforced with slabs of limestone. This includes an ogham stone that was placed into the roof. Of itself the stone has nothing to do with the cave (it is actually a grave marker that was moved here) though it certainly adds some mystery. The cave is about 20 metres deep and 50 metres long. Quite a simple passage - wet and with a large chamber. When I was there I saw the remains of some candles and crow feathers stuck into the walls. Looks like some crusty folk were perhaps conducting secret rituals down below.

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[itsallrandommostly]

I was there on saturday. It really goes down deep. Was great fun crawling down there.