Abandoned Places

Deception Island – Antarctica

Posted by IAM SAM on March 3, 2021 | Featured

Deception Island is a tourist destination in Antarctica’s freezing South Shetland Islands, famous for its deserted whaling and research station. The whaling station was abandoned many times between 1931 and 1969 due to volcanic eruptions, leaving behind the beached boats and rusting boilers you see today. Book a cruise to explore the deserted site for yourself—if you’re lucky, you might even spot some chinstrap penguins and get to soak in a natural hot tub (yes, seriously).

What’s the coolest shape for an island? If you ask me, it would be this circular-shaped island with a small entrance, just like Deception Island. Perfect fit for a secret liar or quiet getaway. In reality, this is considered to be one of the safest harbors in Antarctica.
Neptune’s Bellows, at only 230m wide serves as the entrance to the harbor. Aptly named after the Roman god of the sea, the entrance reveals a bay with stunning views surrounded by mountains. The center of the island is actually a caldera that has been flooded by the sea.
Being part of a caldera, the black sand beach is actually quite warm – or, at least pretty warm by Antarctic standards. It was also the location our expedition did its polar plunge. While the experience of doing the polar plunge is perhaps is a bit jarring to the body, it sure does feel nice to have your feet on some toasty sand afterwards as you shiver and towel off while trying to warm up.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Antarctica

Anping Tree House – Tainan City – Taiwan

Posted by IAM SAM on March 3, 2021 | Featured

Originally a British-owned merchant warehouse, this crumbling complex in Taiwan has been overtaken by nature—much to our visual delight. After the warehouse was vacated sometime in the 19th century, a nearby banyan tree forced its way through the building’s brick walls and concrete floors, creating a “treehouse” that looks like one of Angkor Wat’s baby cousins. Today, visitors can explore the whimsical site for a few dollars—there’s even an elevated walkway to help you navigate.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Asia, Taiwan

Aniva Lighthouse – Russia

Posted by IAM SAM on February 28, 2021 | Featured

Aniva Island and its stately lighthouse were involved in a custody battle between Japan and Russia for around a century. The island flip-flopped many times between Russian ownership, Japanese ownership, and even a shared ownership. The Soviets finally took full control after WWII and added radioactivity to the lighthouse. Nuclear generators and mercury lubricants helped the structure operate partially by itself, but it faded due to abandonment after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Europe, Russia

Sarajevo Olympic Village – Bosnia and Herzegovina

Posted by IAM SAM on February 28, 2021 | Featured

When Sarajevo hosted the Olympic Winter Games in 1984, it was highly regarded for its natural beauty and skiing facilities. Then the Balkan war hit the city, and the Olympic Village became a graveyard of creaky chair lifts, weedy trails, and hotel ruins. Although much of the athletic facilities still sit abandoned (like the graffiti-covered bobsled track), there are signs, too, of regrowth and regained luster. New hotels and condos continue to pop up, and in 2010, a $12.7 million ski lift opened at one of the primary Olympic venues. If you’re willing to step around some rough edges, today you can find an Alps-worthy ski experience at a way, way lower price.

https://youtu.be/rzu0I1fqGfM

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo Olympic Village

Bodie – California – United States – Ghost Town

Posted by IAM SAM on February 27, 2021 | Featured

Once home to 10,000 people, Bodie boomed in the 1870s and 1880s, when gold was found in the hills surrounding Mono Lake. It’s now a State Historic Park, with some parts of the town preserved in a state of “arrested decay”—think tables with place settings, and shops stocked with supplies.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, California, Ghost Town, United States

Bannerman Castle – New York

Posted by IAM SAM on February 27, 2021 | Featured

Scottish immigrant Francis Bannerman achieved his American dream and made a mint collecting and selling army surplus goods (cannons, Civil War uniforms, etc.). After a major purchase following the Spanish-American Civil War, Bannerman had to find a larger space to set up shop. Luckily, he stumbled upon Pollepel Island on the Hudson River, a perfect place to erect a Scottish-style castle (as one does). Throughout the 20th century, the structure went through hell: a gunpowder explosion, ferryboat crash, and three-day fire. Conservation efforts have been protecting the castle since the 1990s.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, New York, United States

Six Flags – New Orleans – United States

Posted by IAM SAM on February 27, 2021 | Featured

The Six Flags in New Orleans was one of the architectural casualties of Hurricane Katrina. The park was flooded, and the water remained stagnant there for several weeks. The park is currently a pastel wasteland, full of skeletal roller coasters, upside-down concession stands, and terrifying decapitated clowns.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Louisiana, United States

Eastern State Penitentiary – Philadelphia

Posted by IAM SAM on February 26, 2021 | Featured

The castle-like Eastern State Penitentiary was built in 1829 and immediately took solitary confinement to new levels. Prisoners lived alone, exercised alone, and ate alone; when an inmate left his cell, a guard would cover their head with a hood so he couldn’t see or be seen. The prison had to abandon its solitary system due to overcrowding from 1913 until it closed in 1971, although the forms of punishment did not get any less severe (chaining an inmate’s tongue to his wrists is one example). The site remained empty until it opened its doors to curious visitors in 1994, and now welcomes thousands of visitors every year, both for its museum and ghost tours.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Abandoned Places in North America, Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia, United States

Varosha Beach Resort – Famagusta – Cyprus

Posted by IAM SAM on February 20, 2021 | Featured

Once a popular beach destination for stars like Brigitte Bardot, the resort town of Varosha was abandoned during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. Inhabitants never returned to the beach-side resort, which stands just two miles away from the United Nations Buffer Zone separating Greece and Turkey’s administrative areas. The city of Famagusta is currently experiencing a meteoric rise in tourism, but Varosha has remained abandoned since it was hastily evacuated back in the 70s, with model cars still sitting in garages and clothing still hanging in shops. The only visitors today are members of the Turkish military, journalists, scientists, and the occasional UN official.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Cyprus, Europe

Teufelsberg – Berlin – Germany

Posted by IAM SAM on February 20, 2021 | Featured

Adjacent to bustling Berlin, Germany lies Teufelsberg, a now-abandoned Cold War listening station. The station sits on top of a 262-foot artificial hill called Devil’s Mountain—basically a pile of WWII rubble covering up a Nazi military college. NSA built the station on the mountain so they could eavesdrop on East Berlin; it was abandoned after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Today, it is a graffiti-covered ruin overlooking the city. Historical tours are offered almost every day, providing visitors views of both the radar domes and the city below.

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Tags: Abandoned Places, Berlin, Germany