Earth is an amazing planet with over 7.5 billion people, diverse seasons, and breathtaking views. Scattered across the globe are mysterious locations, some explored and explained, others shrouded in mystery. Let’s explore ten lesser-known places with fascinating stories and theories.
10. Masuda-no-Iwafune
Asuka village, the ‘birthplace’ of Japan, is nestled in Nara Prefecture. Dating back to the Tumulus Period, it’s filled with Buddhist temples and shrines.
The surrounding hills hold enigmatic stone monuments, different from Buddhist sculptures. The largest, Masuda-no-Iwafune, stands 15 feet tall and weighs 800 tons. Carved with two square holes, it resembles Ishi-no-Hoden. Its origins remain a puzzle.
Some believe Buddhists carved it, or it commemorates Masuda Lake. A popular theory suggests it was an astronomical observation point. Its ridge aligns with the mountain ridge and the sunset on “spring doyou entry,” marking the agricultural season’s start. Despite this, most experts doubt its astronomical use, keeping its purpose a mystery.
9. Dubrovnik’s Islands
Dubrovnik, on the Adriatic Sea, offers stunning ocean views, including Lokrum and Daksa islands. Lokrum is a popular day-trip destination, but overnight stays are discouraged. Daksa is notably avoided by locals and tourists.
Legends say Benedictine monks, chased from Lokrum by Napoleon’s forces in 1798, cursed the island. They circled it three times with upside-down candles, chanting damnation for anyone claiming Lokrum for pleasure. Fifty years later, Emperor Franz Josef’s brother, Maximilian, bought Lokrum, creating gardens with exotic trees and birds. His story ended tragically with his execution and his wife’s mental decline. Visitors can still enjoy Maximilian’s trees and peacocks.
Daksa was also inhabited by monks in medieval times. In 1944, Partisans executed Fascist sympathizers there, warning residents against searching for them, fueling rumors of ghosts. The discovery of 53 bodies in 2009, reburied in a new plot, further solidified these haunting tales.
8. Papakolea Beach
Hawaii, a dreamy destination, boasts white sand beaches, clear waters, and green mountains. It’s also home to red, black, and green sand beaches. Papakolea Beach on Big Island is one of only four green sand beaches worldwide.
The green color comes from olivine crystals, remnants of lava from Mauna Loa, the world’s largest volcano. The ocean washes away lighter sand, leaving the heavier olivine, known as the Hawaiian Diamond, mixed with glass and black pyroxene.
To discourage sand theft, a curse, allegedly created by park rangers, warns of immediate bad luck, including accidents and family tragedies, only reversible by returning the sand. Superstitious tourists often mail back sand, lava rocks, and other geological souvenirs.
7. Eye of the Sahara
The Eye of the Sahara, or Richat Structure, is near Quadane in Mauritania. This massive geological formation was noticed from space, though first described in the 1930s-40s. Gemini IV mission photos led scientists to believe it was an impact crater, but research found insufficient melted rock.
Other theories included the claim that it’s proof of Atlantis’s African location. It’s now believed to be a geologic dome with rocks over 100 million years old. Geologists think it formed when Pangaea split, separating Africa and South America, with an eruption creating its current appearance.
6. Hermit Island
In Lake Superior lie the Apostle Islands, 22 in total. Inhabited since 100 BC, settlers fully arrived around 950 AD. Pierre Francois Xavier de Charlevoix named them after the 12 apostles, referring to the largest islands.
Hermit Island saw Native American visits, and its first white settler, William Wilson, lived as a hermit after being expelled from La Pointe in the 1850s. Wilson and John Bell fought over Wilson threatening Bell’s dog, with the loser leaving Madeleine Island.
Wilson lost and moved to Hermit Island, making barrels for income but living in solitude. In 1861, Benjamin G. Armstrong, who once bought whiskey from Wilson, noticed no smoke from Wilson’s home. He informed magistrate John Bell, who sent a group to investigate.
They found Wilson dead in his home, indicating murder, sparking rumors of his ghost haunting the island. His restless spirit supposedly caused a mansion built in 1895 to be abandoned and reduced to rubble by the 1930s.
5. Zone of Silence
Known as the Mexican Bermuda Triangle, the Zone of Silence in the Chihuahuan desert is only 50 kilometers across but ranks among Earth’s most mysterious places.
Entering the Zone causes radio signals to fail and compasses to go haywire. In 1970, an Athena rocket from a US air force base crashed here instead of New Mexico, leading to the creation of the Mapimi Biosphere Reserve.
After the US Air Force’s recovery operation, stories of strange lights, beings, fireballs, and UFOs circulated. Some claim encounters with blond aliens seeking water in Spanish before vanishing.
4. Saalfeld Fairy Grottoes
The Saalfeld Fairy Grottoes in Germany, named the “most colorful cave grottoes in the world” by Guinness, were once a mining pit called Jeremias Luck. Miners extracted black alum shale.
After the mine closed, the caves transformed into a fairytale world of stunning colors. Largely forgotten post-closure, they gained popularity after their ‘rediscovery’ in 1910. A third chamber was found in 1913, with public tours starting in 1914 but halted by WWI. Millions have since visited.
Legend says miners once saw a fairy in a cave, who vanished upon approach, giving the grottoes their magical name.
3. The Seven-Colored Earth of Chamarel
Mauritius is known for pristine beaches, rich culture, and attractions. The ‘seven-colored earth’ of Chamarel is a geological wonder, featuring shades of purple, yellow, red, brown, green, blue, and violet within a dense forest.
Formed after a volcanic eruption, its colors result from iron oxides and hydroxides in the weathered basalt. Initially appearing as shadows creating color illusions, closer inspection reveals genuine colors. Mixing the sands results in them always separating back into layers.
2. New York’s Eternal Flame
The eternal flame in Chestnut Ridge Park’s Eternal Flame Falls may not be unique, but it’s remarkable. Legend says a Native American lit it centuries ago, and it’s burned since, though relighting is needed when the waterfall extinguishes it.
The flame burns due to a natural gas leak with high ethane and propane concentrations. Geologists are puzzled, as the rock isn’t hot enough to release the gas, theorizing it comes from 1,300 feet below, possibly from an undiscovered geologic process within shale rock.
1. The Chocolate Hills – Philippines
In the Philippines, approximately 1,776 hills turn golden-brown in summer, named the ‘Chocolate Hills.’ Called the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World,’ they’re unique, though Java has similar mounds, but less uniform.
Legend says a giant cried over lost love, forming hills from his tears. Another says two giants warring with boulders created them, which remained after they ceased fighting.
Geologists attribute the hills to limestone erosion shifted above sea level and fractured by tectonics. Some suggest they were coral reefs erupted after a geological shift.
These locations offer unique perspectives on our planet’s mysteries, inviting travelers and explorers to discover something new and intriguing.
What are your favorite mysterious places around the world? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
