Are The “Gates Of Hell” About To Be Sealed?
Not sure I you are aware, but there is an incredible “natural gas crater” that has been on fire in the Central Asia country of Turkmenistan!
If you don’t know Turkmenistan, that’s OK: the Karakul dessert takes up a lot of their country, and they are off the beaten path for tourism.
But they DO have the gates of hell, at least for now!
As The Washington Post reported Sunday:
President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said in televised remarks Saturday that he wants to extinguish the famous flaming natural gas crater that has burned in the Central Asian country for decades.
The report continues:
The crater “negatively affects both the environment and the health of the people living nearby,” Berdymukhamedov said, according to AFP. “We are losing valuable natural resources for which we could get significant profits and use them for improving the well-being of our people.”
Officially called the Darvaza gas crater, the blazing pit in the middle of the Karakum desert has long been a draw for the few tourists permitted to visit Turkmenistan. About 200 feet wide by some measures and at least 70 feet deep, it cuts a dramatic image against the vast expanse of empty land surrounding it.
We’ll see if this natural wonder is closed down, filled in, sealed, or whatever…anyway, as always The Washington Post covers the most interesting stories on our planet.
Here is a link to their story:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/01/08/turkmenistan-gates-hell/
While very few tourists are allowed in that country, it does sound fascinating – but maybe instead I’ll go see an abandoned chicken church:
It’s real, and if you click here you can find out where it is and more importantly, why!
If this isn’t for you, what about a glass beach?
This is real – and really cool – and you can see more about it – and other wild Eastern European destinations – by clicking on my story here:
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Categories: Books / Media, Exotic Travel, nature, Pop Culture, Real Estate, Travel, Travel Adventures
johnrieber 
I read about and that it was tried before and failed …I’m guessing its opened up there for a reason and if sealing it was successful what would happen would it force itself to do the same elsewhere…I think that is a dangerous game to try and seal it.
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Yes, nature has decided this was needed and to try and force it closed will only, I assume, add pressure that will be released close by…thanks for commenting!
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I wonder if sealing this would have an adverse effect on something else. I understand why the president of Turkmenistan wants to do this, it makes sense.
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I think Mother Nature knows best, and has a reason for most everything. Not sure closing the crater is the right thing to do.
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Well I’m from one of the asian countries, but never been to other Asian countries in my life😂 Hopefully I’ll visit Turkmenistan one day😊💕
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Wow that is so crazy
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It’s so fascinating…I love our world!
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Me too
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Apparently, Eastern Europe is far more interesting than I first imagined.
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Although they may not be easy to visit!
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Flying over the volcano in Hawaii already made me think of the fires of hell … can’t imagine what it would like seeing THAT!
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Flying over a volcano in Hawaii is a great way to spend a day though!
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They tried to seal it before, in 2010. When that failed, they turned it into a tourist attraction. Now the President wants them to try to it seal it again, and nobody really knows why.
Best wishes, Pete.
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It will be interesting…they aren’t on the “must see” tourist list for many reason! Thanks for commenting!
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That’s one of the Soviet Central Asian countries I didn’t get to see when it was still part of the USSR.
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