Dent de Crolles
Encyclopedia
The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain (2,062m) of the Chartreuse Mountains
range, 17 km north east from Grenoble
, Isère
(France). It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile which is well-known sight of the Isère Valley (Grésivaudan) seen from the Grenoble
area. It is named from the town of Crolles
just below .
systems in Europe. It is considered to be one of the birth places of modern caving
. Its first detailed exploration was during WWII by a small team of French cavers composed of Pierre Chevalier
, Fernand Petzl
, Charles Petit-Didier and others. Their explorations saw it become the deepest cave in the world (-658m) at the time, and it still ranks sixth deepest in France today. The lack of available equipment during the war forced Pierre Chevalier and the rest of the team to develop their own equipment, leading to technical innovation. The first use of the single rope technique with prusik and mechanical rope-ascenders (Henri Brenot's "monkeys", first used by Chevalier and Brenot in a cave in 1934) can be directly associated with the exploration of the Dent de Crolles cave system.
Since 1946, the cave has undergone an intense and continuous survey. As of 2007, it has 9 separate entrances (3 potholes on the top karstic plateau, 5 horizontal caves and one cliff entrance). It is known to include more than 58 km of labyrinthic passageways. The two major entrances are the "trou-du-Glaz" and the "Guiers-Mort" cave. The cave system is famous today for the various through trips that the numerous entrances allow.
Chartreuse Mountains
The Chartreuse Mountains is a mountain range in eastern France, stretching to the north from the city of Grenoble to the Lac du Bourget. It is the southernmost range in the Jura Mountains and belongs to the French Prealps....
range, 17 km north east from Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
, Isère
Isère
Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné...
(France). It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile which is well-known sight of the Isère Valley (Grésivaudan) seen from the Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
area. It is named from the town of Crolles
Crolles
Crolles is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France. It is located in the Isère valley, 20 km north-east of Grenoble, upstream on the Isère River...
just below .
Cave system
The Dent de Crolles hosts one of the most complex and vast caveCave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
systems in Europe. It is considered to be one of the birth places of modern caving
Caving
Caving—also occasionally known as spelunking in the United States and potholing in the United Kingdom—is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems...
. Its first detailed exploration was during WWII by a small team of French cavers composed of Pierre Chevalier
Pierre Chevalier
Pierre Chevalier was a well-known caver and mountaineer from France, with many alpine ascents and cave explorations to his credit. Chevalier is principally known for the exploration of the Dent de Crolles cave system over a twelve-year period , which became the deepest cave in the world...
, Fernand Petzl
Fernand Petzl
Fernand Petzl was a caver and manufacturer of outdoor equipment under the brand name Petzl.Petzl lived most of his life in the village of Saint-Ismier , France at the foot of the mountain Dent De Crolles. He first went caving in Trou du Glaz in 1933, and was immediately captivated by the idea of...
, Charles Petit-Didier and others. Their explorations saw it become the deepest cave in the world (-658m) at the time, and it still ranks sixth deepest in France today. The lack of available equipment during the war forced Pierre Chevalier and the rest of the team to develop their own equipment, leading to technical innovation. The first use of the single rope technique with prusik and mechanical rope-ascenders (Henri Brenot's "monkeys", first used by Chevalier and Brenot in a cave in 1934) can be directly associated with the exploration of the Dent de Crolles cave system.
Since 1946, the cave has undergone an intense and continuous survey. As of 2007, it has 9 separate entrances (3 potholes on the top karstic plateau, 5 horizontal caves and one cliff entrance). It is known to include more than 58 km of labyrinthic passageways. The two major entrances are the "trou-du-Glaz" and the "Guiers-Mort" cave. The cave system is famous today for the various through trips that the numerous entrances allow.