Underground journey, discovering the Bifurto Abyss

Can you imagine a cavity so deep that it reaches the centre of the earth?

No, it is not science fiction but the Bifurto Abyss, one of the deepest sinkholes on the planet.

Where is the Bifurto Abyss? Also known as Wolf's Pit, in Calabria, this exceptional cavity opens up in the heart of the Pollino National Park, in the municipality of Cerchiara di Calabria (CS).

Starring in Frammartino's award-winning film Il buco (The Hole) of 2021, the Bifurto Abyss is inaccessible to non-experts but still offers an adrenalin-filled hike in contact with nature.

Ready to plunge into the "Wolf's Pit" in Calabria, too?

Our excursion to the Wolf's Pit, aka the Bifurto Abyss, starts from the municipality of Cerchiara di Calabria, famous for being the "City of Bread", thanks to the production of the delicious Cerchiara De.Co. (Municipal Denomination of Origin) bread, and for the presence of the suggestive Shrine of the Madonna delle Armi, carved into the rock.

From here, we trek through the wilderness to the place the locals call the "Wolf Pit", on the south-eastern slope of the Pollino National Park, on the border between Calabria and Basilicata.

An area rich in natural cavities and ravines used since ancient times as a shelter for hermit monks, shepherds and brigands.

Among these caves, just below the trampling ground, a unique abyss opens up: the Bifurto Abyss, a swallowhole that burrows into the bowels of the earth to a depth of 683 metres, ranking 40th among the deepest caves on the planet.

Speleologists discovered it in 1961, exploring it with great difficulty and sacrifice until they reached the bottom, classifying it as one of the most challenging cavities to reach in the whole of southern Italy.

The excursion to the Bifurto Abyss gives intense emotions, especially to those who have seen the film Il buco, by Frammartino. All around are the paths that, from the summit of Mount Sellaro (1439 m), extend for about 300 hectares of forest and enclose beautiful specimens of turkey oaks, holm oaks and many other plant species, such as the rare Peonia Maschio. Also not to be missed is a visit to the numerous hermit caves scattered throughout the area.

Michelangelo Frammartino, a superb director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker of Calabrian origin, has captured the timeless verticality of the Bifurto Abyss.

In Frammartino's film Il buco (The Hole), the abyss is a set in itself: it lets itself be told through the story of its discoverers, played by a cast of experienced cavers and actors who have trained for years to retrace the legendary feat, including the director himself.

The film recounts the discovery of the Bifurto Abyss in 1961, when a team of young explorers from the Gruppo Speleologico Piemontese went to the distant Calabrian side of the Pollino.

It was local shepherds who guided the explorers, including Beppe De Mattei and Giulio Gecchele, to the discovery of the extraordinary place called the "Wolf Pit".

This is what was reported in the bulletin at the end of the adventure: 

"During our stay in Cerchiara di Calabria, where the Piedmontese Speleological Group held its summer camp this year, we completed the exploration of the Bifurto Abyss, which after almost two weeks of hard work rewarded us with the satisfaction of having reached a depth of 683 metres, one of the greatest in the world".