[Rockhounds] ‘Other-worldly’: Turkmenistan’s firey ‘Gates of Hell’ to soon close

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

It’s been likened to something out of a science fiction film. But the
“Gates of Hell” in Turkmenistan – a giant gas crater popular among tourists
– could soon be closing.

The Darvaza crater, located in the Karakum Desert in the central Asian
country, has been burning for decades. Measuring a mesmerising 70 metres
wide and 30 metres deep, the crater has stayed alight thanks to methane
escaping from its crust.

“To stand on the edge of the crater is such a surreal experience. You hear
the roar of the flames and feel the intense heat,” Dlyan Lupine, who
founded Lupine Travel
<https://www.google.com/search?q=Lupine+Travel&rlz=1C1GCEA_enAU1068AU1069&oq=Lupine+Travel&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQRRg70gEHMjA5ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8>,
which brings tourists to Turkmenistan, told news.com.au.

“When you view it from a distance, it feels even more bizarre. A huge
flaming hole in the middle of a flat barren desert. There is nowhere else
on Earth like it. It feels other-worldly.”

Decades on, the crater has become an increasingly popular tourist
attraction.

Mr Lupine said his tour company has been running trips to the crater since
2010, with their bookings now double that of five years ago.

However he warned the crater’s fiery days are numbered.

https://www.news.com.au/travel/destinations/asia/otherworldly-turkmenistans-firey-gates-of-hell-to-soon-close/news-story/65d683faa92413c04c1f36ae78771844