People Break Down Which Remote 'Off-Limits' Locations They'd Love To Explore
These are all sorts of places that it would be absolutely fascinating to visit but you aren't allowed to without for various reasons.
But who would lie and say they don't let their imagination go a little wild every once in a while?
Nobody has ever been to the bottom of the ocean or to the furthest reaches of space, so all of humanity wonders about those things.
Redditor deep-steak asked:
"What's a creepy, remote, or otherwise 'off-limits' place you have or would like to explore?"
Here were some of those answers.
The Cold And Buried War
"First job when I was 15 had an offsite warehouse to store product. Boss takes me there to grab some stuff and tells me it used to be a missile silo."
"He then uses a knife to open a door to part of the building that we weren't supposed to have access to. Walk in and it's like an office setup with no furniture."
"Then we walk into the back and there's a long stairwell down. Go into a huge underground room with a giant round hole in the floor."
"Got to explore all kinds of heavy blast doors, lots of concrete, weird control rooms with some instrumentation still in place. We were able to explore two floors down but the lower levels were all flooded. Super creepy and super cool."
"After doing some research later in life, it was an old 50s Nike missile base."-crassbrewing
Incredibly Wicked Or Whatever
"I'm from Salt Lake City. It's been torn down now I think, but in high school kids would go to Ted Bundy's house. I wasn't allowed to go, and the older I get, the more grateful I am for that. 🙃"-Zestyclose_League_67
"For what it's worth, the 'Ted Bundy's Cellar' thing by the zoo is just an urban legend. You'll find a lot of blogs talking about it like it's a fact not ultimately he never lived there."
"I think the police checked out the area when looking for one of his victims but never found anything. Though it is a creepy spot on its own. The place he lived is in the avenues and it's just a regular looking apartment."-LordPizzaParty
The Ancient World
"The tomb of Qin Shi Huang, guarded by the famous Terracotta Army. It's thought to contain rivers of mercury and booby traps." -suedefalcon
"From what I remember from a Chinese Art History class I took in college, the Terracotta Army soldiers that have been uncovered are only a small portion of the total number of soldiers."
"I would love to see the grand scale of them all. There are probably so many ancient mausoleums and tombs that have been lost to the ages, never to be uncovered again."-KarthusWins
It's not just places you wish you could go, but times you wish you could see for yourself as well.
Ghosts? In My Town?
"Ludlow, Colorado is the most legit ghost town I've ever been to. Totally abandoned but many buildings still standing intact."
"It's the site of a massacre that occurred in the early 1900s during which the government attacked striking coal miners with machine guns, killing several."
"A bunch of women and children also suffocated to death in a cellar during a fire set by the National Guard. The cellar is still there, and you can go into it."
"Or at least it was when I visited like 10-15 years ago. It's in a gorgeous area right at the foot of some mountains but is pretty eerie."-[username deleted]
A Modern Nation
"My wife is from a city in China that borders North Korea. Last time we went to visit family there we went to hike around the Great Wall, which actually runs along the border."
"Parts of the trail take you right along the border fence, where there are guard towers and soldiers posted at intervals."
"We hiked along the border for a bit and I could hear guards in one tower yelling to another. A short while afterwards, a pretty impressive looking officer came to the fence and kindly asked us to stop taking pictures."
"When he got closer and saw that I was American, he got super giddy though and wanted to show off his English and wanted to know more about me."
"10/10 will go back there when we can get back into China."-arch_nyc
What About The Olympic?
"I would love to dive the wreck of the Britannic someday. It's an immensely difficult and dangerous dive at 400 feet deep in the Mediterranean. Not to mention it requires special permits from the Greek government."
"However, the Britannic is the sister ship of the Titanic and the two ships are essentially identical. Luckily, the Britannic is fairly well preserved and within technical diving depths."
"You can penetrate the wreck where the skylight shattered and float amongst the grand staircase—identical to the iconic Titanic grand staircase that lies 35,000 feet under the sea."
"I'm a huge f**king nerd. Ever since I was a little kid, I always thought this dive seemed like the best one on the planet."-IronHeart1963
Ah America During The Gold Rush
"Picher, Oklahoma. Something about that town is so interesting despite it now being almost obsolete."
"Especially since it still has chat piles and to know the chat was used in driveways, sandboxes, and anything they could find a use for."
"Next would probably be Poveglia, Italy because it's forbidden, is possiy full of human remains, and it has an abandoned mental hospital. Neat!"-MafiaMommaBruno
These are the places that human beings should probably keep their distance from--for their own good.
Relocated? Gulp!
"Diego Garcia. A British owned island in the middle of the Indian Ocean and all the locals were relocated decades ago."
"The only thing currently in the island is a US military base. Needless to say getting permission to visit is difficult."
"People make a big deal out of Area 51, and that would be a neat place to see, but if you're looking for the countries biggest and darkest secrets then you're going to have to look at places like Diego Garcia."-MadCapRedCap
POTUS Is Safe
"I'd like to see the 'undisclosed location' where they hide the POTUS in the event of a terrorist attack on Washington, or other military incursions on U.S. soil."
"I want to know where it is, and I want to see the inside of it to see what's there. For example, does it contain enough food and supplies to survive a nuclear attack?"
"Are there fancy presidential accommodations, or does the POTUS have to rough it in a crude underground bunker?"
"I also wouldn't mind seeing the White House, but not just the parts where you can go on a tour; I'd want to see everything. I'd especially like to see if there are any secret rooms and/or secret passages."-PM_MeYourSmilingFace
Haunted!
"There's a house that sits on the way to a local trail. A long gravel drive splits a weedy field full of hawthorn brush. Big sugar maple trees hide the house all summer."
"It isn't until winter that the place grabs your attention. The house is thin. Two stories. The roof is tin and looks to have been tacked on like an old hay barn. I think it was once a form of blue, but now is chalky gray."
"The fascia under the tin is a black line from the distance of the road. Even from far away you can see it's saturated. Rotten. There's an old 70's looking pickup truck parked on the slope of the drive just up front of the house."
"It's the only vehicle. It never moves. For years I thought the house was abandoned. Until one cold day I saw smoke hanging in the trees above it. I swear it's leaning. Sagging."
"It'll sound strange, but when I look at that house I feel something pulling at me. It's hard to put into words. My wife asked if I thought someone was tied up in the basement."
"It's not that at all. It just feels like a physical force points me towards the house. Like little hands made of wind, pushing."-N_o_B_o
Humans are curious creatures, and as such, sometimes we really let our curiosity get the best of us.
But take caution--the next time you get intrigued by an abandoned place, do your research for sure. But really decide if it's worth it to go inside.
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Geologists Share The Weirdest Things About Earth That Most Don't Know
Don't tell me!
The Earth is a splendid, vast and quixotic mystery. We as the Earth's humble inhabitants know next to nothing about her in the grand scheme of it all. Even those who study this planet as their source of career will tell you they only will ever chip away at the surface of what's happening. Somethings we may find fascinating to know, others... we could probably do without being aware of.
Redditor u/Sickzaur reached out to uncover some Earthly facts, asking... Geologists, geographers, and other Earth enthusiasts, what are some weird things about Earth that most people don't know?
Real talk, things are just easier when we're kids. We can get hurt and bounce right back the next day. We can stay up late and hardly feel it the next day. We can break up and it's hard for a few days, but we don't need to rearrange our entire lives. We can go to concerts without ear protection and not have our ears ringing for four days afterwards. Psh. Try any of that after you're 30 and see how that goes.
Hint: It Won't End Well
One Reddit user asked:
What adult problem did nobody prepare you for?
Here are some of the responses that we felt deep in our achy, dehydrated, bones. (Side note: When was the last time you drank some water? Hydrate, gurl. Hydrate.)
1. Pools Are A Pain
I tell everyone I know, "You don't want a swimming pool. You want a friend with a swimming pool." I have a huge inground pool in my backyard that's been sitting unused for the last 19 years. It's not like we don't want to use it, it's just too expensive to maintain and we don't have that kind of money. It sucks because my friends are always telling me to get it fixed but there's not much I can do.
2. Breakups... Adult Breakups.
You're not just losing the other person, you're losing a whole version of your life that will never take place. All the plans you had, where you were willing to live, what career choices you would make with them, all gone.
3. Time
How fast time would start moving. What do you mean I'm almost 30?? I feel like I just graduated college but then I think about it and it was already 5 years ago. My wife asked me if I was going to my high schools 10th reunion but that couldn't have possibly been 10 years ago already.
4. So Unfair
That life can be unfair no matter the effort you put in. Just need to roll with the punches. As a male who is probably a little more emotionally in touch with his feelings than the average male, this was a hard lesson to lesson to learn. The fact that I would put so much effort into something I love, pouring my heart and soul into it, only to have it shafted by life or just other people in general was gut-wrenching.
My advice when that happens is before you get too upset, don't forget to harvest the fruits of your failures. What did you learn from this experience? If attempted again, what could you do differently to get closer to the desired outcome? However unfair life may be, it usually will provide you with a learning experience. You just gotta be open and ready to see it when it presents itself.
5. I'm The Adult?
Having younger people ask for advice and realizing that I'm actually the adult in the room. Scary. Parenting is like that. When you realize you're now the one wholly in charge of another person. Who thought that was a good idea?
6. Good Job. You're Fired.
Being good at a job and still being let go. Silver lining to this is it taught me early that companies show no loyalty so I don't need to either. My first job out of college was great; it was in my home state, good salary, good benefits. Hell, I even had a pension. I had dreams of working my way up and staying there for the long haul. After all, they hired me fresh out of school, I owe them so much, right? Nope. Laid off after two years. Now I have no problem going to the highest bidder, f--- loyalty in the corporate world
7. Immaturity
That a ton of adults are just as immature as kids and having to deal with them. First you are bullied at school, then you are bullied at work. They are everywhere and they don't grow up. At worst, they end up being your bosses or your spouses relatives. Hooray. It never ends. And the worst part about this is bc they are adults they think it's ok that they're immature and you can't say anything about it... because dang it they're a grown (wo)man! 😒
8. Love Bites
That love is out of your control, you could be dating someone and love that someone with all your heart and they could just lose interest, and there is nothing you can do about it. I used to LOVE falling head over heels in love with someone and now I think I'm starting to feel jaded.... I try and shut that shit right down if I start feeling feelings. Or worse, having to break up with someone you really love because you know it's the best move for you both.
9. Cost Of Maintenance
How your body falls apart. The cost of maintenance of one's body and how fragile it seems to be. Look after yourselves folks! I'm trying to get into good exercise habits and good eating habits while I'm in my 30s but my body is already falling apart. I'm terrified for my 40s.
10. Seeing Your Parents Clearly
When you can finally see your parents for how petty and flawed they can be in a big picture sense. I don't mean teenage angst about parents thinking they know best. I mean that point where you can relate to your parent as an equal in a meaningful way which also means you can see the depth of their limitations.
Watching my parents become human, and speaking them on a deep level of shared mental illness (anxiety, depression) and their fears has just terrified me; realizing that they're just as flawed, scared, and there is no way I can rely on them in a meaningful way, well, it was what I consider the 'true death' of my childhood.
11. Friends?
Making friends after college. I'm almost 30 and no matter how many meetups I go to, what app I use, or where I volunteer, I can't seem to make a connection with someone who has similar interests as me in person. I've made connections with people who we share interests, but they live either in a different country or on the other side of the country.
12. You Might Be Mediocre
Mediocrity. When you're a kid you might not necessarily believe that you will actually be an astronaut or president or whatever, but there is an assumption you will succeed to a degree; have a good house and a decent job. No one sits you down and prepares you for the possibility that you'll just stagger through life doing the motions.
13. You Have To
Not wanting to go to work but knowing you have to. When I was in school, if I was sick staying home was always an option. Sometimes you just have to pound some DayQuil and go to work.
14. It Never Feels Settled
That there is no such thing as feeling like a grown up. I'm 42 and even my friends in their 60s are still subject to the same insecurity and immature processes as a 16-year-old, most of the time. I thought by this point in my life, I'd have no questions, no insecurities, and I'd be so suave and sophisticated.
15. Learn To Fix A Toilet
Sometimes, the toilet breaks and it doesn't matter what you had planned--your plans are now to try to learn how to fix a toilet. It's a race against your bowels! It's amazing how a household repair can take your entire day by storm. Thank goodness for Youtube and Home Depot, is all I can say.
16. Options
The difficulty of choosing between two good choices, like two good job opportunities or two decent places to live.
Growing up, it seemed like my parents only ever had two bad choices to make and would often have to choose between the lesser of two evils. I remember the first time I had to make a life decision, between two jobs and thinking, "if I do this, my life will be this; if I do that, my life will be that." There wasn't necessarily a "wrong" decision, but a decision that was going to significantly impact my life and where I lived. It was really the first crossroad I came to and realized that depending on the decision I made, my life would be vastly different had I chosen the other.
17. Planning Never Stops
It's not really one specific problem- but just the amount of planning. It's kind of exhausting.
You plan your weekdays, plan your outings, plan your weekends. You plan for meals then you have to plan your grocery shopping and list, then plan for when you'll cook. Plan your chores, plan your fixer-upper lists, plan your budget, plan your bills.... Every single thing you do, watch, read, buy, eat... YOUR choice, YOUR responsibility. Sounds amazing at first and it is nice to have that freedom, but it's actually pretty tiring day after day after day. I LOVE going on a family vacation where my aunt and uncle are in charge and they plan the meals and the outings and I can just sit back and help out with the actual cooking or cleaning up. It's nice to be a passenger every once in a while.
18. The Treadmill
The crisis when you realize you'll likely work 40 hours a week for a looooong time; the fact that you're on a treadmill that never stops. It's not going fast, but it never stops. I always realized I'd be working full time, but never really thought about it and how in order to make more money you need to have more responsibility, which means more hours, more time on-call, plus take into account driving to and from work, you pretty much do nothing but work for your entire adult life. Yikes
19. "Do What You Love"
The 'do what you love' stuff gets hyped too much. If you turn what you love into a job, you won't love it much longer. You should do what you're good at and don't hate doing. Keep your passions as pure as you can.
20. The End Is NOT Near
I was raised as Jehovah's Witness and was repeatedly told that "the end is right around the corner." JW's believe that those that survive Armageddon will live forever on Paradise earth, with a select 144,000 ruling in heaven. Even better, all your dead loved ones would be resurrected too.
I never expected to have to grow old and see my loved ones die.
Higher education is discouraged in the cult, because what's the point? The end is near, and you should be out in the ministry instead. So I'm decades behind my peers in terms of financial stability as well.
I "woke up" from the cult a few years ago and it has been difficult coming to grips with realities that most people have dealt with much younger.
H/T: Reddit