Varuna's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Santa Fe, New Mexico

La Cieneguilla Petroglyph Site

These Pre-Columbian petroglyphs contain representations of birds, deer, hunters, and even some early Native flute players.
Carbon County, Utah

Nine Mile Canyon

Here, at the "world's longest art gallery," you'll find forty miles of ancient petroglyphs and pictographs.
Republic of Nauru

Nauru

"The country that ate itself."
Sundi, São Tomé and Príncipe

Roça Sundy

This nearly abandoned plantation was once witness to an eclipse that proved Einstein's theory of relativity.
Caue, São Tomé and Príncipe

Pico Cao Grande

Nature’s skyscraper launches out of the terrain with attitude.
Solomon Islands

The World Discoverer

The ship that got left behind.
Yachats, Oregon

Thor's Well

On the Oregon coast there is a natural hole that seems to be draining the sea.
Seattle, Washington

Seattle Underground

A walk through the historic city center, under the streets of Seattle.
Portland, Oregon

Portland's Shanghai Tunnels

The seamy, underground secrets of Portland's criminal past.
Los Angeles, California

Old Zoo Picnic Area

The abandoned zoo enclosures offer a perfect place to experience the other side of the bars.
Sorrento, Italy

Valle dei Mulini (Valley of the Mills)

An Italian crevasse filled with abandoned buildings gives visitors a look at the world without humans.
Las Vegas, Nevada

The Neon Museum

The neon signs from Las Vegas' past find their final resting place at this unusual graveyard.
Marble Canyon, Arizona

The Wave

Rippling sand dunes frozen in the Arizona rock.
Aguas Calientes, Peru

Machu Picchu: The Lost City of The Inca

The intricate stonework of Machu Picchu serves as a testament to Incan engineers.
Aristes, Pennsylvania

Centralia

A toxic ghost town sitting atop a massive coal fire.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Eastern State Penitentiary

World's first "penitentiary," meant to be humane, drove men insane.
Kutna Hora, Czechia

Sedlec Ossuary "Bone Church"

A church of bones, decorated with 40,000 human skeletons.
New York, New York

Old City Hall Station

A beautiful and abandoned New York subway station from 1904, complete with chandelier.
Fujinomiya-shi, Japan

Aokigahara Forest

A beautiful, dense forest in the shadow of Mount Fuji, with a tragic reputation.
Isle of Staffa, Scotland

Fingal's Cave

This astonishingly geometric cave has inspired everyone from Jules Verne to Pink Floyd.
Pripyat, Ukraine

Abandoned City of Pripyat

The ghost town left by the worst nuclear disaster of all time is being taken over by nature and urban explorers.
Paris, France

Catacombes de Paris

The vast, legendary catacombs hold secrets much stranger than stacked bones.
Los Angeles, California

Underground Tunnels of Los Angeles

During prohibition, corrupt city officials ran drinking dens under the streets of Downtown Los Angeles.
Laguna Beach, California

Victoria Beach's Pirate Tower

This strange seaside tower got its name from a wealthy eccentric who would hide coins among its stones.