Russia is the largest state in the world in terms of area. Naturally, in such a vast territory there are thousands of poorly studied and anomalous zones. And today we will take a closer look at three of them.
Death Valley, Yakutia
The name of this strange place speaks for itself. Around Death Valley, located on the right bank of the Vilyui River, there have been many rumors and legends for a long time.
View of the Valley of Death near the abandoned settlement of Olguidah.
There are stories from mouth to mouth that this area has a flattened metal arch, which is the entrance to underground rooms with metal walls. It is warm inside these rooms even in the most severe frosts.
The artist Yuri Mikhailovsky drew cauldrons based on the stories of hunters.
The locals call this unusual construction a "cauldron". According to the testimony of one old Evenk hunter, he saw several such boilers with a diameter of 7-9 meters.
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The material from which they are made looks like copper, but it does not lend itself to any influence - even a small scratch cannot be left on it.
The cauldrons are surrounded by strange vegetation - burdocks with incredibly huge leaves and grass, one and a half human height.
Locals try to bypass Death Valley. However, earlier there were daredevils who stayed overnight inside the boilers. Soon they began to get sick, and those who spent the night there several times quickly died of unknown diseases.
There are several versions of the origin and purpose of these structures. The boilers are called the gates to hell, an abandoned USSR laboratory, separated by rocket stages and even a UFO base. By the way, old people say that inside one of the cauldrons there are “thin black-eyed people in metal clothes, frozen through and through”.
Interestingly, many bodies of water in this area have the word "cauldron" in their name.
Mountain of the Dead, Sverdlovsk Region
In the north of the Urals, where the border of Komi and the Sverdlovsk region passes, there is Mount Kholatchakhl, which translated from Mansi means "Dead Peak" or "Mountain of Nine Dead".
An ancient legend is associated with this place. Thousands of years ago, a great flood occurred in this area, which claimed the lives of almost all representatives of the Mansi people. Only 11 people survived - 10 men and 1 woman. They climbed the mountain, but the water still overtook them. Men died one after another. Finally, when the last man and woman were left, the water suddenly receded. And this couple revived Mansi again.
But the mountain is known not for its legend, but for inexplicable mysterious deaths and disappearances of people.
The most resonant incident was the case of a group of student tourists led by Igor Dyatlov, which happened in February 1959.
Nine half-naked young men and women were found frozen near a broken tent. Some of the bodies were found to be seriously injured. It is still unclear what prompted the tourists to hastily leave the tent and run out into the night without warm clothes and shoes.
The searchers who found the cut tent.
But this is far from the only tragic incident. In the period from 1960 to 1961, 9 pilots and geologists died in this area under strange circumstances.
They say that in February 1961, another group of tourists from Leningrad died here. And again 9 people, cut tents and an expression of unimaginable horror on their faces … True, this fact has not been officially confirmed in any way.
In the 1970s, literally in front of his colleagues, a young geologist disappeared out of the blue. Since his father was a big boss, the guy was looked for especially carefully. But no traces were found.
This is not a complete list of strange incidents that happened in this place. But this is a sufficient reason for an impressionable tourist to think about whether he should go there.
Pleshcheyevo lake, Yaroslavl region
Not far from Pereslavl-Zalessky is Lake Pleshcheyevo, which is associated with many secrets and mysteries.
In ancient times, the city of Kleshchin stood on its banks, which was abandoned by the inhabitants for no reason. It is believed that the spirit of the lake cursed this place, so Pereslavl-Zalessky was erected aside.
To this day, the lake is notorious among the locals. It is believed that something in these waters puts people into confusion. With a dreamy happy smile, a person goes further and further into the water, until he suddenly finds himself at great depth, from where not everyone can swim out.
Fogs, which often envelop the coastal area, also endow with mystical properties. It is believed that they can transport people to other places and times.
On the shore of the lake, you can see another curious sight - the Xin-stone. It gets its name from the fact that it turns completely blue after rain.
He also has his own mystical history.
Once upon a time, the Ugrian tribes came to this land. They made an artificial embankment 40 meters high, and put a sacred blue boulder on top, which was revered as the heart of the supreme pagan god. Rituals and sacrifices were performed on the hill.
With the advent of Christianity, the struggle against paganism began. The hill was destroyed, a boulder was thrown down, and a church was built on this site. But it burned to the ground, not standing for a century.
Then the palace of Prince Alexander Nevsky was built on this place. True, this building was not destined to stand for long.
Finally, on the site of the pagan sanctuary, a Christian church was erected again. But this building was not lucky either - it was turned into ruins during the riots of the Time of Troubles.
At the beginning of the 18th century, the clergy declared a real war on the stone. The boulder was attributed to possession by demons and a trip to this place was considered a grave sin. Then he was completely thrown into a well and covered with earth. What was the general surprise when, after a decade and a half, the stone was found in its usual place!
On reflection, the priests decided to lay the foundation stone for the church under construction in Pereslavl. And again they failed!
Under the weight of the sled carrying the stone, the ice of the lake cracked and the stone sank to the bottom. Soon the fishermen began to say that the boulder was moving slowly in an incomprehensible way - it was noticed in one place or another. 60 years have passed, and the Xin-stone again found itself on the shore of Lake Pleshcheevo!
To this day, people flock to the stone with their requests. Men ask the stone for "heroic" strength, and desperate women ask for deliverance from infertility. It is not for nothing that for hundreds of years the stone has been associated with the image of Yarila - the god of spring fertility!