Expedition Bjurälven - exploring the caves of Sweden

In the northern Swedish mountains of Jämtland, the exploration of a cave system that is believed to be the longest underwater cave discovered in the Three Crowns country has been underway for seven years. Despite the difficult terrain and capriciously harsh weather, the participants of Expedition Bjurälven keep pushing forward year after year.

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We first mentioned this unusual place on the occasion of the film’s teaser, which we found online. Those of you who have been with us for a long time, or like to snoop through archival materials, surely had the opportunity to familiarise yourself with the contents of the news item The Invisible River – preview. The footage, which you will find there, will surely freeze your blood in your veins, and in the more sensitive ones it will cause the first signs of claustrophobia.

For the Swedish speleologists and cave divers taking part in the project, reaching the flooded cave located in the north-western part of the Jämtland range is a real feat. Everything is made possible by snowmobiles, as there are no roads or human settlements nearby.

During this year’s expedition, the team of researchers encountered a new obstacle. Diving into another flooded chamber (#2), discovered last year and located at the end of a 100m long dry passage. In 2013, the largest cave chamber in Sweden, Regnsalen (Rain Chamber), was also discovered on the way to flooded chamber 2.

Further exploration of new parts is possible only after proper preparation, consisting of reconnaissance dives and those during which equipment and gas deposits are set up. It must be remembered that the area is virgin and may carry many dangers, so it is very important to prepare everything with the utmost care.

Two days were planned for the exploration of the chamber and what lay beyond. During the first day the divers crossed the flooded chamber and after about 40m of water-filled passage they found themselves in another dry chamber. After exploring this part as well, which was estimated to be 100m long, the exploration group returned to the rest of the team, waiting in Regnalen.

During the second day, the group’s equipment was augmented with sophisticated and precise measuring equipment, allowing them to map the cave interior and relate the data obtained to GPS positions on the surface.

Another flooded chamber – no. 3 – was also investigated. The result was a sizable tunnel extending in two directions – up and down. While it may not look spectacular from the side, according to the project website, such a situation was a dream and had been awaited since the first expedition in 2008. A total of 1300m of terrain was explored and mapped.

It is also worth noting that among the many people and companies providing support to the team conducting the arduous process of surveying and mapping the cave, there is the Polish diving equipment manufacturer No Gravity.

This year’s expedition included:

Johan Utas, Markus Nord, Stefan Barth, David Thor, Petter Johanson, Micke Tilja, Per Sandberg, Dmitri Gorski, Oscar Svensson, Andreas Johansson, Amanda Lindberg, Alexandra Åkerholm, John Bohman, Bo Lenander, Mats Fröjdenlund, Kristian Lyberg, Leif Sigvardsson, Marcus Palmqvist,

Source: bjuralven.wordpress.com