Buchenhöhle

The Buchenhöhle, also called Buchenloch, lies in the Steiermark near Deutschfeistritz. It sits on the Kugelstein hillside at 464 metres above sea level. The cave is reached through a wooded slope south-west of the hill’s summit. Two entrances open onto the surface, one marked by a large hollow near the main opening. A narrow passage just 0,3 metres high and 0,4 metres wide leads from this hollow into the hill. Inside, the cave stretches only about three metres deep. A short passage, 1,7 metres high and one metre wide, runs roughly two metres further into the rock. The walls follow a natural crack in the stone. The floor is covered with loose frost-shattered rock and clay. No side passages branch off from the main route. Visitors walk a quiet forest path to reach the cave. The hillside is covered with beech and pine trees that give the cave its name. Nearby lie two other caves, the Fünffenstergrotte and the Römerloch, each with its own entrance. The site offers a small example of the limestone features found across the Kugelstein area.