In 19... JCC member and keen mountain walker, Colin Bagnall went on several caving expeditions in the Eye of the Montgó. Here is his account from the Javea Civic Society Bulletin with Colin's kind permission.
"La Cova del Montgo is the only cave on the Montgo which I know about but had not been in. As with the Cova del Migdia, which I reported on earlier this year, I had tried previously to gain access and failed. That time I went in, sliding on my back to the end of an 80 foot rope and beyond. I missed the side turning and I came out very filthy and proved to my waiting friends how wise they were in staying holding the end of the rope.
For those not familiar with La Cova del Montgo it is the cave that represents "the eye" in the head of an elephant. The elephant's head is the imaginative view of Montgo mountain as seen from the south. It faces out eastwards to the sea, the trunk extending to San Antonio lighthouse. In the Soler Blasco museum are displayed many prehistoric artefacts and in Alicante museum there is a beautiful polished, 1000 year old stone axe, all from the Cova de Montgo [belonging to African tourists, one assumes]. There is also a plan of the eye opening and cave and interior. John Braithwaite, the intrepid climber of the first exploration, Martin Bryant and I, with rope torch and plan attempted to enter. At the back of the cave, the slope dives down into thick fine dust. There are 2 entrance holes and the right hand one is recommended. My companions lost enthusiasm so I went in alone and was relieved to wriggle out after getting stuck and filling my lungs with dust.
The opportunity to go in with the guides from the tourist office came a year later. I grabbed it. On a Sunday morning in July, 30 of us set off from the Campo de Tiro at 8:00 a.m. One hour later it was bocadillos outside the cave and then the carbide lamps were lit. Water on the carbide gave the gas for a brilliant flame atop the safety helmets. The forewarned wore boiler suits and those brave enough to enter were given battery operated forehead lamps. A bit like the Lord of the Rings, at the entrance was a plague of mosquitoes, landing all over the skin. No bites resulted but some turned back here. What faced us was a little black hole that dived away inwards. Most went headfirst, I managed on my back but felt geriatric and arthritic. It got steeper and more slippery. Holding on to a prefixed rope we dropped to the main cave floor. Seven men and one woman made it.
An awaiting candle was lit on the top of a stalagmite. Not especially big, the cave is unspoilt, with stalagmite/stalactite columns and "waterfall" formations of rock on the walls. In an alcove is a 10 inch high carved virgin by the local artist/sculptor, Soler Blasco [in 1970] The escape was up another slippery slope without a rope. How slippery was emphasised when a pair of size 10 Reeboks swished a few millimetres in front of my face as the person in front lost footing and grip and stopped just short of me. Stirred and shaken, I staggered out into the light, quite thrilled with the experience. From there it was all downhill. I can recommend it for people with some fitness and agility. No the mountain doesn't creak when you're inside, but it does sound chilling when some joker hides and makes animal noises. Inside the cave we were a long way from the modern tourist but, strangely, not far from the first tourist to Jávea 100,000 years ago. Think about that when you next look at "the eye". "