Located near the small Russian town of Orda, 100 miles east of the city of Perm, Ordinskaya Cave is an extensive gypsum cave system with very brittle rock and no flow inside. The longest of Russia’s underwater caves at 3.5 kilometers, and 42 degrees Fahrenheit inside, the cavern is reached via a series of 177 steps. With passageways and rooms that are both enormous and mysterious, it is easy to understand why this cave system offers one of the world’s best cave dives.
Diving the Cave
Located right on the Kunger River, and accessed via a small, rutted dirt road, the entrance to the cave is accessed via wooden stairs that make the descent down the grassy slope toward the river somewhat easier. A platform at the entrance provides an excellent view of the river and the spring that feeds the cave. After taking a final look at the blue and green landscape above, you’ll follow a series of ladders and steps into the yawning mouth of the cave, and you’ll instantly feel the temperature drop. Once inside, you’ll find a diving platform and staging area in good repair, sitting atop a mound of boulders that seem to dwarf the pool of water below. A short series of stairs leads right into the ice-cold pool.
With its main passages being twenty feet in diameter, and very little silt, Ordinskaya Cave boasts exceptional visibility. Some of the rooms inside are more than forty feet from ceiling to floor and over one hundred fifty feet wide. Enormous boulders the size of cars and buses sit on the floor, having sheared off from the ceiling. Local divers who frequent the cave watch for signs of future breakdown, and can point out which of these boulders are the newest additions as boulders fall annually.t one time, a five ton boulder fell directly onto a guideline belonging to a group of divers, forcing them to find another way out of the cave.
Maximum depth inside the caves does not exceed twenty meters, so there is no need for decompression. Be sure to review the cave map prior to entry – even though guidelines have been added over time, there are so many of them that it can be confusing to navigate. There is no known life inside the cave, and while the water is fresh, it is heavily laden with gypsum salts so your gear will be covered in a fine mineral layer when you exit.
A dive here can take up to two hours to complete, and while there are air bells in the ceiling, where you can surface for a look around, do not breathe the air – stay on your regulator.
In order to dive Ordinskaya Cave, you will need to be comfortable in cold water and capable of diving in a dry suit and dry gloves. In addition, you will need to be a certified cave diver unless you plan to take cave diving courses when you visit – if at all possible, become certified prior to your trip to increase your confidence and enjoyment of this magnificent cave. The site is in a remote location; however local accommodations are warm and friendly. Plan in advance by getting a travel visa and deciding how you’ll make this trip. It is 25 hours from Moscow by car, but it is possible to fly to Perm, and drive to Orda from there. What is certain to be one of the most incredible dives you’ll ever take is well worth the effort!