In the world, there are few places where industrial accidents occur that become tourist attractions.
But when a Soviet expedition team drilled for gas in Turkmenistan more than 50 years ago, they are believed to have triggered a chain reaction that created the giant, fiery Darvaza crater, nicknamed the “gateway to hell” or “the light of Karakum.”
The fire is fueled by methane gas escaping from dozens of holes along the bottom and sides of the pit, creating a spectacular sight. Visitors standing around the edge of the pit can feel the intense heat. This wonder is especially striking under the night sky.
Surrounded by the sand dunes and rocky outcrops of the Karakum Desert, Darvaza Crater is a top stop on almost every tour of Turkmenistan. Visitors flock to the site despite the fact that there are no facilities and they have to bring their own supplies. But there are now three overnight shelters with tents, meals and transportation to the crater’s mouth.
The Darvaza crater is about 70 meters wide and 30 meters deep. The vertical walls lead down to a bottom filled with rubble. A fence was erected in 2018 to prevent visitors from getting too close.
“It’s a collapsed gas cave, like an old gas furnace, which is quite interesting. But I find it quite scary,” said cultural researcher Ged Gillmore (University of London, UK).
However, the Darvaza crater may not last much longer. The Turkmen government has hinted at the possibility of sealing it off. Many have even noticed a noticeable reduction in the fire in the crater.
According to Dylan Lupine, founder of Lupine Travel (a pioneer in opening tours to explore Turkmenistan): “I think now it is only 40% of the size of the fire when I first saw it in 2009. The area burned was larger. Now there are fewer and the flames are not as high as before.”
An anonymous guide also confirmed that the fire at Darvaza crater has been getting lower and lower over the past 7 years (he has been there about 40 times). This person said that it seems that the methane gas source is about to run out.
Mysterious Origin
No one knows for sure when the crater formed, as Soviet-era documents are lost, incomplete, or have not been declassified. Canadian explorer George Kourounis says the origin of the wonder is controversial, with the most popular theory being that the crater formed in 1971 and caught fire shortly thereafter.
“But when I went to Turkmenistan with two senior government geologists to the crater, they said it formed in the 1960s, bubbling with mud and gas for a long time, and only started to burn in the 1980s,” said Kourounis.
How the methane gas started is equally mysterious. “Some say it was a grenade, others say a match,” says Kourounis. “I even heard a story about a drunk farmer driving a tractor into a ditch.”
The guide (anonymous) shared another story: “There used to be a village near the pit. The residents set fire to it because they didn’t want the smell or methane gas to be harmful to their health. They thought the pit would only burn for a few weeks.”
As part of a National Geographic-sponsored scientific mission to search for life in the Darvaza crater, Kouronis went down to the wonder in 2013 to collect soil samples. Subsequent analysis revealed that some bacteria and thermophilic bacteria were able to survive in the pit’s harsh conditions.
Journey to Darvaza Crater
Darvaza Crater is a four-hour drive north of Ashgabat. Four-wheel drive vehicles can drive along the two-lane highway and sandy desert roads, where camels can be seen roaming. The villages of Bokurdak and Erbent, located along the highway, are good places to stop for supplies.
The most upscale of the three overnight camps near the pit, Darvaza Camp offers tents with beds and chairs, a cool dining area, and an outdoor portable toilet.
Another option is Garagum Camp, which has floors covered with traditional Turkmen carpets and solar-powered lighting. In the evenings, guests can enjoy a barbecue. Not far from the camp is a small rocky mountain from which one can see the “gates to hell”.
There are two similar pits in the area, but one is filled with water and air bubbles but no fire, the other is only a small fire.
Will the Darvaza crater disappear?
For years, there has been speculation that the Turkmen government is planning to turn the Darvaza pit into a gas production facility. In 2022, the Neutral Turkmenistan The president and his cabinet have consulted scientists on how to extinguish the fire and stop welcoming tourists. The reason given is that allowing the pit to continue burning wastes natural resources, pollutes the environment and is harmful to human health.
But so far there is no evidence that the government is going to implement the project. Some people rumor that the government drilled an exploratory well that took out a large amount of gas, so the fire in the Darvaza crater is fading.
Mr. Lupine said that local people are very worried because if the wonder is lost, the country’s tourism industry will be severely damaged, leading to many people losing their jobs. However, at present, the “gateway to hell” continues to attract a large number of tourists to this Central Asian country.