Among all oddities populating the extensive area of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone – the immense cordoned area surrounding the ill-fated nuclear power-plant – Pripyat does not need any further presentation.
Pripyat was founded anew in 1970, and mainly intended for workers of the immense ‘Lenin’ power-plant, where the nuclear reactors started operations in the mid 1970s, and which went on being continuously expanded over the years. When tragedy struck on April 26th, 1986, four reactors were active, two were under construction – what remains of the ‘ghost construction works’ can still be seen (have a look to this chapter) – but about as many reactor cores were on the drawing board as the number of those already running.
Such a big and relevant industrial asset was managed and operated by a massive workforce of technicians. As a matter of fact, with a population of slightly less than 50’000 at the time of the accident, Pripyat turned out to be the largest village in an extensive and otherwise eminently rural region around the power-plant. An area with an extension comparable to the metro area of Chicago, IL, was cordoned out and totally evacuated in the days following the accident, forming the ‘Chernobyl Exclusion Zone’, which is still today off-limits without a guide, and where people carrying out technical work around the former power-plant, and related labs and businesses, live under a special regulation. Besides Pripyat, this extensive region includes also the nuclear power-plant, the town of Chernobyl, dozens of smaller villages (see Chapter 2), as well as a one-of-a-kind soviet military installation (see Chapter 1).
Being intended mainly for highly-skilled workers – like engineers and physicists in charge of the power-plant processes – Pripyat was built according to relatively high-level soviet standards. The town had five so-called residential ‘microdistricts’, made of high-rise apartment buildings, and each with a school and some other public services, like a small market, a library, sporting facilities, possibly a small theater, etc.
The geographic center of the town was another multi-functional district, with a kind of community center with a community hall for social meetings, a big hotel, a central market, a post office, a travel agency, a sporting center with a stadium, an amusement park – with the now iconic Ferris wheel… – a green urban park, and of course the local presidium of the Communist Party.
The town also featured a large hospital – ‘Medical Center 126’ – covering alone the size of another microdistrict.
All these services, the above-standard quality of the buildings and urban decor, and the setting in the nice countryside of northern Ukraine, in an area rich of rivers and creeks – Pripyat was built close to the right bank of the homonym and nice ‘river Pripyat’ – and not far from Kiev, made Pripyat a nice place to live. Even the workplace of many, the ‘Lenin’ nuclear power-plant, could be conveniently reached less than 3 miles away… The perfect worker’s life in this prototypical socialist village went on for some thousands workers and their families day by day without any major event for about 15 years.
Suddenly, Pripyat was evacuated in a few hours in the early afternoon of April 27th, 1986, about 36 hours after the explosion of reactor N.4, which had taken place in the first hours of April 26th. Notice of the evacuation was given to the citizens about three hours before the operation started. They were told they would have been taken away for precaution for just three days. The combined effect of the hurry and of the presumed short term of the quarantine was that basically everything was left behind by those leaving the town. As an effect of the cordoning-off and the spread of nuclear radiation, contaminating everything in the area, and making any items unattractive except for the most brave metal-looters, the mid-1980s life of Pripyat soviet citizens was crystallized like in a magic life-size 3D picture that you can even walk in! – the incredible ghost town that today everybody knows.
All villages and installations in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone were evacuated too (more than 100’000 were relocated in total), creating as many incredible time capsules from the Cold War era (see Chapter 1 and Chapter 2). What is unique to Pripyat is the overall size of the town, of the buildings in it, and the ensuing concentration of soviet relics around. Furthermore, being directly struck by radiation, due to the direction of the wind on the night of the explosion, together with the power-plant Pripyat is in the innermost, highly contaminated zone where nobody is allowed to live – unlike Chernobyl town, to the south of the power-plant, where some form of business is still going on this day, and where you are likely to spend the night on a multi-day tour. As a result, it is totally uninhabited – at least at night…
Actually, the successful HBO series of 2019 has increased the interest of the western public for this place even further, making Pripyat a de-facto tourist attraction, with tens of thousands visitors per year. Most of them take the ‘typical’ one-day trip from Kiev, where you spend a few hours in the Exclusion Zone, mostly in Pripyat. The ‘Soviet ghost aura’ around this town is so intense you will surely get impressed even by a visit so short. However, the ‘highlights’ in town may turn crowded to an almost paradoxical extent for a ghost town, so that enjoying the unreal silence and loneliness you would expect in a creepy soviet village contaminated by radiation may turn possible only in less known spots, where you will be taken only by private guides, on tours typically lasting two days or more, and purpose-designed to allow you also to take good pictures.
The latter was my option. You can see in this chapter several unusual photographs of Pripyat, taken during a stay of many hours in this ghost town, during a visit to the Exclusion Zone lasting two (freezing) days in late autumn 2019. Practical info about the visit are provided in a section at the end of another chapter (and links therein).
Sights
Photographs will follow the course of our visit. We started early in the morning from nearby Chernobyl, where we had spent the night. We were in Pripyat before one-day visitors from Kiev came in – possibly the most impressive part of the visit in terms of ‘ghost aura’, thanks to the silence and loneliness of the place at that time.
You may see the light changing over the day, until we finally left in the afternoon for another part of the Zone. You won’t see people in my pics, but this is the result of the ability of our guide, as well as of some effort on my side especially in the central hours of the day and around the central district.
Red Forest, Bridge of Death and Pripyat Access
One of the most severely contaminated areas in the zone, the ‘red forest’ used to cover the area between the power-plant and the town of Pripyat. Exposed to an unprecedented level of radiation, the trees in the forest changed color to an unnatural red soon after the explosion. As a matter of fact, all those trees have been wiped out and buried underground. A completely new blanket of younger trees now covers the area.
The route coming from the power-plant and going north to Pripyat, only less than 3 miles away, is usually covered by car/bus on visits to this sector – a route likely covered every day by workers living in town and working at the nuclear plant. The road goes through the former area of the red forest, where many radiation danger and warning signals can be seen, and where you are unlikely to stop.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Red Forest Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The same road finally points straight into Pripyat, and goes over a railway track. The bridge is a vantage point from where the power-plant could be observed, especially the ill-fated reactor N.4, which lies next to it. On the day of the accident people from nearby Pripyat came to this bridge out of curiosity, to check out the emergency operations taking place around the reactor. Similar to the red forest just ahead of it, the bridge was invested by a massive flow of invisible radioactive debris, also due to the wind direction on the day of the accident. The name ‘Bridge of Death’ given afterwards to this site suggests the epilogue of the story for the most unlucky among those who ventured on the bridge on that fateful day.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
From the bridge you can spot the tall buildings of Pripyat, and soon reach the entry checkpoint.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
‘Azure’ Swimming Pool and School (Microdistrict 3)
Accessing in the early morning, despite the very cold temperature, we could enjoy a few hours of a really evoking, silent and lonely visit. Venturing in Pripyat, you soon meet an array of many bulky multi-storey apartment buildings close by each other.
Leaving the car close to a major crossing, and walking between microdistrict 3 and 4 to the first highlight on our visit – the sporting center called ‘Lazurnyy’ – or ‘Azure’ in English – we could appreciate the size of some of these builidings. The silence was really striking! Old road signs can be seen along the road.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
From the outside, the sporting center must have looked really nice in its heyday. A decorated metal fence can be seen around the complex, which lies in front off School N.3. A giant clock hangs on top of the building. Some soviet decoration can be found in the entrance hall of the complex.
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Upstairs, a first hall hosts a gym, with a basketball court. The pool is in an adjoining hall. It is modernly designed, with a large window looking on to the next buildings, some hundreds feet away. The roof is inclined, making this hall look somewhat roomier than it actually is.
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
A clock and a ‘coat of arms’ of a swimming team (?) adorn the wall. The springboard is also still in place.
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pool Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Unfortunately, some total idiot writer felt and urge to add his signature on the side of the pool. Luckily, similar accidents are not typical to Pripyat, which is still today heavily guarded.
Next door, you can find School N.3. A rather big building with an inner courtyard, you can find here many interesting sights, including tons of science-themed posters, a full physics lab with experiments – and items looking like models of heat-exchangers of a power-plant… – and more usual classrooms.
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
There is also a room where the floor is covered with gas masks. This is an example of a staged post-apocalyptic scenery, which have been prepared for tourists, and is actually not totally original – sure the masks were already stored there for civil protection, but they have been apocryphally scattered on the ground only for photographers.
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Panoramic View from Rooftop (Microdistrict 5)
Walking from microdistrict 3 to the northwestern corner of microdistrict 5, you get past entire blocks of multi-storey buildings. The tallest in Pripyat are a couple of 16-storeys ‘twin towers’ on two sides of a street on the northern edge of the town – i.e. the farthest from the power-plant.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Climbing to the roof terrace on top of one of the twins – a nice workout with a heavy full complement of photographic gear, especially useful to warm up on a freezing autumn morning! – you get the chance to enjoy a great panorama view over the entire town of Pripyat. From there you may better appreciate the concentration of high-rise buildings in town, as well as the sharp border between the settlement and the wilderness all around – like many industrial towns in the USSR, Pripyat was built basically in the middle of nowhere!
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The proximity to the power-plant – with the colossal hangar-like sarcophagus containing what remains of reactor N.4 – is really striking. While convenient for commuting workers, in the event it turned deadly for Pripyat. See Chapter 2 for more on the power-plant.
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The colossal Duga anti-ICBM early-warning over-the-horizon detection antennas can be clearly spotted from here too, despite being some 7 miles away – they are really big! See Chapter 1 for more on this incredible, one-of-a-kind Cold War relic.
Ghost Town Rooftop Panorama Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Considering the buildings have been in total disrepair from some decades now, they are pretty well conserved, testifying about the overall not-so-bad quality – better than expected especially for soviet standard. Traces of architectural decorations are also to be found on the balconies, definitely unusual for industrial towns (see for instance the depressing northern suburbs of the large port of Murmansk in this post).
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Amusement Park
Likely the most photographed spot in Pripyat, the Ferris wheel is to be found in an amusement park in the central district of the town, close by administrative and service buildings.
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Considering its age and disrepair, it is not in so bad a shape. The Ferris wheel is not the only item in this small amusement park. There are a bumper car track, a big swing, what appears to be the skeleton of a chairoplane, and a smaller indoor shooting range.
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The deer painted on the wall of the shooting range appear very well preserved, and it is hard to tell whether they are from the time.
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Amusement Park Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Post Office
Again part of the central district, the central post office is home to one of the finest murals in the whole Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. A true protagonist in the iconography of the USSR, a cosmonaut occupies the central scene of the mural, which is centered on the idea of writing, language and communication in history.
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
While often kitschy and of poor artistic value, in some cases Soviet murals are more interesting, featuring a unique mix of ingenuity, rhetoric and design skill which most suitably adorn public offices, military halls or front facades.
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Post Office Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
This is also the case for the external ceramic frieze on the side the southern side of the same post office. Traces of public phone booths, an original mailbox and the opening timetable of the post office are still there to see!
Central Square
The central square of Pripyat is one of the most crowded places in the whole Exclusion Zone. Not only tourists can be found everywhere in the adjoining buildings, but buses of every size are parked ahead of it, making it look possibly more jammed than in the years before 1986.
Despite that, some highlights of Pripyat are to be found around the square, so it is of course worth a stop. To the west of the square you can find a large restaurant, with its big banner still on top of the building. In an adjoining building, the central shopping mall is an impressive sight, with indications like ‘Fruit’, ‘Vegetables’ and so on still there.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town City Center Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town City Center Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town City Center Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
One block away still to the west, a big, tall building has the coat of arms of the USSR on top.
To the north of the square, a massive civic center (‘Palace of Culture’) can be found, once hosting a hall for social events, and an adjoining indoor sporting facility.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town City Center Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The hall features another interesting soviet fresco, and what appears to be a large ballroom.
The sporting facility includes a very big basketball/soccer court, a very small pool, and a boxing ring.
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Gym Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
To the east, the square is completed by the Hotel ‘Polissia’, which is joined to the Palace of Culture via a long curved patio.
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Hospital – Medical Center 126
As said, the hospital occupies a large area, equivalent in size to a microdistrict. This large medical center is composed of many buildings, and on the day of the accident it found itself on the front line, trying to give assistance to the death-bound firefighters, hit by acute radiation syndrome, as well as to many inhabitants of Pripyat, who were exposed to extreme – albeit not immediately lethal – doses of radiation, experiencing physical symptoms in the hours following the accident and preceding evacuation.
For some reason, this area is one of the most contaminated in Pripyat today, and venturing is usually a matter of a few minutes for safety reasons. Adding to the unhealthy aura of this place, rumors support that the uniforms of the firefighters, hastily thrown in the basement when they were given medical assistance, are still there, somewhere beyond a bricked-up door…
We walked inside the largest building in the complex, and kept on the floor of the gynecology and pediatric department. Here you can find baby cots, delivery rooms, medical cabinets and more standard hospital bedrooms as well.
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Empty cradles, abandoned registers, medical posters and hardware make for a really spooky sight.
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
To the far end of the building, you can find a kind of conference room, with traces of decoration on the wall.
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Leaving the main building of the hospital, walking past a water reservoir, we reached the morgue and dissection room. Already pretty horrible in normal life, this is one of the spookiest sights in Pripyat’s post-apocalyptic setting!
Ghost Town Hospital Morgue Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Morgue Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Morgue Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Morgue Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Hospital Gynecology Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Chemical reactants and a smoky incinerator for medical waste complete the picture – who knows whether they incinerated some used clothes and gauze after the accident… better to avoid touching the soot-covered walls here!
Ghost Town Hospital Morgue Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Cafe Pripyat, Passenger Port and Floating Pier
Cross the road on the northwestern corner of the hospital district, you find a very peculiar building, appearing like the set for some James Bond movie scene. The assembly is made of two small buildings with large windows, connected by a covered passage.
The eastern end of the complex is Cafe Pripyat.
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Besides some sculptures on the outside, the main hall of the cafe features a very nice – and well preserved – example of artistic stained glass windows. The incredible light of the day added to the ensemble – making it for sure the most pleasant sight in Pripyat.
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The covered passages features triangular concrete posts.
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The complex is on top of a low cliff, on the bank of a backwater of river Pripyat, and a descending stair takes you to a former pier.
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The geography of waterways here is not very clear. Today, it appears that the water you access from this complex is basically an isolated pond. However, this may be an artificial result. As a matter of fact, the area around the power-plant, and down to Chernobyl some miles away, used to be served by hydrofoils. It appears unlikely that a pier this big was built without this type of service in mind, so maybe what is now a reservoir, used to be a receptacle of river Pripyat, and a stop in the water transport lines.
An interesting element to be sighted somewhat downstream with respect to the pier is a floating part of the pier, which got detached from the fixed part and got stranded after floating abandoned for a while.
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Floating Pier Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
This can be boarded today, a rather sad sight – also giving you a sense of nausea, as it is lying in a somewhat banked attitude which makes you loose the sense of the horizon.
KBO Service Center
Not far from Cafe Pripyat you can spot the original fence put in place immediately after evacuating the village. This old fence is today totally rusty, and largely cut through.
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Cafe Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Pointing to the central square, you meet an interesting mall named ‘KBO’, where services offered included a barber shop and other small shops. The barber shop is especially interesting. Despite being in a relatively bad shape, gear including combs, razors, mirrors, soap trays and so on are still there.
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
In its early life, the mirror could never imagine he would reflect the image of so many westerners one day – some would even be excited to take pictures of their reflection!
Ghost Town Barber Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The building features some decorated glass windows. Timetables and announcements are still painted ahead of some of the shops.
Prometheus Movie Theater and Music School
What makes these two adjoining buildings unique is the elaborate mosaic decoration on the curved facades. Again, an example of architecture from the Cold War era.
Ghost Town Music Academy Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Music Academy Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Music Academy Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Music Academy Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Music Academy Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Inside the music school a small theater hall still features a piano on the stage!
Furniture Shop and Home Appliance Shop (AGD)
Not far from the central square in microdistrict 2, you can find a small single-storey building made to host shops. Two shops are particularly interesting.
One is a furniture shop, where you can see several vertical pianos! Most of them bear a ‘Made in the USSR’ sign.
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
There are also some signs, including some ‘dos and don’ts’ for safety.
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Piano Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
An adjoining shop used to sell home appliances, and on the scaffolds you can still find a set of cathode ray tube old TV sets!
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town TV Shop Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ahead of this shops, you can find a disturbing abandoned playground and an outdoor basketball court, possibly once part of the nearby School N.2.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
School N.2 (Microdistrict 2)
This big multi-storey school building offers an incredible quantity of memorabilia to be photographed, and even taken alone it would already make for a valid reason to come to Pripyat, for a committed hunter of Soviet relics!
Entering the hall, you soon meet interesting posters, based on standard soviet iconography.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Everything is in total disorder, so you literally walk on books sometimes, and you may find notebooks, school reports, diplomas and other handwritten stuff scattered over any flat surface!
The common areas and corridors are decorated with murals, some of them really nice.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
A geography classroom features folded maps, textbooks on the geography of the USSR, and even models of some mountains.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
An intriguing room is a linguistic lab – where they apparently taught English. As observed (see this chapter), this sounds strange, considering the poor level of English penetration even in today’s former USSR Countries, and the fact that English was the idiom of the ‘western enemy’. Maybe the relatively privileged status of the inhabitants of Pripyat included a special level of education.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The chemistry lab is very ‘lively’, with complicate molecular models and bottles of reactants on the desks.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
There are archive rooms packed with diplomas and hand written paperworks.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Some posters in the corridors are really funny, including some related to sport, some explaining good practices for preserving your teeth, and others displaying encouraging numbers related to Soviet industrial production – they are updated to 1985, and the trends do not appear to show any indication of what would happen to the USSR and the whole communist bloc in less than 6 years…
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The biology lab is packed with models describing the anatomy of fishes, birds, and humans as well!
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
More and more classrooms are full of interesting items to check out!
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
An example of a rather interesting iconography style, not far from some Japanese manga, can be found on a few posters close to the main entrance, with lyrics including the anthem of the USSR.
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
In the library on the ground floor you can find interesting textbooks on many subjects. On a particular book left open by chance, we could see a portrait of the massive monument to the Soviet Army in Treptower Park, Berlin (see this post).
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
The school building used to feature a canteen, which can be easily recognized – with a menu board still hanging on a wall!
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
In another wing you can find a music room, and the unmissable gym!
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Ghost Town Abandoned School Pripyat Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone
Visiting
Together with a friend, we arranged a two-days visit to the zone with the very competent guide Mikhailo Teslenko (website here). For a curious visitor, one-day trips are really just a quick starter. I could notice the difference between that options and ours when visiting School N.2. We spent 45 minutes there, and despite collecting hundreds of good pics and exploring all the floors, we left with the sensation of having left behind millions of photo opportunities and unchecked items. A group of around ten people on a day trip spent there – literally – 5 minutes. They could not venture beyond the ground floor.
So, if you need to multiply photo opportunities, you will need to go on a private tour. Furthermore, do not underestimate the problem of crowds, which may obstruct your camera scope and spoil your pics of any mystery aura. A small party and a guide with a knowledge of peak hours and crowded hot-spots may help much in avoiding disappointment.
Choose the season accurately, for in summer it gets very warm and humid, and you are not allowed to wear sleeveless shirts, plus the trees obstruct the view more than in winter. Winter of course can be extremely cold. Despite the freezing temperature, we got two perfect days for pictures in late November.
Pripyat is big, and the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is immense, so simply forget to see everything even on a multi-day trip. Yet most highlights will be covered decently on a two-days tour – three chapters on this website are from photographic material collected on such a trip!
The nuclear power-plant of Chernobyl took its name from an early medieval village – actually one of the oldest settlements in the Ukrainian region – not far from the right bank of river Dnepr. Following the construction of the plant in the early 1970s, the village of Chernobyl changed appearance, turning into a modern town (for the soviet standard of the 1970s…) for workers of the plant.
Actually, an entire new village was eventually built anew closer to the power station, the ill-famed Pripyat. The proximity to the place of the accident, as well as the north-bound air stream on that fateful day on April 1986, meant that Chernobyl town was hit much less by contamination than more modern and populated Pripyat.
As a matter of fact, today Pripyat is included in the inner ‘high-contamination’ sector of the exclusion zone, whereas Chernobyl town to the south has been spared a contamination so severe, and albeit to a much more limited extent than before the accident, it is still partly inhabited today. You are even likely to spend the night there, if you elect to embark on a multi-day tour of the zone!
Maybe less known to the general public is how large the (relatively) ‘low-contamination’ belt of the exclusion zone is. Considering only the Ukrainian part of the cordoned territory, the limited-access area extends roughly as Greater London, i.e. the whole area inside the Orbital! Clearly, on a territory so big – basically an entire province! – there used to be many villages, in most cases rural settlements, existing before the power-plant was erected. Unlike Chernobyl town, some of these smaller villages had retained their early-soviet, or even pre-soviet appearance.
Another relevant item in the area was the huge military plant centered around the ‘Duga’-type early warning system, installed in the 1970s together with a small secluded military village, Chernobyl-2 – see this dedicated post.
When tragedy struck in 1986, the government of the USSR had the area evacuated very fast, in some cases almost overnight. Where Chernobyl town and the power-plant area soon turned into a nest of new activities, mainly connected with the sealing, monitoring and recover of the leaking plant, most of the villages in the isolated zone turned into ghost towns.
Due to its large size and to the drama investing the families of the workers of the power-plant living there, Pripyat is for sure the most famous of all ghost towns of the zone, and probably also of the world. Yet scattered over the Chernobyl exclusion zone are many other smaller ghost villages, crystallized in time. Scattered over the Ukrainian countryside, immersed in the overgrown vegetation, these places offer an authentic and unique view of the rural life in the Soviet Union in the decades before the 1980s, deep in the Cold War era. Abandoned schools, kindergartens, private housing, public offices, patriotic monuments, etc. are abundant there, and make for mysterious sights, in some cases more intriguing to relic-hunters and urban explorers than what you may find in Pripyat – where the atmosphere may turn a bit too touristic even in a freezing weekend of late November, due to the hundreds of one-day trippers from Kiev, Ukraine’s capital city.
This post from a multi-day private photographic tour to the zone (see details and suggestion for the organization of the trip here) covers Chernobyl town and power-plant, plus many less-known and highly-mysterious villages and locations scattered over the exclusion zone. Photographs were taken in November 2019.
The town of Chernobyl, originally a settlement in the countryside on the left bank of Pripyat river, about 70 miles north of Kiev, and dating from the 12th century, found itself located roughly six miles south of the ‘Lenin’ nuclear power-plant since the 1970s. This fact changed the shape of the town, which was largely expanded with blocks of typical multi-storey soviet monolithic apartment buildings. The population rose quickly from some hundreds to some thousands. A new welcome sign was erected, with some symbolism recalling the industrial vocation of the town.
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The town was also an administrative center, with an unmissable KGB building, a justice court, a big communication center and many services for the local population.
Following the accident, the population decreased again to some hundreds, as the town is since then basically in the geographical center of the exclusion zone, albeit being by a small distance out of the inner ‘high-contamination’ sector. According to the rules of the exclusion zone, residents are not allowed to spend all the time there, so there is basically no permanent population.
Today, Chernobyl town may be not the most interesting center in the zone for tourists and explorers, but it is still one of the most active administrative and logistic centers in the cordoned area. It is located on the only major road serving the exclusion zone, going from the southern access point of Dytyatky to the power-plant and Pripyat. It is likely in this ill-famed village that you are going to spend the night, if you are on a multi-day trip!
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Despite being there for the night, on our visit we could not tour the town extensively – there is a curfew at night, plus you are not allowed to move away from the hotel without a guide, who will likely leave you at the hotel to pick you up the next morning. Here are a few pics of the hotel ’10’ (this is the name of the hotel, probably linked to its address…).
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
One of the highlight of the tour was the visit to the memorial to the victims of the accident, including the deported populations of the villages in the zone. This monument features the names of all the many villages forcibly evacuated following the accident. As said, many of these villages dated from much earlier ages, so people living there for generations were forced to pack up and move away – all of the sudden and forever.
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The names are reported on entrance signs aligned along an alley climbing uphill. On top of the hill, a concrete platform reproduces the profile of the exclusion zone, distinguishing between the innermost and outer parts. Each village is represented here by a metal stud planted in this kind of map. Finally, a modern statue of an angel with a trumpet has been placed in a position overlooking the map.
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The angel is there for a precise reason. As a matter of fact, the name ‘Chernobyl’ in the local idiom corresponds to ‘Wormwood’. From the Book of Revelation, one of the angels of the Apocalypse let a star fall upon the Earth, causing the extinction of a portion of mankind. The name of the star was – guess – ‘Wormwood’! The cold weather, the fading evening light, the dark silhouette of the angel and the ghost appearance of the nearby housing created an ideal setting for listening to this story from our guide – you too would have been deeply impressed!
Not far from the monument, you can find the local courthouse, where the technicians found responsible for the disaster were trialed. Just cross the road from that building, you can find a statue of Lenin, and close by a big communication center from soviet times, still featuring its huge metal antenna.
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Cooling Towers of the Nuclear Power-Plant
Moving north from Chernobyl town, you soon get into the innermost part of the zone, centered around the former nuclear power-plant. You realize you are getting closer as you start seeing a huge funnel emerging from the top of the trees in the distance.
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
This funnel is one of a couple, and they were never finished. This is actually one of the parts of the power-plant which is easier to visit. Access is cross an artificial channel for the cooling of the plant. You will need to walk along a modern and active railway track, leading to the power-plant some miles further. It is only when you are close to the funnels that you realize how monster-size they are. One of the funnels is largely unfinished, whereas the second one is much higher, and close to completion. We also accessed the latter.
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
For me, this was the first time ever I walked close to such a plant, and the appearance – a mix of its actual size and shape – made this item really impressive! Furthermore, it may look surprising but the walls of the funnels are suspended on a tubular structure all around the base, so that the walls are not planted in the ground. This is in accordance with the working principle of the funnel, which is basically a heat exchanging surface. The wind blowing through the tubular structure at the base increases air circulation.
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Walking past the concrete tubes supporting the funnel, you can even better appreciate its size.
The inner surface of the funnel should have been covered with heat-exchangers. As a matter of fact, at the time of the accident work on this highly contaminated part of the plant was immediately suspended, and never resumed. Only a little part of the heat-exchangers is in place – the scaffolds for masons and plumbers working at the construction of the funnel and of the exchangers are still in place close to the top rim!
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
An oversized pipe emerges from the ground inside the funnel, likely the primary duct of hot cooling water coming from the plant. It is surrounded by a complex concrete structure. An artistic mural from a famous photograph, portraying a doctor assisting the victims of the nuclear emergency, has been authorized on the base of this concrete structure.
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactor Funnel Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
A particular making this part of the visit especially disturbing is that this is one of the radiation hot-spots of the exclusion zone! The guide will let you go in for a limited time, while waiting for you at a distance – going there more frequently, it would turn dangerous for him on the long run. Your guide’s Geiger counter will emit a worrying whistle close to the funnel, which despite other visited places in the zone, was never seriously decontaminated. On top of the cake, the ground at the center of the funnel is covered in moss, reportedly a natural collector of radiation contaminated powder! Our guide recommended not to step over moss, something we took very seriously – as you see, there are no pictures from the center of the funnel…
The freezing wind blowing through the slot at the base made the visit of the funnel particularly uncomfortable – where in most places of the zone we would have liked to stay days instead of hours, here we were glad our guide gave us only ten minutes!
Nuclear Power-Plant
The centerpiece of the exclusion zone is clearly the plant, officially named after Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, but known to the general public through the name of the ancient village nearby – Chernobyl.
Construction of the plant was started in 1970, and the first reactor (N.1) was commissioned in 1977, followed by N.2 in 1978. A second couple of a slightly modified model were commissioned in 1981 (N.3) and 1983 (N.4) respectively. The latter – the youngest – was the one that failed on April 26th, 1986.
The four running reactors at the time of the accident constituted the first unit of the overall design for the power-plant. They physically shared room in a single, enormously long building, where they were arranged in a row, with N.4 at the western end.
The catastrophic failure of N.4 did not mean the immediate cease of operations for the power-plant, as the other reactors went on producing power until they were gradually deactivated (N.2 in 1991, N.1 in 1996 and finally N.3 in 2000). Following the 1986 accident, N.4 was encapsulated by the Soviets in an emergency containment structure, which despite generally doing its job was affected by significant leaking problems. Only in 2016-17 the so-called ‘New Safe Containment’, a huge hangar-like structure capable of more effectively containing radiation, was placed over N.4, immediately showing its effectiveness through a stark reduction of the measured emission, now at much more acceptable levels even in the close vicinity of the plant.
The size of the building can be better appreciated from the distance.
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Reactors N.1 and N.2 can be spotted beneath the cubic domes to the end of the building opposite to the New Safe Containment.
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Close by the plant, a large node of the Ukrainian distribution grid, with cables, capacitors and connectors, is still active today.
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
For some reason, the plant cannot be photographed – there are clear signs all around its perimeter. This may be due to the fact this is still an active plant – the power-plant is off, but decommissioning activities are making this area one of the busiest and ‘lively’ in the exclusion zone. There is only one position where you can take a picture, and which is actually very close to the place of the disaster. This observation point is close to the containment structure of reactor N.4, where you can find also a monument to the heroes of the accident.
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
From here you can appreciate the top-ranking size of this structure. Besides the immense financial cost, this item will need replacement in less than a century, due to natural loss of its containment function.
As said, this first block of four reactors was just part of the intended design. A second block of two further reactors (N.5 & 6) was already under construction at the time of the accident. This was cross an artificial channel, and closer to the cooling funnels portrayed above. Similar to the funnels, construction work on the new reactors ended abruptly on the very day of the accident.
Today, you can spot the concrete casing of N.5 & 6, with many cranes and scaffolds still suspended around, just like construction of the new building was still going on! A rather strange sight…
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Power Plant View Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Road Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Further six reactors had been envisaged on the drawing board, but they never materialized.
Kopachi Village Kindergarten
Less than two miles south of the funnels, deep into the ‘highly-contaminated’ sector, you meet what remains of the former village of Kopachi, one of the many pre-existent settlements totally abandoned due to the accident. Kopachi used to be a village of wooden houses. Wooden houses close to the plant had adsorbed much radioactive powder soon after the accident. With the passing of time, the naturally disintegrating wood had started to spread radiation in the air, so the administration of the exclusion zone had the village literally wiped out and buried. Only a few non-wooden buildings are still standing.
Among them is listed most notably a kindergarten. Despite being close to the main road and much visited, this place is rather eerie. Despite the relatively high level of radiation especially close to the ground, you can get access for a few minutes.
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Inside the classrooms, music sheets, dolls and children’s toys can be seen everywhere. Hangers with funny symbols for the children’s small coats make for a disturbing sight, similar to the sleeping room with small beds aligned in rows, and even some blanket still there. There is also a ‘Menu’ board still hanging on the wall…
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Ahead of the kindergarten, a Soviet war memorial has been inherited by the Ukrainian government, and adorned with the national blue and yellow flag.
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Contaminated Kindergarten Monument Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Village
The abandoned village of Zalissya is located about 1.5 miles southwest of Chernobyl town, and is conveniently reachable along the main road from there to the Dytyatky entry point.
Likely dating from the years of the Tzar, this village is a prototypical example of a rural settlement in pre-Soviet and early-Soviet times. The only noticeable construction from the main road is a Soviet war memorial, pretty plain in design, yet not small.
Chernobyl Chornobyl Monument Ghost Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
To the left side of the monument you can take an unpaved alley leading into the trees. You soon meet an array of small buildings, once hosting public services – a post office, a market. Soon after, you come across the most conspicuous of the buildings in the village – a meeting hall. This is rather disproportionate to the size of the private houses you will see later. The front facade of the building carries a huge communist emblem, and the construction year, 1959.
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Similar meeting halls were not uncommon in Soviet villages, and were intended for meetings of cultural-political kind, where local people got brainwashed by communist politicians. There are at least three adjoining halls in the building. The larger of the three features a stage with a soviet slogan still hanging from the ceiling!
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The decor of the halls is in stark contrast to the simple make of the houses nearby. As you proceed further into the trees, you finally find the village of Zalissya – a group of old wooden chalets. Similar – maybe more – than in Pripyat, you find much hardware left behind by the evacuated population – bottles, pans, pots, cans, baskets, cutlery, clothes, candles, toys,…
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Among the strange items to be found here, you will see an abandoned car – cars were left behind during the evacuation, which was carried out by public transport. As a result, the personnel in charge of the decontamination and survey operations after the accident had at their disposal plenty of abandoned cars! When one broke, it was simply left for another, and used for spare parts. This apparently was the fate of the one you see here…
Zalissya Abandoned Village Town Contaminated Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Accessing the houses maybe tricky, as some are badly damaged due to the years spent in disrepair. Nonetheless, this village provokes an incredible time-capsule effect, offering a hands-on glimpse into the everyday life of common soviet people from a rural setting in the years of the Cold War!
Isolated School & Kindergarten
As previously said, the exclusion zone features a quantity of larger and smaller villages. All of them have been abandoned, and some, originally close to the roads once forming a network in the countryside, are today hard to reach except with a walk in the trees – they are not accessible by car.
An inconvenient location has spared some of the spots in the exclusion zone from being battered by day-trippers. You can reach them only with a guide. As a result, these places are especially exciting to visit, as they feature an intense ghost aura – just like inhabitants had just left!
Over our trip, we visited one such village, and in particular we were directed by our guide to spend some time in the school and kindergarten, put on the side of a former small sporting ground, now invaded by vegetation. The evening light and the loneliness played a part in making this one of the eeriest parts of the overall visit to the exclusion zone!
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Starting from the school, by the entrance hall you soon meet tons of posters and notice-boards, with quotes from Lenin speeches, flags and emblems.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Adjacent to the hall are two smaller rooms, with literally thousands of letters, copybooks, books, boards, postcards,… most of them hand written! You could easily spend one day taking an inventory of what is in there!
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The long building features only one floor, and the classrooms are organized mostly based on themes like geography, biology, language, physics,…
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Especially interesting is the language classroom. Most apparently, they used to teach English there! Considering the very low penetration of English in today’s ex-USSR countries – except maybe in the most touristic towns – and the fact that this was the language of the ‘western enemies’, it is surprising to find this level of commitment in teaching this idiom, especially in this small peripheral school.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
A very intriguing lab is that devoted to chemistry and biology. Here you can find models of molecules, microscope specimens, collections of plants and seeds, minerals, etc. The silence, the evening light filtering through the windows on a cold autumn day completed the picture at the time of our visit..
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Similarly interesting are the geography classroom, stacked with boards, similar to the main corridor of the building.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
To the far end of the school, you can find what appears to be a kind of ‘propaganda lab’ – a relatively large room with tons of purely-Soviet items – history books, portraits of heroes, bombastic propaganda posters, and so on. It is apparent that teachers started pouring in some ideas in the minds of soviet children already from an early age…
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Close by, the physics lab makes for another interesting sight, with kinematics and thermodynamics small-scale experiments bolted to the desks.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Compared to the school, the kindergarten is somewhat more morbid.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Puppets, toy trucks, dolls and even baby-size slippers make for a few sights that speak by themselves.
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Isolated School Kindergarten Abandoned Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Children’s Camp ‘Emerald’
Not far north of Chernobyl town and close to the main road going to the plant, you can find another unique sight – a summer camp made for children from the large area around Chernobyl, before the nuclear disaster changed everything forever.
The location is not far from river Pripyat. It is today immersed in a tall forest, which makes contributes to the dim and shady aura of this place. Of course, some trees used to be there also before the accident, but today some have grown also in unusual places. The summer camp is made of pretty log cabins, placed on the side of a hill, gently descending towards the river. Nice place, except for a nuclear plant a few miles apart.
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The cabins are basic and today generally empty, but they feature original wall paintings with animals and some popular characters from fairy tales.
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
In between some of the cabins, grouped in small clusters, you can find a playground, as well as some notice-boards and water fountains.
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
There are also some service buildings – a small market and an administration cabin.
Abandoned Ghost Summer Camp Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Abandoned Barges on Pripyat River
The famous ghost town of Pripyat took its name from a nice river, a tributary of the majestic Dnepr, which flows from Russia all across Ukraine (via Kiev) and to the Black Sea. The Pripyat river features a meandering path, and thanks to its slow stream, it is ideal for water transportation of people and goods. As a matter of fact, hydrofoils were used by the locals for commuting before the accident, and barges were used for supplies of any kind, both for the local companies and people. Hydrofoils were especially characteristic of the area – you can find an image of a hydrofoil in the welcome sign entering Chernobyl town (see above).
Following the accident to the power-plant, most barges in the vicinity were contaminated, and also lost any use due to the escape of the population from the badly contaminated area. As a result, most of these ships turned into floating wrecks, slowly descending downstream and finally stranding somewhere on the banks of the river and its smaller tributaries.
A concentration of these relics can be found very close to Chernobyl town, descending to the bank of a receptacle of river Pripyat from the town.
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The rusty, partly sunken barges make for a rather dramatic sight. The evening light of a freezing late-November day made this visit even more impressive.
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Drifting Barges Stranded Boats Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Visiting
The sites you see portrayed in this and other chapters (see here) were visited on a personalized two-days photographic tour to the Chernobyl exclusion zone with a guide. To make the most of your time in the zone, and especially if you are looking for good photo sets (including the correct timing over the day accounting for sunlight), I suggest considering this type of tour instead of more common and cheaper day-trips from Kiev. The exclusion zone is simply too extensive and rich of photo opportunities for a one-day visit, plus some places might get (somewhat surprisingly) very crowded at some point during the day, spoiling most scenes of their mystery aura.
We visited in a party of two, with the very competent guide Mikhailo Teslenko. Find in this dedicated section from another post rather complete indications for a visit, and the link to Mr. Teslenko’s website here.
Especially after the acclaimed HBO series of 2019, the events of the Chernobyl accident, as well as the drama of the local population and emergency staff, are at least basically known to the general public.
Since the nuclear disaster, a large area, comparing well in size with Greater London (but somewhat larger), has been severed from the rest of the world by means of a security cordon, forming the so-called ‘exclusion zone’, on the border between Ukraine and Belarus.
Access to the zone is strictly regulated. You have to carry a radiation dosimeter. Nobody can spend more than some days in a month in it, and no more than four days in a row. Some areas should not be accessed at all, and inside the exclusion zone are two sub-regions, an outer one where also Chernobyl town is, and an inner one, more severely contaminated. The latter is closer around the power-plant, and includes world-famous Pripyat – the mother of all ghost towns. To access this inner zone you are checked further, and stricter permanence restrictions apply.
Despite that, and the obvious – but not so dramatic – unhealthiness of the area, there are many businesses still going on, mainly around the power-plant – decommissioning the whole plant and monitoring the ill-fated reactor 4 is still producing a constant flow of work man-hours – but also in the agencies devoted to studying and monitoring the natural reaction to a never otherwise reached level of scattered radiation. As a matter of fact, huge parts in and around the exclusion zone have been turned into a special natural preserve. There are also services in several centers scattered over the zone, like canteens, hotels, transport companies, ranger stations, etc.
Not least, the Ukrainian Government is somewhat promoting visits to the area by the general public, and following the 30 years anniversary of the accident in 2016, touristic flows have literally exploded, with tens of thousands visitors per year. Clearly, you are not allowed to enter or move around on your own. There are two basic philosophies for visiting.
For those who just like the thrill of being in a contaminated place, an eerie ghost town or in proximity to a damaged nuclear plant for a while, there are quite a few options to get to the zone from Kiev on a one-day guided trip. You won’t see much more than the very basic highlights of the show, but you will be entitled to say ‘I’ve been there’. For those with an interest in taking great pictures, urban explorers, Soviet fans (?) or people with an interest in the history of the accident, private custom-designed multiple-day tours are available, managed by competent authorized guides. Considering the size of the exclusion zone, it is going to be a rush anyway, and you will leave with the sensation of having missed at least as much as what you have seen, but you will definitely see more than on a one-day trip, and not only the most obvious highlights. This was my option when I visited in November 2019 (more practical info at the end of the chapter – scroll down for this), and photographs in this post and related posts on this site (see here for chapter two) cover this incredible experience.
Soviet Over-the-Horizon Anti-ICBM Early Warning System ‘Duga’
Among the highlights most typically overlooked on a short visit to the zone is a one-of-a-kind relic of the Cold War. The Soviet early-warning radar Duga-3, aka ‘the Russian Woodpecker’ (or the ‘Steel Works’ or ‘Steel Yards’ to Western intelligence), started the testing phase in 1976, well into the electronic age. This system was intended to counteract the American intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) threat, by detecting a single or more missiles soon after launch from the continental US. This implied detection beyond the line of the horizon, hence the name of this class of defense system – OTH, ‘over the horizon’ back-scatter radar. The physical effect exploited by this device was an alteration of the ionosphere by missile exhaust plumes, studied since the late 1940s, and such to be detectable by the back scatter of a purpose-designed radar beam.
The radar was made of a couple of two gigantic receiver antennas, one a little bigger than the other, and of a set of emitters. The couple of receivers make for a staggering total length of about 2’200 ft! The two antennas worked on two different frequency ranges. The bigger one was the low-frequency antenna, about 450 ft tall, whereas the smaller high frequency one was ‘only’ about 270 ft tall! As a matter of fact, they can be spotted from quite a distance, for example from the taller buildings of Pripyat.
The receivers were built about 7 miles in a straight line northwest of Chernobyl town – and they found themselves about the same distance southwest of the power-plant, today in the inner, highly contaminated circle within the exclusion zone. A segregated residential area for military technical staff and their families, known as Chernobyl-2, was built nearby. A large and sophisticated control center, as well as a training academy for the technical staff, was installed on site too.
The emitter antenna was located some tens of miles to the northeast of the receiver, closer to the village of Rozsudiv (aka Rasudovo), out of the exclusion zone. Nothing of the original antenna remains there today.
Building this radar system close to a Gigawatt-size nuclear power-plant might have been done in purpose, for the system needed an outraging electric power supply to work (in the order of some tens of Megawatts). By the way, the system reportedly cost to the USSR about twice the money needed for building the nuclear power-plant…
Historical Overview
The Duga system was built in only two operational examples. A set of smaller-scale prototype installations had been originally completed as Duga-N and Duga-2, both located in the village of Kalynivka, near Mykolaiv (aka Nikolayev), southern Ukraine. These systems were successfully tested in the early 1970s, detecting simultaneous launches of four missiles from Baikonur, some 1’600 miles away. As a result of the success, it was decided to deploy two full-scale Duga-3 installations, capable of covering the North American sector. The two selected locations were Chernobyl, Ukraine, and Bolshaya Kartel, in the easternmost part of Russia. As said, these were completed around 1976.
In the event, the whole OTH detection system never went fully operative. Major technical issues related to the instability of the ionosphere in the polar region – an effect that inland-looking testing with the experimental small-scale Duga systems had not highlighted – made the north-pointed Duga-3 largely unreliable. The Soviets military finally accepted the Bolshaya Kartel installation in 1980, whereas testing went on for years in the Chernobyl installation, until it was hastily shut off following the power-plant accident in 1986. Parts of the Chernobyl system were transferred to the twin site in Bolshaya Kartel. The latter ceased operations in 1989, even before the end of the USSR, without having been fully commissioned ever.
The contamination of the plant in Chernobyl-2 made its disassembly economically disadvantageous. As a result, this humongous witness of the Cold War is still standing today, notably the last of the group of OTH early warning radars deployed by the USSR in the years of the confrontation with the West, now totally or partly demolished – for sure, this is the only surviving ‘Steel Works’ antenna.
Similar to all villages in the Chernobyl exclusion zone, the military town of Chernobyl-2 was evacuated and abandoned following the nuclear accident in 1986. It had been built anew for the 1’500 staff of the Duga classified radar station and their families, and as such it was a segregated, secret military town, sufficiently small and far from larger Chernobyl and Pripyat to attract little attention. The local firefighters station was reportedly the only one from the area not taking part in the emergency operations connected with the 1986 accident – it had to devote itself completely to the local military installation and village. This illustrates how serious the concepts of ‘secret’ and ‘segregated’ were for the Soviet military staff!
There are three main focuses in the exploration of this site – the monster antennas, the radar control center & training academy, and the Chernobyl-2 village. In my view, the mixture of a secret Cold War military past, unique Star-Wars-like vintage hi-tech, a history of forced abandonment and nuclear contamination, together with the general ‘something wrong’ atmosphere of the exclusion zone, makes this area one of the most intriguing on the ‘Chernobyl-menu’ of weird sights!
Access and Radar Antennas
You get access to the area after leaving the main road connecting Chernobyl town to the power-plant soon after the inner-zone checkpoint. You drive some miles deep in the trees along a typical Soviet military road, made of prefabricated concrete slabs. The evergreen trees effectively hide the giant antennas, which you spot only when basically at a walking distance from the target.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
You may stop immediately ahead of the original fence of the segregated area – the gate still bolsters the Red Star Soviet military markings! A likely apocryphal huge head of Lenin has been placed besides the entrance. From there on, you must go by foot. By the way, there are a few guards living (at least on shifts, in accordance with contamination limiting regulations) in the original checkpoint by the gate!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Walking to the bigger low-frequency antenna – the taller one, located closer to the site entrance – you pass by a nice Soviet military-themed mural.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Walking closer to the antenna, and going past an abandoned inner control booth, you start to realize the abnormal size of this item – as well as its rather complicated make.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The overall shape is roughly rectangular. To the far ends you can find two pylons, as tall as the central part of the antenna, and holding an array of horizontal cables.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The most visible part of the antenna is composed of an incredible tubular structure, apparently made of several pod-like substructures. Seen together in the pics, these pods may deceive their actual size – their diameter compares to the height of an adult man!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The pods are connected by cables and pipes. The arrangement make for impressive pattern geometries – almost a nice design object!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Walking along the base of this thing, you will notice it changes shape depending on your point of view. Taking the whole larger antenna in a single photo frame is not an easy task, even with a wide lens – it is really big!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Right besides the taller and longer low-frequency antenna, you find another cable-holding pylon, as well as the ‘smaller twin’, i.e. the high-frequency antenna.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Our visit was rather early in the morning of a very cold late November day, and the sight of this monster antennas was made even weirder by the unreal silence of the area, broken only by the low metallic clacking sound of this mega-structure, dilating after catching the first beams of the morning light… Visiting later in the day would have not been the same – when we left, some other small groups of visitors could be seen around, somewhat breaking the mystery atmosphere.
Past the antenna, you find a concrete technical building running all along it, with a very long corridor.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Control Center and Technical Buildings
The major building in the technical area to the back of the antenna hosts the radar operation and control center. Originally, this sheltered arrays of signal-conditioning electronics, computers and related technical stuff, as well as control rooms much similar to NASA space mission control centers you can see in Houston, TX or Cape Canaveral, FL.
Accessing the building, you will be overwhelmed by the number of photo opportunities. A pinnacle for Soviet vintage fanatics is a couple of fine murals – despite most of Soviet military-related artistic works are really naive, there exist exceptions, and these two murals are among them. One of the paintings is fancy-space themed, whereas the other is science-themed.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
A highlight is of course the huge control room. Original control stations for the subsystems can still be seen, with plenty of vintage cathode tubes. The main report panel, once occupying the entire end wall of the room, has been largely dismantled, but traces of electronics can clearly be seen.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
In the same building, you can find dark rooms with arrays of cabinets once holding electronic boards or electric material.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Another highlight is a kind of propaganda room – not uncommon in Soviet military towns, see this post. Here you can find quotes of Lenin, articles from the Soviet law, as well as photographs and descriptions of US and NATO military assets. A stained glass board portrays the might of the Red Army, whereas another poster denigrates the ‘Yankees’…
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
From the top of the control building, you can enjoy a nice mid-height view of the antennas.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Back inside, you find another interesting room, with a scale model of the Darth, the Duga radar system and its function. In the same room you can find many control panels. Also interesting are the decorated glass windows, with military-themed stained glasses.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Training Center
Walking back to where you had started your exploration of the antennas, you find a flat building, originally hosting a training center for the technical staff operating the Duga. A training room is a major highlight of the show. Here you can find descriptions of the working principles of the OTH antennas, as well as a sample list of the US/NATO strategic missile and anti-missile assets! This is really interesting, also because portraits are made by hand and complemented by basic technical data.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
There are also technical schemes, and some further purely decorative portraits in naive style.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Military buffs – like myself – would easily loose track of time in this ‘didactic area’! Among the interesting things carelessly left on ground, tons of original Soviet radio and signal conditioning material!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl-2 – Firefighters Station and Village
Leaving the innermost technical area, you may then walk to Chernobyl-2, the segregated military village. A rather interesting place here is the firefighters station. Very well preserved, you can find in it an incredible scale model of the Duga and of the village, i.e. the area in the range covered by this station. In the same room, you can find tons of technical posters, and a nice epic mural dedicated to firefighters.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl-2 is a ghost town in its own respect. Made of large prefabricated blocks, it is not even one-tenth of Pripyat in size, but it resembles similar military towns in former Soviet-occupied areas of Europe (see for instance this post). Not much visited and very quiet, it makes for a really mysterious sight.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Moving around the deserted blocks, you come across a small playground – basically intact, as if children had left the day before, a really impressive time-capsule effect!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl-2 – School
But the time-machine effect reaches its top in a visit of the local school. Similar to other schools in villages of the exclusion zone, this is really in good shape, and offers tons of interesting sights for explorers. In the music room you can see portraits of Russian and European composers – strangely enough, including Stravinsky and Rachmaninoff, which left the USSR for the West… – a vertical piano, and tons of didactic stuff in the cabinets.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
A very Soviet room features a kind of celebration of youth service.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
There is also a math/science room, with books, models, portraits.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Most surprisingly to Westerners, you can find a language teaching room, where apparently English was taught. Considering the limited penetration of English in today’s Russia, and the fact that this was the language of enemy propaganda from the Soviet standpoint, this room makes for a rather puzzling sight!
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Other rooms include a biology lab – with some botanical specimens still in place! – and much more.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
There is also the unmissable school gym, rather well preserved.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Chernobyl-2 – Entertainment Center
A final highlight of the village of Chernobyl-2 is the entertainment center. This offered a theater and a large gym, together in the same building. Both are still in a relatively good shape. A nostalgic quote on a red banner is still hanging from the ceiling in the large theater.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
The gym is decorated with naive sport-themed paintings, as well as Russian bears on stained glasses.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Going back to the entrance, you meet more service buildings, which have been converted to deposits of scrap material.
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Radar Duga Woodpecker Early Warning Soviet Military Red Army Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
All in all, the Duga radar and Chernobyl-2 military village are for sure an unmissable sight for technically-minded people and Cold War historians!
Visiting
As said in the introduction, this site is often overlooked on one-day trips. However, if you are interested in something more than just being in the exclusion zone, and especially if you want to take good pictures, you will definitely need to take a longer tour. The Duga radar and annexed village are often a part of multiple-day tours.
Depending on the type of tour, you may customize the experience, and ask for a bit longer time here. If you are a technically-minded person, a Cold War historian, or interested in military history, this is among the most most interesting sites you will find in the exclusion zone – and by chance, in the world, since the majority of the BMEW (ballistic missiles early warning) system of the USSR have been demolished today (see for instance Skrunda, Latvia, in this post).
Personally I chose to take a private custom two-days tour to the zone in a party of two (me and a friend of mine, plus the guide). We spent a full morning in the area of the Duga. For serious explorers, I totally suggest to choose at least this option, or better a longer tour, as so long a stay in the Duga (or other similarly interesting) area, while still barely sufficient to satisfy your appetite, is simply not possible on a short and pre-programmed 1-day trip.
General Data and Advice for a Trip to the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone
Type of Trip
You can see this advice in any serious travel account from Chernobyl area, and I can confirm it – just forget to see everything on a single (even multi-day) trip to the exclusion zone, it is simply too extensive and dense of interesting sights. Yet a private two-days tour is surely already ok for a satisfying photographic trip. Of course, personally I am planning to go back for checking out other places in the zone.
Generally speaking, my first two-days visiting experience was extremely positive, largely thanks to two factors – a great travel-mate, my friend Paolo, sharing my passions and most of my crazy exploration ideas, and a great guide, Misha, who owns and operates a guided tour service in Kiev, now totally dedicated to the exclusion zone. Together with Paolo we arranged this trip two and a half months in advance, with a focus on taking pics of some specific highlights of the exclusion zone. We agreed on a schedule with Misha before being there, specifying the Duga among the highlights. Misha totally understood the spirit of our visit, and drove us to unique places, including some not often included in most trips, concentrating on photo opportunities. He took extraordinary care of avoiding the crowds. We felt safe at every time, and I must say the organization of the visit prepared by our guide was virtually flawless – no wasted time, only interesting sights, millions of photo opportunities. The only thing I regret is not having had more time!
Albeit you will be driven in a comfortable sedan around the zone, be prepared to walk a lot and quick even on bad terrain – in many instances there is no way to avoid that. If you want to take good pictures inside, you will need to take a tripod and/or a powerful flash. On top of this, go there with a very good familiarity of your photographic gear. It is essential you can take pictures reasonably fast even with a tripod, or you will not be able to get much of your time in the zone. As I work with a massive Canon reflex camera, I have multiple lenses and gear. I suggest having them in pods around your belt, to be able to switch lenses fast. Let us add that in the freezing air of late November (about 14°F in sunlight during our stay), you will need warm clothes and suitable gloves to both protect your hands from cold air and allowing operation of your camera. So, it maybe obvious to professionals, but a trip to the exclusion zone should not be your first experience with urban exploration or with your camera either, otherwise you will get disappointed very easily.
Time of the Visit
Something you may not think necessary if this is your first time to the zone – arrange your schedule to take countermeasures against the crowds! Listen to your guide’s advice in this respect, and get prepared to start your day out early, have lunch late and finish at sunset, especially if you want to get good pictures without somebody in the frame. This may not be the case in less visited Chernobyl-2 and Duga area, but the central square of Pripyat may turn as busy as in its pre-1986 heyday around noon, with several tourist buses parked side by side, and flocks of 1-day visitors everywhere with their guides – ok, it is not like Venice in the summer, but enough to strip the place of its mysterious aura, and such to severely disturb many potential photographic sets. This was in late November, our guide reported in summer is by far worse.
The best time of the year for the climate is the mid-season. Summer can be very hot and humid, winter can be really cold (well below freezing). In the cold season, the trees hide the buildings to a less extend, and this may be and advantage for pictures. Abandoned places are often invaded by vegetation, to the point you get disoriented, and perspectives tend to be obstructed.
Radiation/Safety
Concerning the radiation/safety aspect, you can be sure you will not be driven by any guide in any dangerous places. Everybody is given a personal dosimeter when entering the zone. This item works in principle like a gas meter – its internal reading runs up every time you are exposed to radiation. The more intense the radiation, the faster it runs up. It will be checked by the local Authority when you leave, and based on the time frame of your stay, the final reading must stay under an assigned threshold. If it is over, your guide will be questioned. For this simple reason, guides are very careful and arrange the visit so that the total dose is below the threshold.
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Dress Code
I went with military surplus clothes and undergarments for thermal protection. The only item I did not take back home was a pair of boots, purchased from a made in China shop for 18 dollars just for this trip. As I had imagined, they got covered in dust, and considering their value, I elected not to risk carrying them home. By the law, you should not go around with exposed legs or arms, but visiting in winter will make this rule not difficult to comply with…
Souvenirs
As obvious, you will not be leaving with any unauthorized token, for two reasons – 1) you are checked in dedicated booths when leaving the zone or when accessing the canteen (there is only one central canteen for all tourists), hence if you have sources of radioactive emission with you, you will be stopped, and 2) you need to be a real idiot to dare to take away with you and installing at home something contaminated by radiation! Of course, you will be tempted, but of course you need to resist. This is what make the exclusion zone the world’s best time-capsule from the Soviet era – more than anywhere else, everything is, and is destined to remain, largely as it used to be in 1986.
There are of course souvenir shops, at the entrance of the exclusion zone – where you will stop anyway – in the canteen and in the hotel ’10’.
Canteen
Services include the central canteen and at least a hotel. The canteen is close to the power-plant, inside the highly contaminated area but far from hot-spots. It is modern, clean, and you are given good Ukrainian food. This was included in the guided tour, so I can’t say what instrument of payment they are accepting (cash, credit, …).
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Except for the canteen and hotel, we were shown a convenience shop in Chernobyl town, but of course you are not to find much in terms of food services around. You may better carry something with you from the ‘outside world’ (water, snacks,…) if needed.
Hotel
The hotel where we stayed is located in Chernobyl town, and is called ’10’ (‘Desyat’, meaning ‘ten’ in Russian). Facilities are totally ok. We got a twin room with shared toilet services (showers and service are separated from each other, very clean and ensuring privacy – totally ok, just not one for each room). The atmosphere is friendly despite not much English spoken, and they serve dinner and breakfast at pre-determined times with a fixed menu (tasty Ukrainian food), plus there is a bar service running all the evening. Free fully working WiFi. The hotel was reserved and payed for by the guide, we only paid for bar service (water, tea, beer, …).
Our guide left us there after dark, and picked us early the next morning.
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
There is a curfew after dark, and you are locked in the building during the night – but you are never allowed to move around without a guide, so the only difference when the curfew is active is you can’t move around in the hotel parking… That said, the sight of Chernobyl at night would easily fit in a post-apocalyptic video-game or horror movie, especially in the cold season – silence, big dark Soviet-style apartment buildings with a couple of lighted windows, nobody around, a chilling wind and some dog barking in the distance… you will definitely better appreciate a cup of tea in the bar than being free to move around!
Food Visit Canteen Hotel 10 Ten Cold War Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone Pripyat
Guided Tour Suggestion
From the website of our guide Mikhailo Teslenko you will get practical info for setting up your trip to the zone. I can definitely suggest to come in contact with this guide, who is always friendly and answers professionally, very fast and with detailed info.
Czechoslovakia had existed as an independent state since the end of WWI and the dissolution of the Austrian Empire. However, this small yet economically advanced province was soon to be caught right in the middle of a storm which insisted on central Europe until the 1990s, at which time this country finally gained its true independence.
Back in the Thirties, Czechoslovakia was forcibly annexed to the Third Reich as a result of the Munich Agreement in 1938. This event can be seen a major destabilizing step in Hitler’s foreign relations, clearly showing that the situation was deteriorating fast in central Europe.
Following the troublesome years of Nazi rule, this region was captured by Soviet and US troops at the end of the war. A new republic was founded, but the local communist party was very well organized, so Czechoslovakia shared the destiny of many neighbor countries which had been occupied by the Red Army in the final stage of the war. Backed by Stalin, a communist coup d’état in 1948 led to the establishment of a Soviet-style dictatorship, which was to last until 1989, making Czechoslovakia a Soviet satellite country.
Despite the relatively small size on the map, Czechoslovakia played a significant role in the economy of the Eastern Bloc. This country had a well established tradition in the production of weapons, metal hardware and machinery. Its soil is rich in Uranium. Furthermore, the forward position on the border with non-communist Western Germany and Austria further raised its strategic significance. When a secession from Moscow was tried by the local communist government, led by reformer Alexander Dubcek in 1968 – a phase known as the ‘Prague Spring’ -, the USSR reacted with all its military might, staging a full-scale invasion of the country by land and air, overturning the high ranks of the unreliable Czechoslovakian government, and putting this valuable region under a stricter communist leadership.
Clearly, the end of the communist dictatorship is today duly celebrated as a historical achievement both in the Czech Republic and Slovakia – respectively the western and eastern portions of Czechoslovakia, which peacefully split in 1993. The more than 40 years of struggle against Soviet rule constitute the theme of several interesting permanent exhibitions, but these are not the only witnesses of those troubled times. More tangible relics – all open to the public – are former border posts with former West Germany, a one-of-a-kind original communist prison camp for political prisoners, as well as some pieces of architectures and bunkers from the Cold War age.
This post is dedicated to these highlights, all to be found in the region between Prague and the border with Bavaria, in todays Czech Republic. Photographs were collected on a short trip in summer 2018.
Far from a cheesy description of everyday life in the years of the Cold War, or an inaccurate account of the history of the communist plague as a social phenomenon, this permanent exhibition takes you in detail along the history of Czechoslovakia in the years immediately before WWII, when it basically lost its independence to the Germans, and going on to 1989, when with the so-called Velvet Revolution Czechoslovakia abandoned the Soviet sphere of influence and overthrew the communist dictatorship.
The exhibition features an equilibrated mixture of original artifacts – paintings, statues, memorabilia,… -, photographs, models, dioramas and explicative panels.
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Interestingly, speaking of the Thirties and the imposed annexation to the Third Reich, you can see models of the border forts along the former German (now Polish) border. These are covered in this dedicated post.
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
The history of the anti-fascist operations, and of the role of the communist party in them, are thoroughly analyzed, and so are the decisive years immediately following the war. It is recalled how this nation was partly invaded by US troops, hence it was contested as a pure-Soviet conquer. A short-lived free Czechoslovakian republic was founded, which fell under communist control, and in the years of Stalin, with a Soviet military presence in the country, this meant the end of any independence from the USSR.
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Similar to East Berlin, Prague ended up to host a huge monument to Stalin. This was built on top of a hill facing the city, on the north bank of the river. It was suddenly blown after the death of the Soviet dictator, leaving an empty esplanade which can be still seen today (see a section below).
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
The establishment of a communist rule since the start meant the implementation of brutal repressive measures, including prison camps for political opponents, which were largely employed as forced laborers all over the territory of the state, especially for mining activities. Preventive imprisonment, extorted confessions and executions were typical to the years of Stalin. Even the troops who had come in contact with the western Allies during the war were exonerated and imprisoned, to perfectly guarantee the stability of the communist leadership of the army. A detailed account of this little-know, large-scale repressive activity is documented also by means of reconstructed interrogation rooms, as well as spy gear used by the Czechoslovakian communist political police, the StB.
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
A related interesting chapter is that of the border shared with neighbor western countries. Similar to the German Democratic Republic (see this post), the border with West Germany and Austria was heavily guarded to stop those who wanted to flee the country. A fence of many kilometers was erected and modernized on more instances. A number of citizens were sent to prison or even lost their lives trying to escape to the West. More on this can be found today on the border with Germany (see a section below).
A significant area is devoted to the wannabe-reformer Alexander Dubcek and the 1968 ‘Prague Spring’. The aggressive Soviet reaction to the experiment, backed by the new Brezhnev leadership, provided an example for other Soviet satellite countries seeking for independence. The invasion of Czechoslovakia, called ‘Operation Danube’, was carried out as a surprise attack, paralyzing all urban infrastructures by quickly landing troops and material with a well-organized airlift on the nation’s major civil airports, including Prague and Brno. Simultaneously, land troops of many countries of the Eastern Bloc crossed the border and rapidly occupied all military installations. Guerrilla actions took place especially in Prague, but it was soon clear that an action so massive could not be counteracted by the sole Czechoslovakian forces.
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
Museum Of Communism Prague
The Soviet aggression cleared any doubt about the attitude of the new leadership of the USSR. It was generally condemned even by the communist parties of the western world, but this was not helpful for Czechoslovakia, which could not overthrow the re-established Soviet-style dictatorship until the almost simultaneous collapse of the communist regimes bound to the USSR in 1989.
Getting there and moving around
This museum is an excellent resource and a starting point for gaining an insight on the history of Czechoslovakia from the late 1930s to the 1990s. A general knowledge of the Cold War history may help to better collocate the facts reported in the exhibition on the world stage, yet even if this is the first museum of the kind you may visit, it can be extremely interesting.
It is located in central Prague, perfectly accessible with a walk in the beautiful central district from the majority of the hotels. Visiting may easily take 2 hours for an interested subject. All panels and captions are in double language, Czech and English. Website with full information here.
Nuclear Bunker for Civil Defense, Prague
Following the escalation of the nuclear stockpiles in the US and USSR, countermeasures to resist a nuclear attack were implemented in many countries. Besides specific training for both troops and civilians, shelters were built for government agencies, and for the population of most crowded areas. While typically far from sufficient to save even a minimal part of the population in case of a nuclear attack, these structures were nonetheless rather extensive and sophisticated. Especially in central Europe, within reach of nuclear missiles from the start of the rocket age (see this post), nuclear bunkers for civil defense were serious structures, today standing as tangible witnesses of the Cold War (see this post).
In Prague, the system for civil defense was implemented in the form of a series of bunkers around the city center, started in the early 1950s. Over the following decades a network was created comprising the underground railway system and several metro stops, which similar to West Berlin, could be turned into nuclear bunkers providing shelter, decontamination gear and supplies for hundreds of people for several weeks.
Of this comprehensive system only a small part can be visited today. The bunker in the Parukarka district, northeast of the city center, can be accessed from a distinctive concrete gate – today covered in ignorant graffiti – in the side of a hill. Right behind the external gate you can find a massive tight door, capable of resisting to a nuclear blast, and providing access to a stair well, leading deep underground.
A room where the main tunnel splits in multiple branches gives access to a decontamination facility, a security communication post, and an area where a small exhibition on the Cold War has been placed.
You can also try putting on a mask, and take up a rifle for a weird selfie!
Getting there and moving around
The bunker can be reached a few tram stops from the main railway station. The entrance is located next to the southwestern corner of Parukarka park on Prokopova alley, a block away from Hotel Olsanka. However, the gate is usually closed, and there is no booth or visitor center there. The bunker can be visited by appointment only, or on a regular basis by taking the special-themed communist tour of Prague (see website here). The latter was my option. This tour is offered in English and maybe other languages, and will take you on a walk to a few places usually portrayed in the historical pictures from the days of ‘Operation Danube’ of 1968, and during the Velvet Revolution of 1989. The starting point is close to the Clock Tower, on the central square of historical Prague.
The highlight of the multi-hour tour is the civil defense bunker, which makes the tour appealing. For the rest, except for little information, the tour is not excessively interesting, especially if you have already a good knowledge of the history of the Cold War and of Czechoslovakia at that time. It may the depend on the guide – mine was a relatively young man, who albeit prepared, did not seem to be able to give answers to more detailed or technical questions. Furthermore, the time spent inside the bunker is limited, and very scant explanations are provided about the exhibitions and artifacts on display there. Time is not enough for good photographs. The website of the bunker, for more info or for booking a private visit, is here.
Soviet-Related Buildings and Monuments, Prague
A few buildings in Prague have a historical significance bound to the Cold War, either for the role they had in the years of the communist dictatorship, or for the fact they were erected in Soviet style.
A first example is the headquarter of the StB, the political police of Czechoslovakia, similar to the KGB, Stasi or Securitate of other communist countries. This is located in central Prague, and occupies a building which had been previously built for another purpose.
Secret Communist Police STB Headquarters Prague
To the northwest of the historical district, on the northern bank of the river, you can find a prominent example of Soviet architecture – Hotel International. This was designed in the years of Stalin, and this is reflected in the typical Stalinist tower architecture (see this post). It had been intended as a building of the department of defense, to host high-ranking military staff. It never covered this role, and after the construction years, lasting 1952-1956, it was inaugurated as a luxury hotel, with the same name it bears today.
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
After the end of communism in Europe, the hotel has been refurbished, returning the exteriors to the original appearance. The star on top the central spire is original too. The frieze features hammers and sickles, as well as other examples of typical communist iconography.
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Hotel International Prague
Today a rather unapparent square with a nice view of the old city, the base of the monument to Stalin with the giant staircases leading to it from the water level can be found on the northern bank of the river. This area is today partly degraded, and used for temporary art installations. Only pictures from the time allow to get an idea of the monster size of the sculpture group once standing there, with Stalin and other folks overlooking the city.
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
Former Stalin’s Monument Prague
The monument was blown after Stalin was condemned by the Communist Party of the USSR, soon after his death.
Among the relatively few statues and prominent buildings dating back to the years of communist dictatorship is a couple of cosmonauts. This can be found in the southern periphery of the city, immediately out of the metro station Haje. The neighborhood is mainly residential, dating from Soviet times. Notwithstanding the general decency of the area, these two astronauts are somewhat forgotten, close to an overgrown hedge.
Prague Soviet Relic Astronaut Statue Gagarin
Prague Soviet Relic Astronaut Statue Gagarin
Prague Soviet Relic Astronaut Statue Gagarin
Prague Soviet Relic Astronaut Statue Gagarin
Getting there and moving around
The mentioned communist architectural highlights in Prague are somewhat scattered.
The StB headquarters are located on the corner between Bartolomějská Ulice and Na Perstyne, at the very center of the historical district. The former Stalin monument can be reached climbing uphill from the northern end of Chechuv Most bridge, a short walk from the historical district. Besides the questionable interest for what remains of the monument, climbing up is advisable at least for the exceptional view you can enjoy from the balcony.
The Hotel International is located further north of the city center, where Koulova alley meets Cinska road. The nice residential area is served by a number of tram and bus stops, but reaching may be easier by car. Clearly, you can also elect to stay at the hotel.
The two cosmonauts can be found in the southern peripheral district Haje, just outside of the homonym metro stop, close to a larger bus stop area. Again, reaching is less time consuming by car.
Vojna Prison Camp, Pribram
A one-of-a-kind memorial in the panorama of former communist-led countries is preserved just south of the small town of Pribram, about 40 miles southwest of Prague. This is a full scale prison camp for forced laborers, instituted by the communist dictatorship in the years of Stalin, back in 1947. The prisoners of this camp were interned only for political reasons. Together with other similar installations, it supplied workforce for the extraction of uranium ore from mines nearby. The number of inmates increased steadily until the early 1960s, reaching the order of 1,500, until a series of amnesties were promulgated and prison camps were closed in Czechoslovakia.
The camp went on to be operated as a military depot, and reopened as a national memorial in the late 1990s.
Close to the entrance, which is via the original gate in the outer fence of the camp, a former industrial building has been substituted by a modern building with roughly the same shape, hosting a conference center and the visitor center. When on a self-guided tour, you are advised to start your visit with an exhibition on the history of the Czechoslovakian prison camps, hosted in the former guard quarters. The exhibition provides models, pictures and quick numbers to get an idea of the proportion of the repression and internment of political prisoners, as well as of the forced labor system set up by the communist leadership.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
A memorial to those who perished as a result of political repression and imprisonment in the area of Pribram concludes this part.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
The partly original and partly reconstructed buildings on display include a complete external perimeter, a prison and a rigor cell.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Inside an inner guarded perimeter, a few barracks for the inmates have been reconstructed or refurbished, and are used to showcase temporary and permanent exhibitions. One of great interest at the time of my visit described in detail the days of the liberation from the Nazi occupation – US troops briefly took over control of the area, and they met the Soviet army nearby Pribram.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
There are also service buildings for the guards, with a small movie theater and a canteen.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Another interesting part is the original emergency room and clinic. The face of Stalin in the doctor’s room is particularly disturbing. Besides the generally harsh living conditions, illnesses and injuries typical to mine works were rather common. Inexperience of the forced laborers clearly added to the injury rates.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
In a building to the far end of the camp you can find an exhibition about mining activities in the area and uranium extraction in Czechoslovakia, which represented an asset of this country in the eyes of the USSR.
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Vojna Communist Prison Camp Uranium Mine Pribram Czech
Getting there and moving around
The prison camp is opened as a national memorial. It can be reached by car along highway N.4 in 30 minutes from central Prague in the small village of Lesetice, immediately south of Pribram. There are opening times, but you can visit either on a self-guided basis or with a guide. I was not given the option of a guided tour in English though, so I enjoyed a self-guided tour. There is some paneling in English, but not extensively covering all parts of the installation. Access to the rigor cell is only possible with a guide, but you may join a guided tour only for that small part of the exhibition, just to get access.
A complete visit on a self-guided basis may take about 1.5 hours for the interested subject, including time for taking all the pictures.
Please note they accept only cash. Website in English with full information here.
Iron Curtain Museum, Rozvadov
This atypical museum is located right on the border with Germany, between the Czech village of Rozvadov and the German town of Frankenreuth, Bavaria. Back in the years of the Cold War, the highway E50 today crossing the border nearby did not exist, and this border post was a major checkpoint on the line between the Eastern Bloc and the West.
The museum is deceptively located in the basement of the gas station immediately cross the border on the Czech side. The gas station itself used to be the custom and border control station, as you can see from historical pictures inside the museum.
The museum is constituted of a collection of photographs and artifacts. The exhibits cover roughly two themes – communism in Czechoslovakia and the Cold War as a global confrontation.
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Red banners, small sculptures, photographs and propaganda posters have been collected from various locations in Czechoslovakia. These include official portraits of the communist presidents of Czechoslovakia, and memorabilia belonging to their offices.
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
A good collection of weapons and communication gear belonging to border guards and local troops of both sides of the Iron Curtain is also on display. Communist-themed commemorative medals and dinnerware are part of the collection.
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
The part on the global confrontation is smaller, and include photographs from sister museums in other countries including the US, a small documentation on the history of nuclear tests and the nuclear stockpiles in the Cold War period.
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
Iron Curtain Museum Rozvadov Muzeum Zelezne Opony Border Communist Germany Czech
On the outside, a few vehicles of the former border guards can be found (no pictures due to heavy rain).
Getting there and moving around
This nice small museum is surely worth visiting for the interested subject, even though it does not concentrate much on the history of the local border post. The website in Czech language can be found here, basic visiting info can be easily found with some Google translation. It can be reached by car on the road connecting Frankenreuth, Bavaria, and Rozvadov, immediately cross the border on the Czech side. Signs to the entrance can be found around the local gas station. Entry is behind the building of the gas station. Visiting on a self-guided basis will not take more than 45 minutes for the interested subject.
Please note that they accept only cash.
Museum of the Border Guard, Rozvadov
This museum is actually a preserved former barrack of the border guards. Not only it looks like the building is still being operated, it actually is, albeit only for reunions of the former guards and local ranger corps, which today keep it open.
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Thanks to this special condition, the place is very vivid and makes for an extremely interesting visit. Besides the sleeping quarters, you can find a series of rooms with rifles and technical material, including radio and communication equipment.
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
If you are lucky, the guide will give you a demonstration of how parts of this technical gear work.
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
A former class room/meeting room hosts a reconstruction of the fences which used to run all along the border with West Germany and Austria. The level of control was totally similar to the one implemented between the two German Republics (see this post). In the same room there is a small collection of weapons you can touch.
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
In a room close by the entrance a sentinel was always keeping the assigned sector of the border under control. The various protective layers prevented anybody from escaping the communist territory. Besides watchtowers along the border line, when touched the innermost fence triggered an alarm in the sentinel’s room. This appeared as a mark on a specially designed detector, which could tell with good approximation where the fugitive was trying to cross the border. This would trigger the other guards, who would scramble out and seek for him. This sophisticated piece of machinery was manufactured in the GDR…
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Museum of the Border Guard Rozvadov Muzeum Pohraniční stráže Germany Czech Border Iron Curtain
Getting there and moving around
Reaching the place can be tricky, for there are no signs leading to it. From the road 605 in Rozvadov, follow the indications to Casino Admiral. This is located on a road climbing gently uphill from the 605. Going further on the same road, you will reach a dead-end, and a group of shabby barracks after about .3 miles. These must have been all service buildings and barracks for the border guards. One of the barracks is the museum. The exact GPS coordinates are (49.673994, 12.545367).
Information on the opening times can be found from the website of the town administration (on the right hand side of the web page).
Opening times are extremely limited. You are followed on your visit by one of the guards, some of them can speak a little English, sufficient for making the visit extremely interesting. There is no institutional ticket, but they will ask for a voluntary cash offer. Visiting may take about 30-40 minutes.
The Berlin Wall is widely known as one of the most emblematic symbols of the Cold War – a materialization of the ‘Iron Curtain’. The Wall – at least in its preliminary stage – was erected almost overnight in August 1961 by the Government of the GDR (‘German Democratic Republic’, or ‘DDR’ in German), and later developed into a complex and virtually impenetrable dividing barrier with fortifications, multiple fences, barbed wire, watchtowers, watchdogs, mines, truck stopping bars and other devices, isolating the part of Berlin attributed to the US, Britain and France from the Soviet occupation zone.
This monster, which caused many people to lose their lives, or forced them to risk everything – and leave everything behind – in the pursue of freedom, remained in place and was steadily updated until its triumphal demolition in November 1989.
What is less known is that the reason for building the Wall was the urge of the GDR to stop emigration towards West Germany (‘FRG’, Federal Republic of Germany, or ‘BRD’ in German) and the free world. Actually, the Wall was built following a massive emigration wave from the harsh living conditions of the GDR, taking place during the Fifties and mounting until the Wall was built. Literally millions of people fled the regions occupied by the Soviets from the end of WWII in 1945 until 1961.
Consequently, blocking the border only in the city of Berlin would have been nonsense. As a matter of fact, at the same time as the construction of the Wall begun, the government of the GDR started one of the most gigantic ‘border-armoring’ operations in history, by ordering fortification of the whole border line between East and West Germany. The Berlin Wall was actually only the tip of the iceberg, as all the more than 800 miles long border line between East and West Germany, extending from the Baltic Sea to Bavaria and the Czech border, was blocked with the same level of restraining techniques deployed in Berlin, to the explicit aim of preventing people from crossing the fence and going East to West. For the Communist government, East Germany had to be reconfigured basically as a nationwide prison.
This incredible operation, which engaged thousands border troops and tons of equipment, plus required continuous updates of the patrolling technologies, was reportedly so expensive that it contributed effectively to the collapse of the economy of the GDR. It crystallized the so-called ‘Inner Border’ between the two German republics, which had existed since 1945, but had never been so deadly. After the introduction of this strict border patrolling policy the number of people killed or wounded, and of those arrested because trying to cross the border, increased steadily until the re-opening of the border, following rapidly after the demolition of the Wall in Berlin in 1989.
Berlin is today an enjoyable city, full of interesting places to visit and things to do, and its urban configuration, so strikingly bound to the Wall and its history – unlike all other capital cities in Europe, Berlin is lacking a true ‘city center’ – with the passing of time is becoming more uniform. Differences between the two sides, once obvious, now tend to vanish, at least in the most seen parts of the city, with new buildings, fashionable shops and malls, stately hotels and governmental buildings rising where once the Wall had created barren flat areas, not restored for long from the ruins of WWII. Obviously, nothing bad in this process, which also makes Berlin one of the most lively places in Europe in terms of architecture.
The grim atmosphere of the Cold War years can still be breathed in many places in town especially in the former East Berlin, but even close to the few memorials of the Wall scattered over the urban territory it’s hard to imagine how it really felt like being there when the border could not be crossed. If you want more evocative places, you should look somewhere else.
In this sense, the preserved border checkpoints and portions of the fortified Inner Border are much more evocative, and constitute a very vivid, albeit little known, fragment of memory, inviting you to think about the monstrous effects of ideology and dictatorship. All along the former border, especially in the southern regions of the former GDR, you can still spot large areas spoiled of trees, where once the border fences run. Scattered watchtowers are not an unusual sight in these areas, even though many have been demolished immediately after dismantling the border. In some focal places, often corresponding to former checkpoints where important roads crossed the border, the fences have been totally preserved or just slightly altered, for keeping historical memory.
The following photographs were taken during an exploration of some of these sites in summer 2015, winter 2016, summer 2021 and again in summer 2023. The exposition follows a southern-northern direction along the former Inner Border.
Map
The following map shows the location of the sites described below. For some sites you can zoom in close to the pinpointed positions on the map to see more detailed labels. Directions to reach all the sites listed are provided section by section. The list is not complete, but refers to the sites I have personally visited. Border sites in Berlin are not included.
Mödlareuth is actually the name of a small village placed along the former Inner Border between Bavaria and Thuringia. The site is not difficult to reach by car, a 4 miles detour from highway N.9, going from Munich to Berlin. Just proceed to the village of Modlareuth, which is dominated by the ‘Deutsch-Deutsches Museum Mödlareuth’ (website here). This encompasses an open-air exhibition of the former border area, plus an indoor exhibition with patrolling vehicles, artifacts, videos and temporary exhibitions. Large free parking on site.
For photographing purposes, I would suggest approaching from the south, from the village of Parchim via H02. Mödlareuth is located in a natural basin surrounded by low hills, and the H02 proceeds downhill to the site, allowing for a perfect view of the former border area.
Sights
Most of the Inner Border once run in rural areas. In that case, ‘only’ double fences, dogs, watchtowers, truck-stopping grooves and mines were ok. In the less common cases when the border crossed or passed close to villages, something similar to what had happened in Berlin was replicated on a smaller scale, and a further fortification layer in the form of a tall concrete wall, was put in place.
This happened also in Mödlareuth, where the small village was split in two parts by a wall, gaining to this town the nickname of ‘Little Berlin’. The place was rather famous in the West before 1989, and it was visited also by vice-president Bush in the years of the Reagan administration.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
As here one of the relatively few local roads not cut by the Inner Border was left, the village was also place for a border checkpoint for cars.
The open air exhibition showcases what remains of the wall – the most of it was demolished restoring the original, pre-war geography of the town -, as well as a full section of the border protection system and checkpoint. Looking from the West, you had first the real geographical border, coinciding with a creek as it was typical. Beyond it, poles with warning signs and distinctive concrete posts painted in black, red and yellow stripes (the colors of the German flag) with a metal placard bearing the emblem of the GDR. These signs had existed since the inception of the inner border to mark it, and date from older times than the other border devices. Then followed the wall. Behind it, a corridor for walking/motorized patrols and a fence. Then you had a groove in the ground, reinforced with concrete, capable of stopping a truck or a car pointing westwards from the GDR. An area of flattened sand followed next, to mark the footsteps of people approaching the border area. In different times, mines were placed in a much alike sand strip. Then followed a final fence.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Except for the wall, the above description applies with slight variants to all the length of the Inner Border.
The net used for the fences was very stiff and conceived to avoid fingers passing through, this way making climbing very difficult.
A peculiar aspect of the wall in Modlareuth is a small door in it. That was a service door for border patrols, used to access the area between the border line in the middle of the creek and the wall itself, for servicing or arresting Westerners. This happened more than once, not only here – as a matter of fact, walking past the border from the West was as easy as walking past the little creek where the border line passed. This was in all respects entering the GDR, even though the fortification line was about 30 feet further into the East. When this happened you could expect to be rapidly arrested and kept for interrogation before eventually being released in most cases. Servicing, like cutting trees and so on, in the strip between the wall and the real border was reportedly a task for very enthusiastic Communist troops, as escaping to the West from there was again as easy as a leaping past a narrow creek…
The road crossing the border in Mödlareuth is not active any more and is part of the open air exhibition. Actually the former customs house hosts the ticket office. Along the former road it is possible to observe an example of car stopping devices and original ‘stop’ and ‘no-trespassing’ signs.
The area was dominated by watchtowers. There are two in Mödlareuth, one original and inaccessible, the other probably cut in height. Both are of a relatively recent model, with a distinctive round section.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Going to the two main buildings of the museum it is possible to find other interesting items, including models of the site, and pieces of hardware like a sample of the standard border wall, and a vehicle stopping device able to cut the road in a matter of a second at a short notice.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A large depot hosts many vehicles – armored vehicles, 4×4, trucks, and even a helicopter – once part of the border patrols of the GDR, and also of the FRG. Forces of the latter did monitor the border, but as the problem was mainly with the GDR in trying to keep its citizens back, the FRG forces were as substantial as it is usual for a border between states.
There are also original road signs and warning signs, including some in English for US troops.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Finally, the museum offers a well-made 15 minutes documentary, played in English on request, with the history of the Inner Border and of the wall in Mödlareuth, with video recordings from the past which really add to the perception of how the place used to work, and show what it meant for the local population – families split overnight and for decades, as it was the case in Berlin.
When I visited in 2015 the temporary exhibition was unfortunately only in German.
There are information panels scattered all around the village providing an opportunity to better compare today’s village with how it was before 1989.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Leaving to the north-west towards Thuringia along K310, it is possible to spot a part of the most external border fence which has been preserved out of the village. You can walk freely along it. Still in Modlareuth, in the parking of the exhibition a Soviet tank still occupies one of the parking lots.
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Mödlareuth German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
I would recommend this place for a visit, it is convenient to reach and extremely interesting for the general public as well as for the most committed specialist. Visiting may take from half an hour to 1 hour 30 minutes, depending on your pace and level of interest. The countryside nearby is lovely and relaxing. The site is fully accessible and well prepared, with many explanatory information. It may be a bit crowded, as people mostly from Germany are visiting it in flocks… yet visiting is very evocative and rewarding.
Eisfeld-Rottenbach
Getting there
The Eisfeld site can be reached easily from highway N.73, less than .5 miles from exit Eisfeld-Süd. Actually, the highway didn’t exist at the time of the GDR, and the corresponding traffic ran on what is today Coburger Strasse. The very location of the former border checkpoint is today taken by a gas station, serving the highway traffic.
On site, you can still find the ‘Gedenkstätte Innerdeutsche Grenze Eisfeld-Rottenbach’, hosted in the original control tower for the border checkpoint. The tower can be visited as an automated museum, meaning that entrance is possible by putting a few coins in an automatic system to unlock the door. Despite being automated, the museum has hours of operations.
Sights
The Eisfeld site is similar to the one in Eussenhausen (see later), being the location of a former border crossing point. Actually, this checkpoint was built in a relatively later stage in the life of the inner border in 1973, to decrease congestion on major crossing points then in existence.
The highway today running nearby was not there in the Cold War years, hence the relatively smaller road running today into the service area and gas station now taking the place of the former checkpoint, used to be a major road linking the FRG and GDR near Eisfeld.
Of course, having been turned into a service station, the original function of the place is somewhat deceived. However, the control tower greeting you when approaching from the south betrays the original identity of this facility.
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
The control tower was there to oversee and keep a constant watch on border control and customs operations, taking place on the several vehicle lanes beneath. Today, it is home to a very interesting exhibition on the topic.
Most of the exhibition is centered on pictures from the time of construction, operation and final dismantlement. These are very evocative of the bygone era of the Iron Curtain.
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
On the top floor, a scale model of the former border crossing facility can be found. This is extremely interesting to understand the general arrangement of the site, and how traffic flows used to be managed on site. The normal access road from the FRG was interrupted by a preliminary checkpoint, giving access to the control area. Vehicles were split in multiple parallel queues for the official check. The lanes then rejoined and access to the GDR was via a normally-sized road. Basically the same happened in the opposite direction.
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Stopping gear for emergency – conceived especially to stop fleeing vehicles – was located in several points, as well as fences all around the area, with watchtowers and more usual stopping systems for men and vehicles. Garrisons and booths were abundant too.
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Most of this has gone today, except maybe some of the buildings of the service station, recycled from a different function.
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eisfeld-Rottbach German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
The control tower is the most conspicuous remain, together with some pieces of the Berlin wall, clearly not from here, but located here for remembrance. Visiting the small museum – unfortunately with descriptions in German only – may take about 45 minutes. Website here.
Gompertshausen
Getting there
The memorial can be found on the local road connecting Gompertshausen (Thuringia) to Alsleben (Bavaria). Parking opportunities on site.
Sights
The memorial Grenzdenkmal Gompertshausen is centered on an early-generation watchtower. The place was unlikely associated to a crossing point, and it is possible that the local road, now passing right besides the tower, was cut in the days of the GDR.
The memorial cannot be toured unless by appointment. However, its location in the middle of a peaceful agricultural area is rather suggestive of the grim atmosphere of the bygone oppressive communist regime.
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Close to the tower, a portion of the fence has been preserved, similarly to the access to an interesting underground facility – with a function which is today hard to guess from outside. A ventilation pipe is clearly visible in the premises, likely connected with this facility.
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Gompertshausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Not far from the tower, in the village of Gompertshausen, an attentive eye can spot a (likely) former garrison of the border guards, now in a state of disrepair.
Behrungen
Getting there
Unlike some more prominent museums on this page, the ‘Freilandmuseum Behrungen’ open-air exhibition is not associated to a border crossing point. Actually, the public road giving access to the memorial runs parallel to it. Access is very easy driving from the village of Behrungen (Thuringia, former GDR) along Röhmilder Strasse, leaving the town heading east. The memorial can be found to the south of the road roughly 1 mile from the town. A first part of the memorial is a small preserved portion of the fence line, very close to the road. From there you can spot the watchtower. You can approach the latter by car, driving on the original service road, and park right ahead of it.
Visiting the watchtower is rarely possible. However, you can move around the area and cross the border with a short walk on a trail, to get good pictures anyway. The surroundings of the preserved part are in the middle of a natural preserve, making the visit a possible stop when wandering in this very nice area.
Sights
The installation in Behrungen is basically a preserved section of the original border in the deep countryside, not corresponding to any crossing point. The focal point in the exhibition is an early-type watchtower, which has been restored and hosts a small exhibition, seldom open unless by appointment. The detection sensors on top of the tower are still there, as well as the communication antennas.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A service road with the original prefabricated concrete slabs can departs from the tower.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
As usual in the structure of the border barrier of the GDR, the tower was in the middle of an interdicted strip, between two fence lines – one towards the GDR (north of the tower in this case) and one towards the FRG (to the south of the tower).
Two little portions of the inner fence line have been preserved, and can be seen quite apart from one another along the public road coming from Behrungen.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Besides one of the two fence traits, a smaller concrete shooting turret can be seen. Turrets like this, often covered in camo coat, can be found in a high number all along the line of the former inner border.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A big portion of the outer fence, south of the tower, is also visible in this exhibition. Running along it, a vehicle stopping moat made of concrete slabs is clearly visible still today.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
In the vicinity of this fence, a mine was found by chance as recently as 2001. A commemoration stone was put in place, to stress how the monstrosity of the wall left a long-lasting and unwanted inheritance for the local population and visitors as well.
Unlike in the Cold War years, you can now cross this border, heading south into Bavaria. The original striped concrete post and white signals, showing the actual line of the border – south from the monstrous fence – are still there.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Further south, you can find the original ‘Stop’ line put in place by FRG authorities, with prohibition signs and an explanation of the rules in the border area dating from 1989. This rules were very tricky, especially for the fact that getting past the line marked by the posts, without even reaching to the fence, was already a border violation. This was something that could happen for Westerners just by mistake, but would trigger capture, interrogation and possibly fines by the GDR border control police.
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Behrungen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
The silent and peaceful area of the Behrungen site makes for a thought-provoking stop along the former inner border.
Eußenhausen
Getting there
The open-air exhibition of the ‘Grenzmuseum Eussenhausen’ can be reached along the St2445, roughly 1.5 miles north of the small village of Eussenhausen in Bavaria. Crossing the border with Thuringia, the road changes its name into L3019, and the closest village is Henneberg, about 1 mile north of the inner border. The exhibition is arranged on a former apron of the border control area, slightly uphill, but fairly accessible for the general public, and with a large parking ahead. The exhibition is open-air and arguably accessible 24/7 for free.
As of 2021, the large border control area on the GDR side of the border line (i.e. in Thuringia) is basically abandoned and severely damaged. For relic- and ghost-place-hunters or like-minded people, this can also be toured, and makes for an evocative sight. A dedicated parking is not available in the vicinity of this former facility, hence parking close to the official memorial is recommended.
Sights
This border museum is located on a former border crossing point between and the GDR and FRG, likely opened similar to other checkpoints in the 1970s, to reduce the traffic jams created by border controls on major transit arteries. Today, the site is composed of three parts, two of which are officially for visitors, and the latter an abandoned site.
The first and most significant part of the site is made of the (arguably) original road giving access to the large control area. The original external fence of the GDR border area can still be seen along the sides of the road, as well as the original external gate.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
It is likely that this area was originally intended for a kind of pre-check of vehicles, heading inside the GDR from the West. Today, the area has been converted into an exhibition of a wide array of stopping mechanisms and control booths once in place in the area of the border checkpoint.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Among the most striking items are one of the closing bars moving on a rail, and pushed by a still visible hydraulic actuator. The mass of the bar allowed to stop heavy traffic, and hydraulic power allowed for a very quick closure. This item was likely transferred here from the eastern side of the checkpoint, since similar stopping gear was intended to prevent GDR citizens fleeing the country.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Concrete shooting points, rather common along the border line also far from the authorized border-crossings, were often camo-painted. Some have been transferred here. A striped border post is also part of the exhibition.
A second part of the exhibition is a memorial built after the reopening of the border, to celebrate freedom. The meaning of the installations here is not always easy to capture. However, original parts of the fence wall rise the historical value of this area.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Finally, the area once used for controls can be found towards the eastern part of the checkpoint. This area is not open for visitors, but is basically open and unguarded, so a check is advised for more curious visitors. Here a tower was put in place to oversee the operations in the control lanes. This can still be seen, albeit severely damaged.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Close by, the large area once occupied by the control lanes can be seen. Original lamps are still there, but the sun shelters and control booths are totally gone. Looking at a historical picture available on the official part of the exhibition (see above), it is also clear that the bulky building on the side of the apron was not there at the time of border operations. Maybe this was built as a hotel – and construction halted before completion – after the reopening of the border.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A surviving building in this area is that of a small mechanics shop, possibly for the vehicles of GDR border protection corps.
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Eussenhausen German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
The Eußenhausen site is interesting for the easy-to-visit exhibition, but also a glance to the currently (2021) abandoned former control area may be really evoking. This short 360° video captures the unreal silence of this once busy border point.
Schwarzes Moor
Getting there
This site is immersed in a beautiful national preserve area, a popular destination for lovers of hiking or cycling activities. This site used to be a sharp corner of the inner border line. Today, the three German regions of Thuringia, Bavaria and Hessen (the former previously part of the GDR) still meet close to this point. The watchtower and the remains on site can be reached with a short walk on an unpaved, perfectly leveled and easy road from a large parking area, put in place for the visitors of the national preserve.
The parking can be reached by car approaching from Bavaria, where road St2287 meets St2288. The closest sizable village is Frankenheim, geographically just one mile north, but connected to the parking via a somewhat longer curvy road. The tower cannot be visited inside, and this small complex makes for a 24/7 open-air memorial, which can be neared without restrictions.
Sights
Smaller than other sites, but nonetheless interesting also for the vantage position on top of a hill and immersed in a beautiful natural preserve area, the Schwarzes Moor site is visible from a distance thanks to a late-generation, slender, square-based watchtower. This has been restored thanks to the intervention of local businesses, and the sight it provides from a distance is quite evocative of how the inner border should have looked like in this hilly countryside back in the years of operation.
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A small remnant of the original fence put on the western side is also in place, right ahead of the watchtower. One of the original gates in the fence was apparently located here, arguably used only for maintenance operations. No crossing was possible in this area.
A striped original ‘DDR’ concrete border post, as well as a few white poles with a similar demarcation function, can still be seen, making for an ideal photo subject – provided you dare to walk on a pasture area generously pointed by the results of cow digestion…
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Possibly less obvious to a less trained eye, a portion of the vehicle-stopping moat, once aligned with the largely disappeared fence, can still be seen, partially invaded vegetation.
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Thanks to its elevated position, the former wide area of the border, once spoiled of any vegetation and today invaded by younger trees, is still visible from the hilltop where the tower is. The original service road running along the fence line, made of typically-GDR prefabricated concrete slabs, helps to capture the shape of the sinuous line of the border.
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
Schwarzes Moor German Inner Border Innerdeutsche Grenze
A historically relevant stop for those touring this region for the beautiful panoramas and for sporting activities, you will hardly miss this hiking trail head when roaming in the natural preserve.
Point Alpha
Getting there
The place is located between the small towns of Rasdorf, in Hessen, and Geisa, in Thuringia. It is very famous (website here), and official ad signs can be spotted also along highway N.7, going from Munich to Hamburg, near the town of Hunfeld, Hessen. From there it is a 12 miles drive – in a very relaxing, typically German countryside – to the site. Approaching from Rasdorf on the L3170, it is possible to access the site from two sides. If you go straight uphill to the top, you reach the small museum to one end of the site. If you take to the left just .2 miles before reaching the top of the hill, you access the site from the opposite end, where the most peculiar part of the complex – a US Army outpost – is located.
Both items are interesting, and they’re also linked by a walking trail – .25 miles -, running along the former border line. Free parking is available on both ends, so it’s just a matter of what you want to visit first.
Sights
This place is extraordinary in the panorama of the relics of the Inner Border, due to the fact that this portion of the border line was guarded directly by US troops instead of FRG border patrols on the western side. This is witnessed by a small outpost of the US Army which has been since then deactivated and opened to the public. The area – the so-called ‘Fulda Gap’ – was considered by western observers as one of the most likely targets for a possible attack/invasion from the East. This was also due to the fact the US quarters in Fulda were relatively close and there is no natural barrier between this section of the border and that city.
The US outpost is a very interesting prototype of similar installations. Much of the original barracks are still standing. The side of the outpost facing the border is also the place for an observation tower with much communication equipment and an observation deck.
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
The former canteen now hosts a bar. To the back of it you can still see a basketball court. Other buildings include former office/barracks, with a nice exhibition about the history and function of the site, and vehicle depots. There are also some vehicles, including a tank and two helicopters, and tents.
Very close to the tower the American Flag is still waving. The pole is not planted in the ground, in observance to the fact that this is not American land.
Curiously, walking towards the fence from within the fort you can see signs for military personnel, warning about the limits of jurisdiction outside a delimited area, in order to avoid raising diplomatic issues by introducing armored vehicles or similar items in an area too close to the border.
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
After visiting the outpost you can walk towards the small museum, telling more about the history of the Inner Border. The short trail runs along reconstructed portions of the original fence and border interdiction system. Most notably, on the GDR side there is a watchtower of the most modern type, tall and with a square section. Facing the US tower, there is a shooting bunker from the early age soon after WWII, put in place probably before the total closure of the border. Some signs provide scant descriptions, but the function of all devices there is pretty obvious.
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Close to the US outpost on the eastern side of the border it is possible to appreciate very clearly the construction of the vehicle stopping groove.
The portion of the border next to the small museum is preserved as it was before the final blockade – in a first stage, only concrete posts were in place, whereas barbed wire and stop signs were included in the picture. This was before the subsequent modernization, taking place in more stages from the definitive closure with fences, barriers and watchtowers in the early Sixties, until the reopening of the border.
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Point Alpha Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost
Similarly to Mödlareuth, this place is easily accessible, fully prepared for the general public and interesting also for people with a specific interest in the matter. The US outpost is a peculiar sight of this border site. In terms of resemblance to the original condition of the border fortification system, in my opinion it is less evocative than other places, but it still provides a good idea of how it may have looked like. The area is really nice to walk, so there is something for everybody here. Visiting may take from half an hour if you skip the museum, to more than an hour, depending on your interest.
Point Alpha is the best preserved among other installations of the kind, which include Point India and Point Romeo further north along the border with Hessen (west) and Thüringen (east).
Point India & Point Romeo
Getting there
The US outposts of Point India and Point Romeo are not located on the same spot, but they are described together here for convenience, especially since there is nothing left of Point Romeo today, except for an info table and a commemorative stone.
Point Romeo can be reached in two minutes out of the Wildeck-Obersuhl exit on the highway N.4. Taking north from the exit along L3248, you will reach the small village of Richelsdorf. Turn left on Shildhofstrasse upon entering the village. Keep on this road for about 1.5 mi, until you see the massive foundation of highway N.4 ahead of you. You should find a small sign showing the direction of the memorial and telling you to go north-west on a narrow road. Turning right according to the sign on this unnamed road, you should find the memorial .3 miles from the crossing. The memorial is open-air and unfenced, with picnic tables on the spot. Reaching is possible at all times.
Point India can be found starting from regional road 7. Reaching the village of Lüderbach and driving along Altfelderstrasse pointing west, you should leave the village behind you as the road climbs steep uphill. Upon leaving the village, you will take a sharp bend to the right, followed by a gentler one to the left, all in less than 300 ft. Upon entering the latter bend, you will see a wide road taking sharply to the left. As you take that road, gently ascending and going to the east, you many notice the path is unusually wide for the non-existent traffic, and for the rural location where the road is. It is such due to its original function, as it led directly into the US outpost. Keep on this road going east for about 0.5 miles, gently climbing on top of the hill, and you will find a dead end with a small parking, and a clear sign marking the original place of Point India. The memorial is open 24/7, including the tower.
The location of the Point India post has been included in a nice nature-culture walking trail in the area. The corresponding map can be found at Point India, as well as in other notable places along the trail. One of them is the East German watchtower in Ifta.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
To get there, you might drive to the village of Ifta, which used to be on the GDR side, and take Willershäuserstrasse to the south. Upon leaving the village behind, as the road enters a small forest, you should spot the watchtower on top of a hill, 0.2 miles to the right of the road up. Take the road climbing to the tower, which is paved in the original concrete slabs typical to all service roads on the eastern side of the former border, and drive to the place, where a small flat area suitable for parking and basic picnic facilities can be found. The tower is generally closed.
Sights
The function of the two outposts of Point India and Point Romeo was similar as that of Point Alpha (see above). The region of the ‘Fulda Gap’, along the border between Hessen in the FRG and Thüringen in the GDR, was considered of high strategic significance, and actively guarded by US forces since immediately after WWII, when the line of the German Inner Border was crystallized. Thanks to the favorable morphology of the terrain in this area, an invasion from the Eastern Bloc was considered especially likely from this sector of the border. As a matter of fact, this idea elaborated on the western side of the Iron Curtain turned out to be a correct prevision of the actual plans for an attack to the West, prepared in the years of the Cold War by the USSR, taking advantage of its own presence in the Countries on the border with Western Europe (see here and here).
Today, the outpost of Point India has been almost completely demolished, and the area returned to nature. From the parking, you can spot the three traces that remain from the observation post (OP), namely the observation tower, the entry sign, and a service building which used to shelter some electrical gear, and currently standing right ahead of the parking area.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
The sign bears an emblem with a motto from the 11th US Armored Cavalry regiment, which took responsibility for manning the observation point. The sign is a copy, but it resembles the original one, and it is close to its original location. The parking is actually very close to the former gate of the camp.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
From the parking, a short walk leads to the original watchtower. This concrete watchtower is the third installed in the observation point premises, its predecessors being a wooden one from the late 1960s, flanked by a metal one in the late 1970s. Both were replaced by the concrete tower you see today, a perfect twin to that found in Point Alpha (see above).
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
The tower can be climbed today, and it is possible to enter the former observation room, as well as the open observation deck.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Inside the observation room, now spoiled of all hardware and turned into a permanently open memorial room, a very informative table with many interesting pictures from the site in the Cold War era can be found.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
From the open deck on top, pointers allow to find a few notable locations in the panorama, including the original line of the border, today rather hard to spot, due to the now grown vegetation, as well as the tall antennas of the FRG-US Hoher Meissner electronic espionage post (in the distance). The village of Ifta, the first met on the East German side, can be clearly spotted.
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point India Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
With an equipment mainly composed of a ground radar and communication gear, the roughly 200-men staff of the observation point was that of keeping trace of any change along the border in their area of pertinence, including military movements on the communist side of the Iron Curtain.
A GDR watchtower in the vicinity of the US observation post can still be found along the nature trail in the area, of which Point Alpha is a highlight. The tower, similar to that to be found in Hotensleben (see later), and once in many places along the inner border, can be reached also by car, in a few minutes from Point India.
Ifta Grenzturm GDR Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point India
Ifta Grenzturm GDR Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point India
Ifta Grenzturm GDR Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point India
Ifta Grenzturm GDR Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point India
Ifta Grenzturm GDR Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point India
The observation point ‘Point India’ is settled in a very nice region, and is an interesting complement to the major site of Point Alpha. Located far from the crowds and with an interesting selection of pictures proposed in the exhibition, it is surely worth a detour for committed Cold War specialists or tourists in the area. A visit may take about 30 minutes.
Geographically placed between Point India (to the north) and Point Alpha (to the south), the Observation Point Romeo shared with them the history, purpose and arrangement, including a concrete observation tower built in the 1980s. However, the site has been completely demolished in 1994, a few years after German reunification.
Today, on the site of Point Romeo is a commemorative stone, and a table (in German) retracing the history of the site with interesting photographs, copies of newspaper headlines from the time, and text.
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
Point Romeo Grenze Inner Border US Outpost Observation Point
The Point Romeo site is a quick detour from the highway, keeping memory of the service of US military staff in the area for the long decades of the Cold War. Checking out the site may take 10 minutes.
Schifflersgrund
Getting there
The border museum in Schifflersgrund (‘Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund’ in German) is a major installation along the former Inner Border, and is clearly marked with signs when approaching the town of Bad Sooden-Allendorf (FRG), in Hessen, or Sickenberg, in Thüringen (GDR). It is located on a local road connecting the two towns. The memorial site is modern and hosts a rich collection. It is also an active cultural center on the topic, with a central building for temporary exhibitions, and a separated building with a big conference room.
A large parking is available on site. For visiting the museum collection a ticket is required. Furthermore, a nature trail along the former border has been prepared and is clearly marked with tables on way-points. No ticket is required for it. Website with full information in multiple languages here.
Sights
The site of Schifflersgrund is centered around a preserved portion of the Inner Border. Due to the local morphology, as the border ran along the rim of a small canyon, the inaccessible area between the two fences marking the border on the GDR side was unusually large. A section of the ‘external’ fence, immediately past the border line when coming from the FRG, is still preserved, together with an original watchtower. The latter used to sit in the restricted area between the inner and external fences, which was accessible only to the border guards of the GDR. Close to the watchtower, a small section of the ‘inner’ fence, the first met coming from the GDR towards the border line, is also preserved.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Between the two fences, the respect area encompasses the local shallow canyon with the original East German service road, now employed as a cultural and nature trail, running along the ‘external’ fence for some thousands feet.
Access to the area around the tower is possible with a ticket. The main building with the ticket office hosts interesting temporary exhibitions and a book, souvenir & memorabilia shop.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Walking towards the watchtower is across a yard, where an interesting series of vehicles and helicopters once employed along the border by the opponents on the two sides is on display. Vehicles include a Soviet truck with a radar antenna typically deployed for airspace monitoring.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Helicopters of Soviet construction on the GDR side include a Mil-24 attack helicopter, and Mil-2 and Mil-8 utility/transport models. On the FRG side are two US-designed Bell helicopters managed by the Border Guards of the FRG.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
A small but interesting exhibition is related to the last weeks of WWII and the immediate post-WWII period in Germany. The connection with the site is in the fact that a large region, extending as far as Leipzig to the east, was conquered by American forces in the last stages of WWII. Of course, Berlin and the easternmost part of today’s Germany were militarily taken by the Red Army (see this post). However, it was due to international agreements (Yalta and later Potsdam) that the westernmost regions of what later the GDR were handed over to Stalin and communism.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
The same short exhibition mentions the US observation points, soon to appear along the border in the ‘Fulda Gap’ (see above) after WWII.
Approaching the tower, you get through a partly reconstructed double fence, with all the typical gear for stopping potential escapees. This include the infamous automatic shotguns, activated by contact with the fence, and shooting metal balls in proximity to the net.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
From close to the tower, you can get the view of the external fence mostly like it used to be in the Cold War era.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
A small museum building by the tower is adorned with original signs from the border area. These range from ‘danger zone’ signs in German, to border warning signs for the American military staff.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Inside the building is a compact but rich collection of interesting photographs, including always-striking now-and-then comparisons, showing how different the panorama used to look like in the area during the Cold War era.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Uniforms from both sides of the border, as well as memorabilia items are on display, close by to some dioramas and a scale model of the border site.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
An impressive listing of those fallen in the pursuit of freedom from the East-German communist dictatorship completes this well-stocked exhibition.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
A complement to the exhibition in the area around the watchtower can be found in a hangar cross the parking. To the sides of a large conference area are upscaled pictures from the time, as well as a modernly designed exhibition on the Cold War in Germany and the Inner German Border.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
The exhibition is in both German and English, and retraces the post-WWII history of Germany, citing many characters, both well-known (former Presidents of the United States, Soviet Secretaries, etc.) and less-known (local leaders, especially cultural leaders and dissidents from Germany).
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Preserved alongside the explanatory panels are some artifacts and memorabilia items.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Also vehicles one employed along the border are on display.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Of particular relevance is a scraper employed as a mean for an escape attempt by a man named Heinz-Josef Grosse. While working with the scraper in proximity to the ‘external’ fence, the man raised the bucket above the fence, climbed over it and jumped across the fence. Tragically, he was shot dead by the GDR border guards while trying to ascend from the canyon.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Out of the same hangar are an attack helicopter from the FRG and more vehicles from both sides of the border.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
The cultural and nature trail prepared by the organization running the museum in Schifflersgrund is about 7 miles long, and takes you around an extensive area along the former border. However, the preserved part of the ‘external’ fence can be found immediately beside the museum facility, and can be accessed quickly and permanently without a ticket.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Walking along the service road can be a good occasion for taking evocative pictures.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
The place where Heinz-Josef Grosse got killed is marked with a sign.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Further on to the west a wooden observation deck can be employed for getting a bird’s eye view of the area around the former border area. Also here, a table with historical pictures allows to get a clear view of how the place looked like in the Cold War era.
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
Grenzmuseum Schifflersgrund Innerdeutsche Grenze German Inner Border GDR FRG
All in all, the Schifflersgrund site makes for a nice documentation center, and offers a rich and unique open-air exhibition, including a rare preserved portion of the original border fence. The place is a primary memorial about the history of the Inner German Border. A visit may take from 45 minutes, concentrating on the museum only, to 1.5 hours with a short walk along the original fence, to an entire half day, when venturing along the open-air round trail.
Eichsfeld
Getting there
This was a major checkpoint for crossing the border, as the road passing here was often very busy. You can reach this installation on the road 247 between Gerblingerode in Lower Saxony and Teistungen in Thuringia.
The place hosts a modern museum in the former quarters of the GDR border patrol and in its annexes (website here). Furthermore, there is a loop trail along part of the former border, partially preserved in its final conditions to this day. This can be walked for free but it is pretty long, more than 1 hour for a well-trained young man, going up and down the hills to the West of the museum. I found it really much interesting especially for photographs, plus there are many information panels all along the trail, but you’d better go prepared especially on a torrid summer day.
Large parking available in front of the museum.
Sights
This place is the prototype of a checkpoint on a busy road crossing the border line. The main building of the museum has been built in a former customs house. The modern and well designed exhibition tells about the history of the Inner Border.
In a first part the focus is on the border control policy of the GDR – this was incredibly restrictive, as they tried to prevent Westerners from introducing illegal goods as well as western newspapers, books and similar ‘propaganda items’, plus they actively worked to stop people trying to flee th GDR using FRG vehicles.
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
This all was obtained with careful control of all vehicles, reportedly generating long queues. Every suspect good triggered a litigation, possibly resulting in access denial, fines, interrogations, … Among the hardware related to the topic, original passport control booths, movable mirrors for looking under stopped vehicles, optical instruments for checking parcels, uniforms, firearms, passports, papers.
In a second part, the museum tells about the Inner Border as a whole, including detailed information on the modernization stages from inception to demolition, and of many technical devices deployed to prevent escape. At some point, the innermost fence was supplied with contact sensors, linked to the watchtowers, telling the patrolling troops where the escapee was exactly. The strip between the inner and outer fences was filled with flattened sand, to make footprints immediately visible. This strip was filled with mines at a certain point. These had to be updated to more recent models later on, and the old ones were reportedly blown. Other deadly mechanisms included small cone-shaped explosive charges hanging from the fence, which exploded shooting plummets over a predefined area in case the fence was touched.
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
More information about the border include anecdotes, and numbers about people who died or where wounded trying to flee, and of those arrested for border-related issues. Also documented is the incredible cost of the whole border system, which like the Stasi – the detested internal police of the GDR – employed thousands of people, and necessitated of continuous maintenance and updates.
More about the history of the checkpoint in Eichsfeld and on the days of the re-opening can be found in the museum. A building close to the main hall, once for passport booths, hosts a photographic exhibition, very lively and interesting, about this particular checkpoint and the border re-opening. Also visible are a communication hub and a mechanic’s shop for disassembling suspect cars. In the outside courtyard of the museum some vehicles for patrolling are preserved, together with the original seal of the GDR once proudly standing in the middle of the border checkpoint.
Approaching the trailhead of the loop trail, very close to the museum, it is possible to spot vehicle stopping devices able to cut the road immediately in case of suspect escape situations.
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
A short map for the loop trail can be obtained for free in the museum. The checkpoint was like a punch in the otherwise continuous line of border fortification. Part of it can be seen going uphill along the trail. Original lamps shedding light along the border are still standing. Before reaching the watchtower on top of the hill it’s possible to see a well-preserved part of the original border system. Also visible are some shooting posts probably from an earlier time.
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Crossing the border and going West – freely possible only today – you can still see a cippus with the ‘DDR’ sign. The sight from the west makes for good photo opportunities of how the border would have been like back in the Eighties, looking from the FRG towards the ‘dark side’. Curiously enough, an observation tower was built on the West looking to the East, reportedly not for military purposes but for tourism. As you can see from the photos in the museum, this was where people from all over Europe came to see in person an open-air prison in the middle of Europe, in the form of a country administrated by a Communist dictatorship.
Typical striped concrete posts with the symbol of the GDR can be seen ahead of the border fence to the West, marking the real geographical border.
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Eichsfeld Teistungen Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
If you ar looking for detailed and well-organized information about the Inner Border, as well as for a nice preserved checkpoint and a portion of the border fortifications, I suggest coming to Eichsfeld. The museum can be visited in half an hour and up to 1 hour. Add about 1 hour for the loop trail. Furthermore, the place is close to the beautiful Harz region, surrounded by a beautiful countryside. It makes for an ideal, unusual detour from that region or from the busy areas of Kassel, Gottingen and Hannover.
Sorge
Getting there
Differently from other sites, there is not an official museum preserving the border here, nor is this place well advertised with road signs. Furthermore, the focus of the place, a former watchtower and a part of preserved fence, can be reached with a walk – on a very well prepared horizontal road, once a military communication road running along the border – about 1.2 miles long each way, i.e. about 2.5 miles both ways, so be prepared.
The trail head is in the small village of Sorge, in Saxony-Anhalt close to the border with Lower Saxony along road 242. After taking to the village from the 242, you need to turn right to reach the trailhead, which coincides with the end of the paved road and a no passing sign. Free parking available there, plus a sign with a detailed map of the site.
Sights
This place has not much to offer in terms of hardware. The inner fence is encountered soon after the trailhead. The road then points into the land strip once going to the outer fence, running on it for about 1 mile, and finally reaching a modern, tall watchtower with a square section. What makes this site interesting is the fact that it is almost desert. During my walk and stay there I encountered two people – from the Netherlands – in total. The area of the former border is deserted and unreally silent – very impressive.
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Further on, former mine fields are presented, plus a strange monument to peace or equilibrium, unclear, but it’s made of stones and does not disturb the panorama.
It is noteworthy that they are keeping the strip around the preserved portion of the fence spoiled of vegetation. This was a distinctive feature of all the Inner Border line which is vanishing with time, as trees and vegetation are often reclaiming those areas.
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Sorge Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
There is actually a small independent museum about the Inner Border in Sorge (website here), where also a border railway station was operated. Due to time constraints I could not visit it.
The most distinctive feature of the place is the characteristic Soviet ‘ghost aura’, making it really grim even in plain sunlight. The chance to walk the trail with nobody around adds to the atmosphere. Of course it requires some extra-walk with respect to other sites, and all in all the hardware it has to offer is not so abundant, so I would recommend visiting only for more committed specialists. The roundtrip time depends on your level of training, but may be easily about an hour.
Hotensleben
Getting there
The village of Hotensleben is on the border between Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, hence it once stood right on the Inner Border line. This town can be conveniently reached about 6 miles to the South of Helmstedt on highway N.2 going from Hannover to Berlin.
The border site is located on the western end of the village, on the L104 heading to Schoeningen. In case you are coming from Schoeningen you will clearly see the installation before reaching Hotensleben. Large free parking by the site.
Sights
As it was often the case for towns close to the Inner Border or crossed by it – see Mödlareuth upper on this page -, besides the usual border devices including fences, minefields, watchtowers, vehicle stopping grooves and bars, also a wall was put in place. To be exact, two walls were erected in Hotensleben, totally enclosing the strip where a service road, a minefield, fences and watchtowers were standing.
Parts of these walls have been preserved for posterity. The outer wall, mostly similar to that you can find in Mödlareuth, is tall and white, whereas the innermost one is made of grey concrete slabs. Watchdogs once stood between the innermost wall and the next fence.
Today the place is totally open access all day around, and it is made of two parts. The southernmost area showcases a modern watchtower with a round section, which has been cut for improving stability as it is not maintained any more. Look for the concrete slabs making the pavement of the service road nearby, and to the manholes with GDR factory labels.
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
The main part is to the north of the road. Here you can appreciate most clearly the geography of the border strip, as it is placed on the side of a hill, over a gentle slope, offering a bird-eye view of the installation. Curiously, the topography of the border devices here is reportedly mostly similar to the one implemented in Berlin in the most recent times – so from here you can have a more precise idea of what was the Berlin wall than from everywhere in Berlin.
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
On top of the hill – a very short walk from the parking – a watchtower of the earliest type, a rather bulky, square-shaped tower, is still standing.
To the outside of the outer wall some border signs remain – as usual, the line ran in the middle of a creek.
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
Hotensleben Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint
There is no museum here, just an open air exhibition with some information provided through leaflets you can pick-up close to the parking.
I found this place very suggestive – also due to visiting near sunset, when I spent all my time there totally alone -, and the fact this represents a specimen of the Berlin Wall better than you can find in Berlin itself adds extreme value. It’s unlikely you will find much crowd here, so the place is ideal for photographs as well as for memory and thoughts. As there is no museum and the site is limited in size, visiting may take from 15 to 45 minutes. Would surely recommend for every kind of public, thanks also to the short distance from highway N.2 and from the Marienborn site.
Marienborn
Getting there
This is a gigantic installation also known as ‘Checkpoint Alpha’, which used to work as a major checkpoint for the highway traffic entering the GDR and/or heading to/coming from Berlin along highway N.2, from Hannover and central FRG. It can be spotted to the South of the highway, adjacent to it, immediately after the town of Helmstedt going to Berlin.
The place is accessible in at least two ways. If you are driving to Berlin, you can stop by the service/fuel station about .5 miles after the Marienborn/Helmstedt exit. The service station occupies part of the former site, which can be reached by foot. If you are driving from the opposite direction on N.2 or you are not coming from the highway at all, you may start from the village of Marienborn, take the K1373 in the direction of Morsleben (i.e. to the north), and turn to the left immediately before passing below the highway, keeping on K1373. This road goes west parallel to the highway for about 1 mile, then you clearly see the site to the right. Coming from the town of Marienborn it will be possible to spot also a watchtower of the oldest type along the former border. Scant information from the website here.
Sights
This place is a real ‘Jurassic Park’ of Communism, a true, evoking, grim relic of the Cold War. The installation is big, and today totally disused, but not abandoned. Actually, when I visited in summer 2015 some of the former passport booths were undergoing (slow) restoration, and were not accessible. The former main customs building, once hosting the offices of the guards, today hosts a nice and detailed free permanent exhibition, with some artifacts, explanatory panels and site control devices, plus many self explaining photographs – the only major flaw being everything is in German only. Here you can find a leaflet also in English, guiding you in the exploration of the site. Some report guided tours are offered, by I didn’t try myself, as I expected them to be given in German only.
First of all, the geometry: the place worked as a GDR checkpoint for both directions of traffic. All vehicle traffic was detoured here, both coming in or going out the Communist territory. This was one of the main gates to the Soviet bloc, so this place was reportedly very busy year round, with legendary waiting times to be expected in all directions.
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
For those entering the GDR, the main worry for border patrols was the introduction of contraband goods and ‘western propaganda’ in the form of books, newspapers, prohibited goods, religious items and so on. All cars, buses and trucks were accurately scanned.
In order to cope with the huge traffic flow, passports of incoming passengers had to be placed over a treadmill leading to the passport control booths, in order to start passport processing before the vehicle actually reached the booths. This device is still standing.
In the part deputed to controlling buses and trucks it is possible to notice higher banks and ladders for getting a vantage view. Movable mirrors are placed at the level of the canopy.
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
I was impressed by the shabby appearance of this control station, especially doors, booths and the material of the canopies… really an anticipation of Communist quality for those coming in. Red emergency buttons all around could trigger a blockade of the control post in case of suspect activities.
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Dedicated buildings included a livestock inspection quarter and a depot for inspecting dangerous material, a morgue and a bank – which can be recognized by the window railings. All Westerners coming in the GDR were forced by the law to buy a certain amount of GDR marks, at the exchange rate of 1:1 to FRG marks – due to the almost null value of the former, this was basically an entrance fee to the ‘Paradise of Socialism’.
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
The outgoing traffic was scanned as well, in search of potential enemies of the state trying to flee the country. A suspended deck for inspecting trucks is still standing close to the highway. The lanes leading to the control booths are still painted on the concrete of the pavement passing north of the main office building.
Suspect parcels in all directions were X-rayed or optically scanned. At a certain point in history, a well deceived scanning device – the grey ‘booth’ with no windows you can see in the photos – was put in place besides the outgoing traffic lanes, reportedly covertly X-raying all cars leaving the GDR even before reaching the control booths – definitely another era…
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Military troops going to West Berlin were treated more smoothly, but the platform of their dedicated office, immediately nearby the highway, has been demolished.
Original lights all around and deserted garages, barracks and service buildings for the border personnel complete the picture. Also noticeable are the concrete post where the round seal of the GDR was once proudly standing – today there is a unexplicable hole instead of the ‘DDR’ emblem -, placed between the two roadways in the middle of the highway close to the checkpoint area.
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Marienborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Alpha
Albeit different from all other border checkpoints – no fences, mines or concrete walls – this place is similarly evocative of the oppressive border policy of the GDR, which was evident also to ordinary Westerners trying to reach Berlin by road. This was a place where many people routinely experienced what a restrictive Communist dictatorship really meant. Would surely recommend for people interested in recent history, history of the Inner Border and the GDR, as the place is mostly preserved as it was in 1989, and easy to reach even if you’re just passing by. Exploration may take from fifteen minutes to more than an hour if you include the museum and a careful look to everything.
Schlagsdorf
Getting there
The small sleepy town of Schlagsdorf is less than 10 miles South of Lubeck. It is located in Mecklemburg-Vorpommern, on the border with Schleswig-Holstein. It can be conveniently reached by car from highway N.20 going from Lubeck to Rostock, or from the South via road 208.
The town hosts a small indoor museum in a former customs house, with a permanent exhibition and a cafe opening in the warm season (website here). The museum operates also a reconstructed specimen of the former border fortifications which is accessible by preliminarily purchasing the ticket by the museum office. The open air exhibition can be reached with a .2 miles walk through the village, or by car. Free parking all around.
Sights
The museum is focused on the restrictive customs policy of the GDR, and most notably on the effects of the border on the geography of Schlagsdorf and small towns nearby.
The area is pointed with lakes and creeks, so the geographical placement of the border line was particularly difficult around here. There existed places where the border crossed some rivers or creeks, and special nets were erected there, reaching to the bottom, cutting any communication also by water. These barriers have been demolished now, but this is well documented in the museum.
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Another practice of the Communist regime even from the times of Soviet occupation was deportation of the population of some of the villages. Especially in this area, in order to avoid the creation of enclaves where the border line was too tortuous, it was decreed that some rural villages should be simply abandoned. This further dark side of the history of the Inner Border is documented here.
Like in other similar museums, some original signs, uniforms and models give an idea of how the border looked like in the decades when it was blocked.
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Photographs of the border re-opening in 1989 and of the natural preserve now having taken the place of those grim installations complete this much interesting exhibition.
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
The open air exhibition puts together a small section of the usual external fence, ‘DDR’ posts, mine camps, lights, dog’s beds for watchdogs, local passport control booths and a modern watchtower.
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Some beheaded GDR sculptures are there too, together with other stopping devices, like barbed wires forming a horizontal net at the level of the ground, which couldn’t be spotted in tall grass and made walking the area difficult and dangerous.
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
This border section was reportedly not here in origin, but closer to the small lake to the south of the village, where the border line actually ran. A trail with explanatory panels goes along the former border line bank of the lake. I didn’t go myself as when I visited in winter the temperature was several degrees below freezing…
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
Schlagsdorf Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border Checkpoint Grenzhus
In the village you can spot manholes with ‘Made in GDR’ labels, and also some garden fences made with the same net originally used for the outer fence of the border fortification – this is recycling!
I would recommend visiting to everybody even only slightly interested. The place is surrounded by a very nice and relaxing countryside, with various opportunities for enjoyable walks and other sports. Plus, the place makes for a short detour from historical Lubeck and its many attractions. Visiting both indoor and outdoor may take from 45 minutes to less than 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Kühlungsborn
Getting there
The coast town of Kühlungsborn in Mecklemburg-Vorpommern is a nice location, very busy with sea tourism. Being on the so-called ‘sea border’ of the GDR, i.e. on the Baltic sea, it was guarded similarly to the Inner Border. Approaching is necessarily via the L12 or L11.
The place can be rather crowded even far from the peak season, plus the watchtower and the small museum nearby are right behind the beaches, totally inaccessible by car (website here). Just park where you can, reach the beaches, enjoy the panorama, and go to the small central square where ‘Strandstrasse’ meets ‘Ostseeallee’. The latter points directly into the sea, and actually ends in a nice pier. To the west of the small square the watchtower can be easily spotted.
Sights
This place witnesses a less known aspect of the GDR border, which actually was constituted also by the Baltic Sea, from the outskirts of Lubeck – still in the West – to the border with Poland.
Similarly to every other part of the border with the West, several people tried to flee the country also by sea when the border was blocked. The border patrolling policy of the GDR was really restrictive, and the sea border was no exception. Several watchtowers were erected all along the coast, and motorboats patrolled the coasts continuously to stop any illegal traffic.
Kuhlungsborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border See Sea
Kuhlungsborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border See Sea
The modern, round-section watchtower makes for a strident sight in the otherwise pleasant, typically North-German background of the village of Kuhlungsborn.
When I visited in spring 2016 the small museum was closed for the season. I had much information through a recently visited remand prison of the Stasi (the internal police of the GDR, a kind of Communist Gestapo) in Rostock, which was hosting a rich exhibition about the ‘sea border’ (see the governmental website, this is slightly off topic but extremely interesting, website here). In any case, there are explanatory panels with photos also outside of the watchtower, allowing to get some information.
Kuhlungsborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border See Sea
Kuhlungsborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border See Sea
Kuhlungsborn Innerdeutsche Grenze Inner Border See Sea
I would recommend visiting if you are going also for enjoying the town and beaches, or if you are a very committed specialist of such places. The museum is rather small in size and the hardware is basically the tower itself. Nonetheless, the striking contrast with respect to the background makes this place also rather evocative. I guess visiting may take up to 30 minutes including the museum.
Heading to Berlin or the former GDR? Looking for traces of the Cold War open for a visit?
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