Maciço Calcário Estremenho
Almonda Norte (Vale da Serra)
Info · exploration
Closed: access through the pit in Vale da Serra only with permission, which is not given at the moment; only exploration teams dive here.
- Max depth197.5 m
- CertificationFull cave
- SpecialExperienced divers
Diving and fills
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Now at Almonda Norte (Vale da Serra)
The dive
Almonda Norte is the second entrance of the Gruta do Almonda, further north inside the cave than the spring. A dry pit leads into a cave 90 m deep, followed by 800 m of muddy tunnels before you reach the water.
Part of Gruta do Almonda. Also in this system: Nascente do Almonda (Torres Novas)
Profile and sections
Almonda Norte is the second entrance of the Gruta do Almonda, further north inside the cave than the spring. A dry pit leads into a cave 90 m deep, followed by 800 m of muddy tunnels before you reach the water.
From here AESDA's exploration divers reached -197.5 m in 2024, a dive in two parts with a stretch on foot between two sumps. Together with the descent that makes the Gruta do Almonda 285 m deep. AESDA described the underwater dynamics and the exploration in the Eurokarst 2026 proceedings and in its magazine Trogle 9, which also goes online from January 2027.
Practical: exploration teams with permission only; access is currently closed.
- Depth and profile
- An exploration dive reached -197.5 m in 2024: first a sump that ends dry, then on foot to a second sump. With the almost 90 m of descent added the cave is 285 m deep, according to AESDA the deepest in Portugal.
- Configuration
- Not published; all gear is carried through 90 m of dry cave and 800 m of muddy tunnels.
Who can dive where
- At least Full cave
- Configurations: Backmount / twinset / Sidemount / CCR / Small cylinders / no-mount (speleo sumps)
- Configuration unknown — research beforehand
- Goes down to 197.5 m (trimix or deco may be needed)
- Experienced divers only
This is how the planner decides who in your team may dive this cave. Rules your own trip adds (organizer, a mail, the AI) show with your trip.
How to get there
Through a dry, artificial pit in Vale da Serra. Permission is needed, and access is currently closed. From there you descend 90 m through a dry cave and go through 800 m of muddy tunnels to the water (AESDA, Nov 2026).
Around Almonda Norte (Vale da Serra)
FillsNo fill station known nearby
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