Sof Omar Caves
| Sof Omar Cave | |
|---|---|
| Location | Bale Province, Ethiopia |
| Coordinates | 6°54′22.7″N 40°50′41.6″E / 6.906306°N 40.844889°E |
| Length | 15.1 kilometres (9.4 mi) |
| Discovery | 1897 |
Sof Omar Cave is the longest cave in Ethiopia at 15.1 kilometres (9.4 mi) long; sources claim it is the longest system of caves in Africa. It is situated to the east of Robe, in the Bale Zone of the Oromia Region in southeastern Ethiopia, through which the Weyib River (Gestro River) flows. It sinks at the Ayiew Maco entrance and reappears at the Holuca resurgence 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) away. According to tradition Sof Omar was the name of a Muslim holy man who lived in the area and Ayiew the name of his daughter. Maco and Holuca are local names for 'name' and 'cave', respectively. Long a religious centre, it is sacred both to Islam and the local Oromo traditional religion. The caves are known for their many pillars, particularly in the 'Chamber of Columns'.
The explorer Arthur Donaldson Smith recorded his visit to the cave in 1894. An Italian expedition also visited in 1913. In 1934, Henri Breuil conducted archaeological investigations in the area. The Italians almost certainly visited the cave during the Italian occupation of Ethiopia, but apparently none of these early explorers made a through trip from Ayiew Maco to Holuca.
In 1967, Eric Robson, Chris Clapham and Kabir Ahmed explored and surveyed the cave, recording 8 km of passage. Following this the Ethiopian Tourist Board published a brochure about the cave. Although the area was not easily accessible and the organized adventure tourist industry did not yet exist, a few intrepid visitors made the trip to the then remote cave.
In February 1971 Professor Théodore Monod of the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle in France, Bill Morton (ex Manchester University Speleological Society caver), a geologist at Haile Selassie I University, and Ato Mezmure Hailemeskale recorded another 1 km new passages to the known cave. In the same year Dick Ashford and Malcolm Largen of Haile Selassie University made a study of some of the bats in the cave.
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