The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain (2,062 m) of the Chartreuse Mountains range, 17 km north east of Grenoble, Isère, France. The mountain has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile; the French word dent means "tooth". de Crolles is derived from the town of Crolles, located next to the peak. The Dent de Crolles is easily recognizable from the Isère Valley (Grésivaudan) near Grenoble.

Geography

The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain (2,062 m) of the Chartreuse Mountains range, 17 km north east of Grenoble, Isère, France. The French word "dent" means tooth and "de Crolles" is derived from the town of Crolles, located next to the mountain. It is easily recognizable from the Isère valley (Grésivaudan) in the Grenoble area.

Cave system

The réseau de la Dent de Crolles, which lies beneath the summit plateau, is one of the most complex and longest cave systems in Europe, and is considered to be one of the birth places of modern caving. Its first detailed exploration was during World War II by a small team of French cavers which included Pierre Chevalier, Fernand Petzl, and Charles Petit-Didier. Their explorations saw it become the deepest cave in the world at the time with a depth of -658 m. The lack of available equipment during the war forced the team to develop their own equipment, leading to technical innovation. The first use of the single rope technique with prusik and mechanical rope-ascenders (Henri Brenot's "monkeys", first used by Chevalier and Brenot in a cave in 1934) can be directly associated with its exploration. Since 1946, the cave has undergone intense and continuous exploration. As of 2023, eighteen separate entrances have been discovered. The highest is the Gouffre Bob Vouay at an altitude of 2015 m located close to the summit, and the lowest is the main resurgence, the Grotte du Guiers Mort at an altitude of 1334 m, giving a depth of 681 m. It is known to include more than 60 km of passages. The cave system is popular for the various through trips that the various entrances allow.

Gallery

Bibliography (in French)

Bibliography (in English)

References (in French)