From lost worlds that float in the sky, to
abandoned places frozen in time, here are 10 of the most mysterious places on Earth. 10. Mount Roraima
This giant plateau soars up into the sky and is often surrounded by a sea of clouds. It has its own very unique ecosystem with
many tall waterfalls and highly specialized plant and animal species such as pitcher plants
and the Roraima bush toad. Located on the border of Venezuela, Guyana,
and Brazil, 75% of the mountain is in Venezuelan territory. Also called “the floating island, the cliffs
rise about 400 meters (1300 ft) into the sky. Made famous by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in his
1912 novel, The Lost World, he writes that a group of explorers find dinosaurs and other
extinct creatures are still alive on this mountain. And some people believe that’s still a possibility! But before Doyle, there were the Pemón indigenous
people, that say that Mount Roraima is the stump of a mighty tree that once held all
the fruits and most of the vegetables in the world! They also believe that it was knocked down
by Makunaima, the trickster/creator god (depending on who you ask). This is the beginning of life as we know it
as when the tree crashed to the ground, life was released. The mountains are sacred and no place for
the living to be as it is full of gods and spirits. Many say that Mount Roraima inspired the Hallelujah
Mountains of Pandora in Avatar as well as Paradise Falls in Up! See, Adventure is OUT THERE!! 9. Pripyat
Following the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in 1986, thousands of people were evacuated
from the neighboring city of Pripyat. Over 30 years later, most of the town is still
there, frozen in time and left to decay. The city had over 15 schools, a large hospital,
pools, amusement parks, gyms, apartment buildings, everything a growing community needs and everyone
was evacuated in just 3 hours. Pripyat looks exactly like it did in 1986,
and the clocks are all frozen at 11:55- the time electricity went out. Now, over 10,000 tourists go and visit the
power plant and Pripyat every year. The government has created an Exclusion Zone,
a restricted space with a 19 mile radius that surrounds the blast area. No one can touch any of the items or sit down
on anything in this area and everyone is checked for radioactive particles before they leave. While tour guides are happy to take you around
and claim that the area is safe, but Ukrainian officials warn the area won’t be habitable
for another 20,000 years. The lack of people has been good for wildlife. Elk, moose and boar are now flourishing, along
with their predators the wolves and the lynx. The city of Pripyat itself serves as a warning
for us all and is one of the creepiest, and most mysterious-looking cities in the world! 8. McMurdo Dry Valleys
The McMurdo Dry Valleys are a row of snow-free valleys in Antarctica. What? No snow in Antarctica??? That’s right. The Dry Valleys have extremely low humidity
levels and the mountains around the valley prevent any ice from flowing down around it
from glaciers. There is loose gravel covering the bottom
of the valleys but no ice or snow. In fact, it is one of the most extreme deserts
in the world, with its only lakes being saline lakes. No living organism has been found in the permafrost
here. Researchers believe it is as close to Mars
as we can get!! However, more recently, water samples of Blood
Falls have revealed metabolic processes never before witnessed and some bacteria has also
been discovered. It is believed that cold, dense air is pulled
downhill by the force of gravity. These katabatic winds are so strong, they
can reach speeds of up to 200 mph. When they descend , they heat up, evaporating
any moisture that may be present. Any life found here is quite the miracle and
these mysterious microbes and unique bacteria might just defy all odds! Who knows what else is out there in this harsh,
inhospitable environment? 7. Abandoned Military Hospital
Beelitz-Heilstätten is a district in Beelitz, Germany that is made famous by a hospital
complex that contains almost 60 buildings. At first, the complex was built to treat TB
and then became a sanatorium . But at the beginning of the first war, it became a military
hospital. While some of the buildings have been restored,
most of them are in terrible condition, and are pretty spooky. In 1916, even Hitler was treated here as he
recovered from an injury in World War I. Most of the area is now shut down today, but
the neurological rehabilitation center and an area researching Parkinson's disease remains
in operation. For those working there, rumor has it, it
is haunted. This may be the stories of the cruel treatment
of those housed there that triggers the hallucinations. Or…it could really be haunted as most of
it is still abandoned. As the hospital lived through so many years
of turmoil, the place has seen many dark deeds. Now it is often used as a set for movies such
as the Pianist and some of Valkyrie. Also there is no shortage of videos of urban
explorers and drones going over the place on YouTube! 6. Travertine Pools of Pamukkale
Pamukkale means "cotton castle" in Turkish which makes sense, once you see the pools
in this place! They are made up of hot springs and travertines
which are terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. From the hills on the opposite side of the
valley, you will see the ancient Greco-Roman city of Hierapolis, built so that the people
could enjoy the health benefits of the hot water. For over 2000 years, people have been attracted
to these springs. Deep in the earth, the water is heated by
volcanic lava! It dissolves pure white calcium and then spills
out of the surface of the earth where it seeps down the hillside. As the calcium cools, it creates these formations
making the hillside look kind of like a castle. While it looks like ice from a distance, it
is actually the white calcium. Of course in a place like this that has been
around for so long, there must be a legend to go along with it. No one wanted to marry this Turkish girl because
everyone thought she was ugly, so she threw herself off the travertine. However, she survived the fall and became
beautiful and of course, caught the attention of a lord. So now, everyone thinks that it is great for
your health, AND can make you more beautiful! 5. Richat Structure
The Richat Structure or the Eye of the Sahara is a mysterious round formation found in the
Sahara near Mauritania. It appears to be some sort of sci-fi experiment,
but it is actually a deeply eroded, slightly elliptical dome that is 25 miles wide. This erosion of resistant layers is said to
have created high-relief circular slopes, giving it the illusion of an Eye from space. At first, scientist thought it was an asteroid
impact structure due to its shape. However, the erosion theory is now the likely
answer. Even now they are still testing and studying
the strange formation, and many people still have a lot of questions about it. There are also extra-terrestrial studies still
being conducted in case some aliens had something to do with it, you know, just to be safe!! Unlike scientists though, most of us just
enjoy the beauty and wonder of the formation, no questions asked…though that alien thing
seems pretty interesting. 4. Shicheng, China
Shicheng City or China’s Atlantis or Lion City, is an underwater city in the Chinese
province of Zhejiang. This city is strange for two reasons! It was forgotten and lost for thousands of
years…and it has survived remarkably well underwater! At one time, it was a maze of white temples,
large buildings, and beautiful sculptures. But in 1959, the Chinese government built
a new hydroelectric power station and they flooded the ancient city. Now, it is under the manmade lake and can
only be visited by divers. For over fifty years, the lake was simply
known as Qiandao Lake. The government actually forgot about the city
and the fact that they had covered it up. Somehow, the city was discovered again accidentally. How it took fifty years is unknown since it
is simply 130ft underwater! But the place is beautiful and there are many
dramatic pictures out there of this lost city underwater! 3. Fly Geyser
Likely the most beautiful geyser in the world, Fly Geyser can be found in Washoe County,
Nevada. It is just 5 feet high, by 12 feet wide. So why is it is amazing or mysterious? Well look at it! It isn’t natural, but rather the result
of a test site after a geothermal power company drilled into the rock. No one knows how what happened next to create
this unique formation, but it was likely one of two reasons. The well was not capped correctly, or it was
left unplugged. Soon after, minerals started rising and accumulating,
creating the travertine mound. This is where the geyser sits today, growing
slightly every year. Now these deposits have become 3 large mounds
that rise out of a field on fly ranch. The geyser’s trio spew scalding hot water
and it is now famous for its amazing rainbow coloring. 2. The Maunsell Sea Forts
From afar, these guys look kind of like oil rigs or something, but they’re really just
old sea forts known as the Maunsell Forts. These were built during WWII to help defend
the UK. Each fort has built-in firearms and were originally
used by both army and navy personnel, a rare occurrence. Each of the forts were built as a cluster
of seven stilted buildings that surrounded the central tower. At one time, catwalks connected each of them
to form one large base. In the 1950s, they were decommissioned and
got taken over by pirate radio broadcasting stations and one is the unrecognized Principality
of Sealand! A micronation! Today, they are nearly completely abandoned
and decaying to the point of no return. Why they weren’t taken down, demolished,
or repurposed is unknown. 1. Door to Hell
If the name isn’t enough to scare you, wait till you hear the story behind the Gates of
Hell. Officially known as the Darvaza gas crater,
the “door” is actually a natural gas field in Derweze, Turkmenistan. When seen up close, which you never ever really
want to be, you will see fire, boiling mud, and orange flames in the hole. The crater itself is over 200ft wide and over
60ft deep. It was first identified by Soviet engineers
in 1971. That’s when drilling begin and a natural
gas pocket was discovered. The drilling created fissures throughout the
ground that caused the ground around the pocket to collapse and release the gas. With the release endangering nearby towns,
the engineers decided to light it on fire. They believed it would only take a couple
of weeks for the fire to stop burning. But over forty years later, the gas continues
to burn…this is the reason that many actually believe that this is the actual gateway to
hell.
