Updated 6th November 2003, 27th September, 18th November 2007; 25th June 2010; 26th February 2013; 3rd January, 22nd June, 13th September, 9th November 2015; 27th April 2016; 20th May, 18th November 2017; 5th January 2018; 8th January 2020

   The walk-down entrance is below and to the east of a large limestone boulder. A well decorated, roomy passage ends at a flowstone blockage. To the right of the entrance chamber is a crawl into a low space with a pool.
   At the end of the cave, down to the right, is a low alcove with some charred bones with possible implement marks. On the floor throughout the cave are numerous charcoal deposits and there are a couple of charcoal marks on the wall above head height in the entrance passage.
   On a visit in November 2007 a Herald moth was seen hibernating on a wall of possible barite crystals.
   The cave is named after the wife of JCFG (Luisa, backwards).

   In April 2010, Lancaster University student Andi Smith under Dr Peter Wynn and Prof Phil Barker (Lancaster University) and Prof Melanie Leng and Dr Steve Noble (British Geological Survey) started a programme of cave monitoring to characterise cave microclimate (specifically temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide). Drip rate monitors have been installed to understand the nature of the hydrological system feeding the speleothem formations along with a rain gauge above. (Video on YouTube). These studies have resulted in a very complete and high resolution record for climate change in the area.
    Andi has completed a PhD thesis: Speleothem Climate Capture - A Holocene Reconstruction of Northern Iberian Climate and Environmental Change which challenges current understanding of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) dynamics and the exact timing of initial NAO development. Further details are found through the Matienzo Caves Project Science pages along with details of another paper, Drip water electrical conductivity as an indicator of cave ventilation at the event scale, published in mid-2015 and Cave monitoring and the potential for palaeoclimate reconstruction from Cueva de Asiul, Cantabria (N. Spain), published in the International Journal of Speleology, January 2016.
   In April 2016, Andi Smith had another paper published about the paleoclimate work in Cueva Asiul. This one is in nature.com/scientific reports (http://www.nature.com/srep/2016/160420/srep24745/full/srep24745.html) where it can be viewed online or downloaded as a pdf. (Matienzo C P pdf copy with supplementary material.)

   A radon detector was left in the cave in the new year, 2013, but there were problems with the device.
   A new survey of the cave was carried out in September 2017: the centre line and survey are linked below.
   Reference Smith P et al, 2015 has a summary of the climate work carried out.

References: Fernández Gutiérrez et al, 1966 (survey); anon., 1975b (Easter and summer logbooks); Kendal Caving Club and Manchester University Speleological Society, 1975 (survey); Mills L D J and Waltham A C, 1981 (survey); Corrin J S and Smith P, 1981; Manchester University Speleological Society, 1982 (survey); anon., 2007d (summer logbook); anon., 2007e (autumn + Christmas logbook); Corrin Juan, 2007a; Smith A, Wynn PM and Barker P, 2013; Smith Andrew C et al, 2014; Smith Andrew C, 2015; Smith A, Wynn Peter M y Barker P, 2016; Smith A C et al, 2016 (pdf + supplement); Smith P et al, 2015;
Entrance pictures : yes
Underground picture(s): summer 2007  : autumn 2007 : Easter 2017
Video: Initial setup of science equipment, April 2010 (YouTube) : Visit, summer 2015 (YouTube)
Detailed Survey : from 1963: low res  high res : from 2017 pdf
Line Survey :
On area survey : low res  high res
Survex file : September 2017