PHOTOS: Belarusian Mountains, Illusion Or Reality?

Belarus is a land of paradoxes. We don’t have a sea and still we say we have it, officially, we don’t have mountains and here we are, admiring Salihorsk mountains and taking thousands of photos of a Mars-like lanscape.

Okay, true, you’ve got us here, we shouldn’t call them mountains, since obvioulsy they are spoil tips built of mining waste material. And yet, just look at these unearthly views which can easily become the scenes of a space movie.

Years of mining and industrialisation have permanently changed the flat landscape of the region into an unexplainable phenomenon, where far green fields coexsist with dead lands and lakes (slurry lagoons).

No, this is not a mirage.

Minda that the man-made mountains that can reach up to 160 metres are officially prohibited to visit. Here and there one can see corresponding signs warning not to enter, take photos or shoot videos.

A curious reader might ask how come we managed to take these photos. Well, we all have our secrets, right?

The adjacent roads are free for movement and pretty good for taking a photo or two. The prohibition is mostly for security purposes of the visitors – there were accidents when daredevil salt dump lovers fell or got caught in landslides.

Unlucky tourists happen to be detained and asked to write explanatory notes by guards patrolling the territory. So, better stay at home and enjoy the amazing views from the coziness of your armchair or wherever you are right now.

Source: TUT.BY, photos by Anna Veres