Mountain River Cave, Vietnam
There’s really only one way down to the entrance of one of the largest caves in the world. And it involves you, a rope, and an 80-meter drop. Aſt er hiking through the forest for 36 hours, you can hardly say no. T is is the cave that you came to explore. You’re in Vietnam, about to enter Hang
Son Doong, or “mountain river cave.” T ere are at least 150 caverns here. Inside is a large, fast-fl owing river. T is cave system has its own lake and even a hidden jungle! T ough first explored in 2009, the
cave was formed millions of years ago. T at’s when river water began fl owing into cracks in the limestone. Over time, the water eroded a giant tunnel beneath the mountains above it.
You feel very small as you stumble
along. T e sound of the river echoes off the cave walls. Ahead, you see light. In places where the limestone was weak, the ceiling collapsed, creating skylights in the cave. Now it feels as if you are in an open
forest. Sunlight shines down. Dark, leafy plants surround you. Fast-fl ying birds swoop down, then soar upward. To cover the length of this cave, you’ll
need to walk for more than 5 kilometers. You’ll see some of the world’s tallest stalagmites. You’ll see cave pearls, too. T ese lumps of calcium salts are usually marble-size. Here, they are the size of baseballs. Much of this cave has yet to be explored. What secrets lie ahead?
cave: a naturally formed opening in Earth’s surface that is usually big enough for a person to enter
glacier: a huge mass of ice that moves slowly over land
limestone: a kind of rock that is formed over time mainly from layers of tiny sea animals and plants
sinkhole: a depression or hole in the ground caused by the collapse of rock on or near Earth’s surface
stalactite: a cave formation that hangs down from the cave ceiling
stalagmite: a cave formation that builds up from a cave fl oor
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