The town of Pazin is first mentioned in the year 983AD as the property of the Bishop of Porec, and it is strategically located in the centre of Istria. The town has a nice citadel on top of a 130m high cliff. The citadel was called Castrum Pisinium, but it got it’s castle looks in the 16th century. Now it houses the ethnographic museum of Istria and the town museum of Pazin. They display all kinds of archaeological, ethnographic and agricultural objects from the area.
It is a nice small town to visit, go to the medieval citadel which is the largest and best-preserved castle in Istria, visit the museum in the castle and go for a walk on the bridge over the canyon that gives a nice view of the surrounding area and the entrance to the abyss and cave.
The pathway down into the canyon that starts at the bridge is not in use any more. For a walk to the entrance of the cave you can start at Hotel ‘Lovac’, there you can also park your car. There is a steep walk down into the canyon to the abyss and cave entrance, another leisurely walk is on top of the canyon from the road that leads to the bridge over the canyon to Hotel ‘Lovac’ and the start of the steep walk down. Furthermore, you can go ‘zip-lining’ along this canyon.
The walking path Pazinska jama is 500m long through the forest to the viewpoint ‘Piramida’ where you can see the entrance to the underworld. The sightseeing is individual without a guide, but walking along the path you find signs with more information about the karst phenomenon, hydrography, local flora, legend and brave explorers in several languages.
The abyss of Pazin is created by water in the Karst period. This is a unique hydro-geologic cave phenomenon in Istria and the Dinaric karst. This mysterious cave has inspired the famous writer Jules Verne. He has incorporated the cave in his book Mathias Sandorf (1885), where the main characters go through this underground cave from Pazin to the Lim Canal on the Istrian coast.
The French caver E.A. Martel and the subterranean water expert W. Putick were the first to study the Pazin cave in 1893 – 1896. The river Pazinčica ends its above ground flow in the abyss located at the end of a meters long deep canyon. The entrance into the abyss is arched by an oval cave – called Dante’s Lobby, it is supposed to have inspired Dante to write inferno!
The small river Pazinčica runs through a narrow underground canal into the abyss. Inside the abyss is a hall of about 80x20m, with a lake in it – named after the French researcher it is called Martel’s lake. After this first hall and lake the water runs further in another hall and another small lake – Mitar’s lake.
More information
The walking trail Pazin abyss, individual without guide and start at Hotel ‘Lovac’
Open from April – October
Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 – 18.00, closed on Mondays
Tourism office of central Istria
Zip-lining
With zip-lining you can make an adventurous flight along the canyon of Pazin using cables and pulleys. The zip-line is located above the famous Pazin abyss. There are two zip-lines of 80m each, one is 220m (max speed 40 km/h) and the other 280m with a maximum speed of 50 km/h and a maximum height of 100m. Opening hours: from May – September every day from 10.00 – 19.00 h. Facebook: zip line Pazinska jama, telephone + 385 (0) 91 5437718, zipline.pazin@gmail.com
Holiday ideas for 5 days in Istria by Croatia4me
We from Croatia4me have some great ideas and tips to help you plan a day or more days out in specific regions in Croatia. These are just ideas you can add to your own holiday plans, you can follow the day to day ideas we have written below, or mix it all up or pick one or two items that …
