Dent de Crolles


The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain of the Chartreuse Mountains range, north east of Grenoble, Isère, France. It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile and is easily recognizable in the Isère Valley in the Grenoble area. Its name is derived from the town of Crolles, located next to the mountain.

Cave system

The réseau de la Dent de Crolles, which lies beneath the summit plateau, is one of the most complex and longest cave systems in Europe, and is considered to be one of the birth places of modern caving. Its first detailed exploration was during World War II by a small team of French cavers which included Pierre Chevalier, Fernand Petzl, and Charles Petit-Didier. Their explorations saw it become the deepest cave in the world at the time with a depth of. The lack of available equipment during the war forced Pierre Chevalier and the rest of the team to develop their own equipment, leading to technical innovation. The first use of the single rope technique with prusik and mechanical rope-ascenders can be directly associated with its exploration.
Since 1946, the cave has undergone intense and continuous exploration. As of 2010, eleven separate entrances have been discovered. The highest is the Gouffre Bob Vouay at an altitude of located close to the summit, and the lowest is the main resurgence, the Grotte du Guiers Mort at an altitude of, giving a depth of. It is known to include more than of passages. The cave system is popular for the various through trips that the various entrances allow.

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