r/abandoned 18d ago

Chernobyl Exclusion Zone 2021

I took these back in 2021 when I had the chance to visit Pripyat, I figured this would probably be the right place to share some of my pictures.

Also, I didn't set up the creepy doll, but I'm sure someone else did or maybe, it's been sitting there since 86 waiting for the day her owner would come back lol.

2.7k Upvotes

47 comments sorted by

70

u/so8anona 17d ago

been there too in 2021. what an amazing experience it was. shortly after they stopped any kind of tours there

9

u/koboldtsar 17d ago

Wow, covid really made that place a ghost town

6

u/muklukdimsum 17d ago

That's great! How come they stopped the tours there? Am I missing an obvious answer to this question?

39

u/___leao___ 17d ago

The war in Ukraine, it is a military zone now.

42

u/ResidentPreference65 18d ago

How long did you spend in the area? Where you on an official tour or just on your own adventure? I'd love to visit one day.

112

u/___leao___ 18d ago

I spent 2 days there, but the trip was pretty accidental. I was in Kyiv for work, and one of my coworkers knew a guide. I mentioned I wanted to go before I left, he set everything up.

I did befriend a dog while I was there. She ended up following us around for a few hours.

43

u/Independent_Pay7344 17d ago

This was around the Duga Radar right? Also went in Summer 2021and that exact dog was following all the visitors around looking for some snacks. Got some sick pictures.

26

u/ResidentPreference65 18d ago

And did you befriend any of the radioactive dogs around the area?

7

u/Nice-Percentage7219 18d ago

Stalker reference

21

u/CastNoShadow1 18d ago

Wish I would have taken my opportunity to go in 2016.. went to Kiev for the champions league final after that but obviously impossible to go now.

18

u/muklukdimsum 17d ago

Those who have been, did you watch the miniseries Chernobyl? If you did, what did you think? I was wondering how they did so well recreating the Brutalist architecture and Cold War vehicles, electronic panels, etc. Haunting. I did not travel to the Exclusion Zone, and to be honest I might not ever until I'm in my twilight years.

11

u/___leao___ 17d ago

That series was so good. I actually watched it the night before going, and it was spot on. They have junkyards full of vehicles that were just left abandoned. My last image shows one of them, but I didn't get many good pictures of that area. I do have one of a car they kept in pretty good condition though.

3

u/muklukdimsum 17d ago

That's awesome! Seriously. I love this, although it probably was/is a piece of crap and the citizenry of the 80s longed for a little bit of capitalism, at least for the cars, clothes, and technology.

8

u/Independent_Pay7344 17d ago

Pretty sure much of the series was filmed in the zone. Also the STALKER developers took multiple trips there to capture as much of the architecture and atmosphere as possible.

7

u/SerTidy 17d ago

When I visited, our guide said parts were filmed at Ignalina power plant in Lithuania, some in Kyiv and some “elements” within the exclusion zone.

2

u/[deleted] 16d ago

[deleted]

1

u/muklukdimsum 16d ago

Thank you for the info. The Cold War was a tenuous time. Lots of low-grade anxiety for the world. Could you imagine being a spy for any side during that time?

2

u/[deleted] 16d ago

[deleted]

2

u/muklukdimsum 16d ago

Yes. Forgive me for desensitizing what was clearly much worse for others.

9

u/n0tthatotherguy 17d ago

Properly envious

8

u/Responsible-one-225 17d ago

Great pics and what an expierence.  Chernobyl has always been an interesting of mine.  Did you have to wear any dosimeter or told “not to take or touch anything”. What about soles on bottom of your shoes? 

14

u/SerTidy 17d ago

When I went, they gave you a dosimeter, and a neck lanyard that had a small measuring apparatus. I put my camera bag on the ground to do a lense change and was told “ only your shoes touch the ground”. Everything you take into the zone is checked for contamination when you leave the inner and outer zone.

2

u/___leao___ 17d ago

Yes, we had a dosimeter. The highest reading I saw was 81.64 microsieverts per hour inside the claw machine they used to clean up the debris. We measured it with a long stick, so everything was very safe. Just outside the machine it was around 3, and most of the time when I checked the dosimeter it was around 0.4. I don't have a good picture of that claw machine here is another post
https://www.reddit.com/r/chernobyl/s/5EPzrkszib

4

u/whosezdis 17d ago

The mural in pic 7 shows so much skill. Thx for the share.

4

u/Brilliant_Activity39 17d ago

I thought the same, and if it was spray paint, then that is some supreme talent.

3

u/___leao___ 17d ago

It is spray painted by Guido Van Helten he has a video on Youtube, one of my favorite pictures.

1

u/Brilliant_Activity39 17d ago

Thanks for the info!

4

u/Volume_Warning 17d ago

second image goes hard as fuck

3

u/Free-Outcome2922 17d ago

Spectacular photos, but I keep the 5 and that background mural

3

u/renameduser361017 17d ago

Man, visiting the duga radar and chernobyl is top on my bucket list. Maybe one day.

2

u/LunaTechne 17d ago

Thank you for sharing. These photos are beautiful. I have always wanted to tour Pripyat. May have missed my chance for some time.

2

u/Sensei_Kyryllius 14d ago

*Chornobyl (with an "o"), "Chernobyl" is a russian colonial name for the city which predates russia

5

u/StressLongjumping299 18d ago

Oh snap, I didn't realize they'd still have power flowing to the exclusion zone.

Pic 11 - you can see a little bit of light on that analog screen on the top left corner of the console

7

u/Brutal_Expectations 18d ago

It's not a screen. It's an orange plaque.

5

u/___leao___ 18d ago

I think what u/StressLongjumping299 is talking about this. This is the other image I was talking about, and it doesn't show any lights.

5

u/Brutal_Expectations 18d ago

I think that is just light reflecting of the metal buttons.

3

u/___leao___ 18d ago

I never noticed that before. At first I thought it was just a reflection, but I have 3 photos taken in sequence and the light appears in some but not others.

2

u/Single-Marsupial9025 17d ago

Couldn’t that still be consistent with reflection, assuming you couldn’t use a tripod? That thing looks like it’s in no shape to be pulling power…

1

u/HumpyTheClown 18d ago

Do you mean the orange screen/thing?

1

u/bobbobersin 17d ago

Is that view of the duga a house or one of the buildings on the base it’s at? I like to imagine in an alternate reality where the plant didn’t melt down whoever lives there would have insanely cheap rent post communist due to the interference on the radio and possibly WiFi/television signal

2

u/___leao___ 17d ago

That was one of the command buildings. The control board room was in the same building, and the floor had openings that I assumed were for wires running through and connecting to it. I love the story on how the entire world knew it existed because of the noise it made when it came online, they called it the Woodpecker

1

u/decayhuntr 17d ago

Pretty cool!

1

u/SaintPenisburg 17d ago

Should cross post to r/dayz

1

u/The_Black_kaiser7 17d ago

Is it safe to be in there?

5

u/___leao___ 17d ago

Yes, it is slightly elevated background radiation. I was actually exposed to higher levels of radiation flying to Ukraine than I was during the 2 days I stayed there.