Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 20, 2026

Bulmer Cavern

Bulmer Cavern is New Zealand's longest cave system, running for 74.3 km (46.2 mi) through Mount Owen in the Tasman region of the northwest South Island. John Patterson discovered the cave on New Year's Day 1984, by dropping a rock down and counting the seconds until it reached the bottom.

Last revised
Jun 20, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
188 w
Citations
3
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Bulmer Cave entrance room and the first pit, New Zealand. A caver stands near the right edge of the photo. source ↗
A caver descends the first pitch inside Bulmer Cavern's main entrance. source ↗

Bulmer Cavern is New Zealand's longest cave system, running for 74.3 km (46.2 mi)1 through Mount Owen in the Tasman region of the northwest South Island.2 John Patterson discovered the cave on New Year's Day 1984, by dropping a rock down and counting the seconds until it reached the bottom.

Bulmer Cavern was the location of a major cave rescue effort in 1998, when it took 80 cavers several days to extract another caver who had fallen and broken his jaw deep in the cavern.3

See also

See also

References

References

  1. "Cave statistics". New Zealand Speleological Society. Archived from the original on 16 January 2024. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  2. Caving in New Zealand (from Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand)
  3. Caving equipment and culture from Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand)
External links

41°33′30″S 172°31′08″E / 41.5583°S 172.5188°E / -41.5583; 172.5188