Here are a few more photos from my Ukraine trip (pre-war). All of these were taken near the Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor and within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
I hope the Ukraine military and people can keep on giving the Russian military a good fight and that they stay safe.
Abandoned Pripyat Apartment building with the Soviet logo on top
Abandoned buildings in Pripyat
DUGA - abandoned Russia military radar station to detect NATO Nuclear missile launches
Soviet Propaganda
I took this photo these Soviet Statues under the People’s Friendship Arch in Kiev back in 2018. The Arch, you can see a portion of it on the right side, and these Hero’s Statues were constructed in 1982. They are supposed to depict friendship between Russian and Ukrainian peoples (soldiers - left statue and workers - right statue).
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian government announced plans to dismantle the arch as part of their 2016 decommunization laws.
I found these old Soviet propaganda signs at the back of the Pripyat Cultural Center. Pripyat had over 49,000 people before it was abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. The Cultural Center building was a great explore.
To view a larger version, click HERE
I finally got around to editing some of my Chernobyl videos…… some of them. I probably have dozens left that I haven’t even looked at yet since our trip last year. I put this video together with drone video and photos I took during our time at DUGA which is an abandoned Russian early warning ballistic missile system.
During our time inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, we got to explore this DUGA site. DUGA was a Soviet over-the-horizon radar system used as an Soviet Union missile defense warning radar network. They used this to watch for and track potential NATO missiles. They had two of these in Ukraine (Chernobyl & Chernihiv) and one in eastern Siberia.
It earned the nickname of Russian Woodpecker because it would make sharp, repetitive tapping noises across shortwaves. So amateur radio operators would have to deal with the tapping noise.
This thing is huge. I couldn’t find a size via the Internet but trust me with I say it is very big…. It has two sections. I think the taller section was maybe 200 ft tall and the entire thing was maybe half a mile long….. give or take a little. If anyone knows the actual size, please let me know.
Anyway, as you can tell, we finished our day here and I captured it at sunset.
To view a larger version, click HERE
I honestly can’t remember where within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone I took this photo. I think it was inside a factory building, but I’m not sure. Regardless, after I finished processing this a couple of days ago, I knew I had to post it. I loved how simple and powerful this scene is within the photo. I liked the shadows, the single push cart in the room, etc….
To view a larger version, click HERE
During our time in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, we had a cool opportunity to visit Duga. Of course, the entire experience was amazing, but this spot was super cool.
Duga is a Soviet built Over-The-Horizon radar system used as an early missile defense system from 1976 to 1989. When it was working, it was nicknamed the Russian Woodpecker by shortwave listeners due to its pattern of clicks and napping noises.
This thing is massive. I’m guessing here so don’t hold me to this (and I looked on the Intranet for specs but failed to final anything), but I’d say it is a couple hundred feet high and maybe a half mile long. It just when on, and on, and on…… This photo captures about a third of the entire structure.
As you can tell, it was fall at the time and I took this photo with my drone at sunset. It might not seem like such a good photo to you, but for me, it’s the memory that makes it special.
I captured a ton of video at this spot and around Chernobyl. Maybe someday I’ll edit some of that to share with you.
To view a larger version, click HERE
This massive statue sits on top of the National Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945)…we know it as World War II. This stainless-steel statue is 203 feet tall. Counting the museum building it sit on, the entire structure is 335 feet tall and it weighs 560 tons. The sword in her right hand is 52 feet long by itself and weighs 9 tons. That’s a huge statue by any comparison!! The State Emblem of the Soviet Union is on the shield. Even though this war ended in 1945, they didn’t start the construction of this statue until 1979 and it was completed in 1981.
In Kiev, Ukraine where this is located, the statue is controversial due to Ukraine’s complicated and currently rough relationship with Russia. Blair and I spent a few hours walking around this national park photographing the war monuments, tanks, etc…. If you’re wondering, the blue and yellow tank in the foreground is painted the Ukrainian colors.
To view a larger version, click HERE
