When you think about humans living underground, what do you imagine? Hobbit holes? The Borrowers? Nuclear bunkers?
It's safe to say that whatever you picture, you're not too keen on joining them for more than an hour or two. Even the keenest caver would probably draw the line at more than a day down there.
But throughout history, some people have actively sought out the subterranean life – sometimes tragically, as in the case of Las Vegas's "mole people", but sometimes for scientific purposes.
Living underground can tell us a lot about the effects of isolation on the human mind and body. And what better way to study it than to send someone underground for a long, long time?
This was the case with Beatriz Flamini – a Spanish athlete who spent 500 days in a 70-foot-deep cave outside Granada. When she emerged on April 13 2023, she broke the world record for the longest time ever spent in a cave.
She entered the caves on November 20 2021 – a time when the Spanish public was still wearing masks.
During the 500 days she spent in the cave, Russia invaded Ukraine, Queen Elizabeth II died and Kate Bush returned to the charts with "Running Up That Hill". But Flamini didn't hear a thing.
And it wasn't only the news that Flamini didn't have access to. Her team were instructed not to communicate with her at all – even if there was a death in her family.
In fact, she did spend eight of the 500 days above ground – but she remained isolated in a tent while her team got on with repairing some equipment in the cave.
Her subterranean sojourn was studied by a team of psychologists, researchers, speleologists (cave specialists) and physical trainers. They were keeping tabs on how her circadian rhythms, brain patterns and sense of time were affected by her isolation.
She claims that she never wanted to leave the cave and that when they came to fetch her, she assumed that something had happened. "I said: 'Already? Surely not.' I hadn't finished my book."
What did she do all day?
Flamini did all sorts of activities in the cave. She worked out. She painted and drew. She knitted woolly hats and read 60 books. She also documented her time there with two GoPro cameras.
At this point, you're probably wondering about her toilet habits. We don't know the details, but we do know that her team removed her waste and also sent down food, drink and clean clothes. During her stay, she drank 1,000 litres of water.
She says that she lost track of time on day 65 – but she kept her wits about her by eating well, enjoying the silence and making the most of her activities.
She told the press that she experienced many beautiful moments in the cave – but it wasn't all beer and skittles. The worst day, she said, was when her rocky refuge was invaded by flies. It's unclear how she got rid of them.
What would you miss if you spent that long underground? Companionship? Sunshine? Steve Wright in the Afternoon?
Flamini said she was especially looking forward to two things. First, a shower – and secondly, sharing a plate of huevos fritos y patatas fritas (fried eggs and chips) with her pals.
What record has Beatriz Flamini broken?
It's unclear yet what record she's broken. Guinness World Records has "longest time survived trapped underground" as a category – but not "longest time spent living in a cave by choice".
The record amount of time spent trapped underground is held by "
the 33 of San Jose ". This was the group of 32 Chilean miners and one Bolivian miner who were trapped in a copper-gold mine near Copiapó, Chile, in 2010, for 69 days.
Amazingly, all 33 men survived and were winched to safety one by one.
We don't know yet whether Flamini will take the palm from the 33 or whether her record will be honoured in a different category.
Stump Cross Cavern's record-breaker
At Stump Cross, we have our own local caving legend – Geoff Workman, who spent 105 days in our caverns back in 1963.
Although his 105 days spent in total isolation have now been beaten, he remains a pioneer – and the last living British holder of the title.
Like Flamini, his aim was to learn more about the effects of isolation on the human mind and body. He also spent a lot of time surveying and photographing the caves – and in the process adding a lot to our knowledge of them.
He went down with camping gear, scientific gadgets and food in June 1963. When he emerged at the end of September, he had a lot of catching up to do – he'd managed to miss both the Profumo affair and the Great Train Robbery!
He has something else in common with Flamini. They both seem to have had a great time down there. He says that he had a strict work regime which stopped him from ever getting lonely or bored.
When Geoff broke the record, he made himself a celebratory meal of creamed mash, mushroom soup and strawberry jelly. He then toasted Queen, Country and his fellow speleologists.
Geoff has left his imprint on Stump Cross in other ways. In 1996, he discovered Reindeer Cavern – one of the many beautiful chambers that is now open to the public.
And when the 33 of San Jose were trapped underground, newspapers were begging Geoff for tips on how the miners could survive.
Geoff and Beatriz, we salute you!
Looking for a family day out in Yorkshire? At Stump Cross Caverns, you can take a tour of our magical passageways and chambers, as well as get involved in a range of exciting experiences and events. It's easy to book your tickets online.
