📌 Cave near Dalry, North Ayrshire
★★★
Compared to the underground labyrinths of England and Wales, Scotland isn’t generally noted for its caving. Cleeves Cove (also known as the Elfhame – you can guess why) therefore comes as a welcome surprise to unadventurous speleologists: three obvious openings above the Dusk Water in rural Ayrshire lead to hundreds of metres of connected underground passageways through limestone, originally carved by the burn in a different era and climate. The cave was a popular attraction in the 1800s, when a certain John Smith removed tonnes of silt deposits to facilitate access. Disrespectful past visitors have sadly removed all but the tiniest stalactites, but cave spiders, moths and the reasonably complex network of natural tunnels remain.
⚠️ These caves are deep enough to cause serious problems if your light sources all fail. Visit with someone who has prior caving experience.
🌍 Location
📌 Off minor road 3 mi southeast of Dalry
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NS 318475
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 55.691556,-4.677024
❌ No public transport within 1 mi
🚗 Extremely limited parking – do not block access or gates. Some possible options to the north of Blair Mill
📝 Key info
⌚ Always open
🎫 Free
💬 The usual caving equipment and precautions must be taken. Visit with someone who has prior caving experience. Wellies are also recommended. From the roadside at about 🧭 NS 318474 / 🛰️ 55.690478,-4.676641 it’s a few-min walk (each way) to the cave. Follow a path through the trees to where it ends at the top of the river embankment, with various slippery trods leading steeply down to the cave entrances below.
