Mir Diamond Mine Russia

Mir Mine is actually a diamond mine located in Mirny Eastern Siberia Russia. It is also called Mirny Mine, and when it was decided to close in 2004, the mine was 525 meters deep and 1,200 meters across making it the 2nd largest excavated hole in the world, after “Bingham Canyon Mine”. In the first look everyone gets amazed about the hole of mine, because it is really too massive hole. The airspace above the mine is closed for helicopters because of incidents in which they were sucked in by the downward air flow.

In 1957, mining started due to extreme harsh climate conditions. The Siberian winter seasons lasted more than seven months which have frozen the ground, but making it extremely difficult to mine. However; during the brief summer seasons which is lasted only few months, permafrost would become mud turning the whole mining operation into a land of sludge. Buildings had to be raised on piles, so that they would not sink.

The main processing plant had to be built on better ground, found 20 kilometers away from the mine. The winter temperatures are extremely low that car tires and steel would shatter and oil would freeze. During the winter, workers used jet engines to burn through the layer of permafrost or blasted it with dynamite to get access to the underlying kimberlite. The whole mine had to be covered at night to prevent the machinery from freezing.

When the Mining is on peak, it produced about 10 million carats of diamond per year, of which a relatively high fraction (20%) were of gem quality. This has worried to De Beers Company, which at that time was distributing most of the world's diamonds. The company was pushed to buy larger and larger shipments of high-quality Russian diamonds in order to control the market price.

For De Beers, Mir mine was a puzzling mystery. The mine’s massive output was not consistent with the fairly small size of the mine. However in the 1970’s when the mine producing small quantities of diamonds, the Soviets were producing an increasing quantity of gem diamonds. In conclusion, in 1976, De Beers requested a tour of the Mir mine to fulfill their curiosity. Therefore; permission was well granted, but the Russians kept delaying the visit and by the time and the team of delegates reached the Mir mine, just before their visas were expired, so that they could have only 20 minutes at the Mir mine.

But the visit did a little to shed light on the secret of the Mir’s diamond production. When USSR was collapsed in 1990s, the mine was operated by a few local companies and they had worked until 2004 when the mine was enduringly closed.

Island of Gaztelugatxe Spain

Gaztelugatxe is a small island located in the Bay of Biscay just outside the Spanish coast in Basque Country. The island is crowned by a slight hermitage called San Juan de Gaztelugatxe mainly dedicated to John the Baptist that dates from the 10th century, but could be as early as the 9th century. With another little neighboring island, Aketze, they form a protected biotope that extends from the town of Bakio until Cape Matxitxako, on the Bay of Biscay.

The beautiful island is well connected to the coast by a narrow path, crossing a two-arch stone bridge and the most glorious staircase containing of over 230 steps that head to the hermitage. The island is a planned spot for controlling the coast. However, the history tells us that Gaztelugatxe constituted one of the bastions of resistance against the vanity and rapacious desire of Alfonso XI, the King of Castile. This treacherous enclosure was defended in thirteen century (somewhat in 1334) by seven knights who resisted the attacks of a well-organized army for over a month. But they having failed to siege the island, the Monarch withdrew humiliated. Well, in 1593 it was attacked again and sacked by Francis Drake, whose troops plundered everything to be found in that sanctuary and threw the hermit off the cliff.

Nowadays, the serenity of the island, the magnificent views of the rugged coast, the persistent sea pounding against the rocks and the flocks of seabirds is what drives tourists to this not-so-remote island adjacent the towns of Bakio and Bermeo. Moreover; the best place to visit the island is during spring and autumn season. However; summer months are often crowded with tourists.

Floating Forest Australia

For all those whose heart starts beating faster when they see something ancient and abandoned just like Homebush Bay in Sydney, Australia is the right place for you, because this is the home to remnants of a ship-breaking yard that operated during the mid-20th-century. The huge watercraft that outlived their practicality were towed to Homebush Bay and dismantled to salvage any components that could be reused or sold for scrap. One such ship name “SS Ayrfield” which is no longer used, actually a 1,140-tonne behemoth built in 1911 as a steam collier that was later used during WWII as a transport ship and supplies to American troops in the Pacific Ocean. This is absolutely the most impressive sight for the entire lush flora, growing in its rusted hull.  In 1972 this ship was brought to Homebush Bay to be dismantled, but fate would decide otherwise.

Operations at the ship-breaking yard later ceased and parts of several large vessels including the Ayrfield were left behind, the largest stuffs in an area now notorious for decades of chemical dumping and pollution. However; this is century-old transport ship would be transformed by time into a floating forest, an odd home for trees and other vegetation that have since sprouted over the last few decades. 

From 2008-2010 a rigorous effort was made to eliminate several of the lingering chemicals in Homebush left from the industrial era. Not far away is the Brickpit Ring Walk, a former industrial site where almost three billion bricks were made from 1911 through the 1980s that is now a sensibly protected natural habitat. With the passage of time when the forest has grown inside the SS Ayrfield, the bay is now a widespread place for photographers who wish to capture the uncanny sight of this strangely lovely relic of the bay’s industrial past, not to mention nature’s resiliency. 

Although there’re lots of photographers, who’re passionate about photographing numerous abandoned objects, many tourists are drawn to the bay because of the Floating Forest alone. What a beautiful sight is this! The fully-grown mangrove trees earned this ship famous as “Floating Forest” among the locals. Besides its history for ship-breaking and the spooky ship cemetery, Homebush Bay is home to the Olympic Stadium today as well.

The Guano Covered Island of Grassholm

Some island in the world is really awesome to see, just like remote offshore “Grassholm” which is a small uninhabited island, nearly 200 meters across, located 13 kilometers off the southwestern Pembrokeshire coast in Wales. This beautiful small island is home to one of the largest colonies of gannets. Therefore; during the breeding season starts from (April to September), approximately 39,000 pairs of birds, nearly 10% of the world’s population, nest on the northern side of the island. Therefore, this side of the island is well covered with a thick layer of bird droppings, mainly famous as guano, giving the island its characteristic off-white color.

From afar, the island looks extremely beautiful when bun sitting on the ocean with icing sugar on top.  So many visitors when approaches the island by boat, the stench becomes overbearing. The lovely white patch on the island that can be seen from above and off-shore, is neither snow nor limestone rock. These’re birds themselves and their shit. The tiny island is made up of basalt, an igneous rock of volcanic origin. It is well believed by researchers that the island was once a part of Skomer Island before it got loose during the last Ice Age. If you see the history you’ll came to know that during the late 16th century thousands of Puffins inhabited the island but now there are none.

Because the existing soil condition aren’t supported burrows that these birds normally make which is maybe why they’ve moved to the neighboring Skomer and Skokholm Islands. However; Gannets have increased their colonized in the island in massive numbers, perhaps arriving from Lundy Island where they were disturbed. Although Grassholm island covers only 22 acres and there’re more than 80,000 Gannets plus their chicks, colonies of Guillemots, Razorbills, Kittiwakes and Shags.

The gannets were first observed on the island in the mid of 18th of century roughly in between 1860 and in 1872, at that time only 12 pairs recorded as breeding there.  But at the late 18th century somewhere 1890's there were 200 or more birds breed. Therefore; in 1905 Cardiff Naturalists Society recorded 300 more breeding pairs. So Gannet population has been steadily increasing since then and now they’re in countless numbers. The birds live in very near proximity to each other and have evolved a series of vocal and postural messages. They’re always thousands of numbers in the air above the island, and would like to dive fishing from all angles at great heights.

The cacophony of sounds they make is deafening. Moreover; the guano had killed the dense mattress of grass in this island exposing archaeological remains of settlements from the Iron Age and early Medieval periods. So as you approach the island you’ll understand why it is white? And the noise and the smell of Grassholm is really a lifetime experience. The Gannets usually stay on Grassholm from February to October, and after that they’d like to travel as far south as Africa in the winter. The older birds will stay in European waters. Make sure there is no landing on the island but boat trips are run daily, subject to weather conditions.