p Bellevue Underground Mine
CANADA
Descending 150 feet into the Earth, into the hollows of what was once
the heart of Canada’s coal industry. Enter the chilly, murky gloom of
Bellevue, Western Canada’s only authentic coal mine, concealing a
rich, difficult history of explosions, strikes and lives lost.
The web of narrow, angled tunnels unfold only as far as your
headlamp can illuminate. Otherwise, the darkness all around is
eerily disconcerting.
With a knowledgeable, lantern-wielding guide by your side,
this is the site for the most immersive history lesson, peppered
with age-old mining equipment and chilling, true stories
surrounding miners of the past.p Free Enterprise Radon Health Mine
USA
Ailing visitors from all over the country converge within the
rocky depths of Montana’s first and oldest now defunct
uranium mine for an omnipotent remedy of sorts.
Over the years, the uranium decayed into radioactive,
paradoxically therapeutic radon. This contentious treatment
has drawn hundreds, nursing all sorts of maladies, from
respiratory illnesses to arthritis and even cancer, to which
miraculous recoveries, documented in glowing testimonials,
bear testament.
The treatment process is simple: ‘patients’ in the Radon
Room lounge on cushioned seats, eagerly anticipating
healing as the radon contamination works its magic around
their varied afflictions.Photo: Free Enterprise Radon Health Mine
Photo: Bellevue Mine ToursPhoto: Bonne Terre Minep Bonne Terre Mine
USA
Underground and underwater, Bonne Terre Mine is now the world’s
largest freshwater dive resort, divulging an experience not quite like
any other.
Once the world’s largest producers of lead ore before it was
flooded, this national historic site has transformed into divers’ paradise,
the centrepiece of which is Billion Gallon Lake.
24 different dive trails abound in the crystal clear water of over 100
feet visibility. Glide past oar carts, railroad tracks, rusting equipment,
slurry pipes and an elevator shaft - artefacts of the submerged mining
world frozen in time.t Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá
COLOMBIA
Complete with a basilica dome, this subterranean
chamber, an architectural feat 180 metres underground, is
Colombia’s beautiful house of worship, where thousands
of Catholics congregate for Sunday service.
Brilliant hues of light splash across the enormous cross
at the main altar, carved majestically into the walls of salt.
The magnificent archway leads to hollows converted
into devotional chapels, each representing a key moment
in Via Dolorosa, Jesus’ walk to his crucifixion.
Even the non-religious stand in awe of its grandeur.DID YOU KNOW?
You can taste the rock salt right off
the walls of Zipaquirá’s Salt Cathedral- this salt is more than a hundred
million years old!