The final section of the day before going on to Reactor 4 was a visit it Duga Radar Array and Pripyat town.
For those that have not read the story so far, here are Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.
Duga Radar Array was built during the cold war so that the Soviet Union could detect if the US had launched any missile. The idea was that if it could be detected early enough it would allow the Soviet missiles to be fueled and fired before it was too late.
It was a 20 minute or so drive from Chernobyl along a forest lined broken road. Along much of the forest road you could see logs that had been cut and stacked to dry, long since forgotten by whoever cut them now rotted and decayed.
The forest shielded the huge radar array until we we almost on it. First we noticed the old security fence and shortly after a guard house manned by five or six soldiers armed with some form of Kalashnikovs slung over their shoulders. The guide left the mini bus, spoke with the solders and walked into the guard house returning shortly after.
We later asked if he needed to pay them but he refused to discuss the business side of the trip. I took that as they were paid off.
We then headed on through the gate on foot for the walk to the Radar Array, our first real sight beyond this building, some form or barracks.
The Radar Array was huge, hard to describe the scale although the building below it give some sense of the size.
After a while stopped for people to take photos it was time for one of the main attractions of the trip... Pripyat.
Just before the town boundary is the Red Forest. Long since cleared of the dead trees that gave the area its name but still as contaminated. The Geiger Counters in the mini bus all kicked off with their alarms as we drove through the area, an indication that it is still not safe in the zone unless you are with someone that knows safe ways through it.
Here is the town boundary
Driving into the town you quickly learn how easy it would be to get lost. None of the tarmac roads are visible, just mud tracks where the years of tree debris has decomposed and reverted to soil reclaiming the land. In summer when the trees have leaves it would be hard to see some of them through the trees that now grow in what used to be grass.
Our first stop being the old swimming pool and sports building, you can see the guide holding up a picture of what it used to look like.
Next up was an old school building. We were told not to go into the courtyard as it has still not been decontaminated but the building was safe enough. This housed a graveyard of old gas masks used by people during the cleanup, long since perished. The building also stripped of its valuable copper wire over the years.
There is something really eerie about old decaying buildings, I would have loved time to explore apartments but this was not in the scope of our tight schedule if we wanted to get to the Reactor during daylight. So onward we moved to probably the most iconic image within the zone. The Ferris Wheel, something I have wanted to see for a long time.
The fun fair was due to open around the time of the disaster and I believe was never actually used.
Within a short walk of the fun fair is the town square, we did not stop here too long as the shadows were already getting longer. Enough time to see a few buildings including an old super market. Stripped and broken like something out of a Fallout game. I am sure if you searched you would find some Bottle Caps :)
Near the super market was some years old graffiti of a couple of children. If you squint enough the boy could be mistaken for Donald Trump lol
Next we visited a building with amazing stained glass windows on the edge of a lake. This had another real hot spot for radiation, probably the highest we had seen in the day. One of the younger brits on the tour turned around when he heard the alarm go off saying "I can't do this"
The final building in Pripyat was the old Hospital. This building was very dark in places but my phone battery was getting low so I tried to follow others through the dark sections hoping not to trip and fall in all the dust on the floor. This building had all the clothing from the first res-ponders in the cellar, now sealed in sand as very contaminated as you might guess.
So that was Pripyat done, as much as we had time for anyway. In the next part I will cover the Reactor visit and the decontamination checks we had to go through as we left the inner and outer zones.
Hope you have enjoyed this. Feel free to ask any questions.
Woz
