00:00:00
Nahani National Park Reserve, found in
00:00:02
Canada and nicknamed the Valley of the
00:00:04
Headless Men. I'll explain why later. It
00:00:07
has no roads and the only practical way
00:00:09
to reach it is by float plane or
00:00:10
helicopter, usually from Fort Simpson,
00:00:12
hundreds of miles away. If you still
00:00:14
wanted to visit it, you'd be required to
00:00:16
register and dregister with park
00:00:18
officials for safety. And in most areas,
00:00:20
you wouldn't even be able to land
00:00:21
without special permits or staff
00:00:23
accompaniment. On top of that, Virginia
00:00:25
Falls, the park's centerpiece, requires
00:00:27
a reservation months in advance due to
00:00:29
limited access and the need to protect
00:00:30
the fragile ecosystem. While it's pretty
00:00:33
beautiful, the history of the place
00:00:34
isn't. It earned its nickname after a
00:00:36
series of unexplained deaths in the
00:00:38
early 1900s, beginning with two
00:00:40
prospectors whose headless bodies were
00:00:42
found in 1908. Over time, other
00:00:45
disappearances and mysterious incidents
00:00:47
followed, adding to its reputation as
00:00:49
one of the darkest places in the
00:00:50
Canadian wilderness. Also, the entire
00:00:52
land is considered sacred to the Dean
00:00:54
people. Certi Island. Certzi is a
00:00:57
volcanic island off the southern coast
00:00:59
of Iceland that didn't even exist until
00:01:01
the 1960s. It emerged from the sea
00:01:03
during a volcanic eruption that started
00:01:05
in 1963 and lasted almost 4 years. The
00:01:08
eruption basically built up a brand new
00:01:10
island from the ocean floor. Today, it's
00:01:12
one of the most protected places on
00:01:14
Earth. That's because scientists saw a
00:01:16
rare opportunity, a completely untouched
00:01:18
island forming naturally from scratch.
00:01:20
They declared it a nature reserve while
00:01:22
it was still erupting and it's been off
00:01:23
limits to the public ever since. Access
00:01:25
is so restricted that only a small
00:01:27
number of researchers are allowed to
00:01:29
land there and even they have to follow
00:01:30
strict rules. They check all equipment
00:01:32
and clothing to make sure they're not
00:01:34
bringing in seeds or other life by
00:01:36
accident. Even a tomato plant once grew
00:01:38
from human waste left behind and it was
00:01:40
removed immediately. Maidog. This remote
00:01:43
country in southeastern Tibet near the
00:01:45
border with India wasn't connected to
00:01:47
the outside world by road until 2013.
00:01:49
It's surrounded by steep Himalayan
00:01:51
mountains and cut through by the Yarlong
00:01:53
Sanpo Grand Canyon, which is the world's
00:01:55
deepest canyon. Before 2013, the only
00:01:58
way in or out was by foot through
00:02:00
multi-day tres over rugged terrain. But
00:02:02
slides, heavy rain, and dense jungle
00:02:04
made travel really dangerous. Even
00:02:06
today, the road is often closed due to
00:02:08
weather and unstable ground. This
00:02:10
extreme isolation helped preserve both
00:02:12
the region's environment and culture. So
00:02:14
much so that the area is home to over
00:02:16
3,000 plant species and dozens of rare
00:02:19
animals. What makes this area even
00:02:21
cooler is its spiritual meaning. In
00:02:23
Tibetan Buddhism, Maidog is seen as a
00:02:26
sanctuary, specifically a beayule, which
00:02:28
is a hidden land meant to serve as a
00:02:30
refuge during times of turmoil. Today,
00:02:32
the small amount of people living there
00:02:34
are mostly Chang speakers, descendants
00:02:36
of migrants from Bhutan. Pitkar Island.
00:02:39
The Pitkaran Islands are technically
00:02:41
part of the UK, but you'll find them
00:02:42
isolated in the middle of the South
00:02:44
Pacific, scattered across hundreds of
00:02:46
miles of ocean. Of the four islands in
00:02:48
the group, only Pit Karen Island is
00:02:50
inhabited, and even then, just barely.
00:02:52
In 2023, only 35 people lived there.
00:02:56
That makes it the least populated
00:02:57
territory in the world with permanent
00:02:59
residents. But getting there is where
00:03:01
things get really difficult. First of
00:03:02
all, there's no airport, no airrip, and
00:03:05
no deep water port. The only way to
00:03:07
reach Pit Karen is by boat through a
00:03:09
small spot called Bounty Bay, but you
00:03:11
can't just sail up to it. Ships have to
00:03:12
anchor offshore, and then people and
00:03:14
cargo are moved to land by small
00:03:16
longboats operated by locals. The
00:03:18
surrounding coast is all steep cliffs
00:03:20
and jagged rocks, so there's nowhere
00:03:22
else to land. To even get to that point,
00:03:24
most travelers have to fly to Mangariva,
00:03:26
a remote island in French Polynesia
00:03:28
that's 427 mi away, and then board the
00:03:31
MV Silver Supporter, the only regular
00:03:33
passenger and cargo ship that goes to
00:03:35
Pitkar. It only runs once a week and the
00:03:37
trip takes over 30 hours by sea. There
00:03:39
are no other ways and if bad weather
00:03:41
hits, everything's delayed. Emergency
00:03:43
evacuations show just how cut off Pit
00:03:45
Karen really is. In 2014, someone who
00:03:48
needed urgent medical care had to first
00:03:50
go through a 335 mi open boat trip to
00:03:52
Mangoriva before catching an air
00:03:54
ambulance for another 975 mi to Tahiti.
00:03:58
Pit Karen is so remote that even finding
00:04:00
it was a challenge in history. Early
00:04:02
explorers often mischarted it. and even
00:04:04
Captain James Cook couldn't find it.
00:04:06
Speaking of famous captains and ships, I
00:04:08
want to give a huge thank you to the
00:04:10
sponsor of today's video, World of
00:04:11
Warships. If you haven't seen it, World
00:04:13
of Warships is a massive multiplayer
00:04:16
free-to-play tactical game where you
00:04:17
command a fleet of history's most iconic
00:04:19
warships. The level of detail is insane.
00:04:22
It takes the developers an average of 6
00:04:24
months to build each ship from
00:04:25
historical blueprints, and in battle,
00:04:27
things like dynamic weather effects can
00:04:29
completely change your tactics every
00:04:31
game. It's crazy that you can play such
00:04:33
a detailed game for free on your PC.
00:04:35
They're celebrating American Naval
00:04:36
History with a special Fourth of July
00:04:38
campaign and have an incredible welcome
00:04:40
pack for new players. You can get it
00:04:42
right now by clicking the very first
00:04:43
link in my description, and using the
00:04:45
code step up when you sign up. It hooks
00:04:48
you up with a huge bonus. Two free
00:04:50
American ships, a special stars and
00:04:52
stripes skin, 7 days of premium account
00:04:54
time, a million credits, and 500
00:04:56
deloons. With a massive active
00:04:58
community, new events dropping every
00:05:00
week, and tons of game modes from
00:05:01
competitive clan battles to casual
00:05:03
co-op, you'll never run out of things to
00:05:05
do. You can even play with the US
00:05:06
aircraft carrier USS Essex, which played
00:05:09
a crucial role during the Cuban Missile
00:05:11
Crisis while Castro was still in power.
00:05:13
So, click that link at the top of the
00:05:15
description and in the pinned comment to
00:05:17
download for free and claim your starter
00:05:18
pack. Oh, and the game is available on
00:05:21
consoles as well. A huge thanks again to
00:05:23
World of Warships for sponsoring this
00:05:25
video. Tristan Dunia. Tristan Dunia,
00:05:28
often called the most remote inhabited
00:05:30
island in the world, is located in the
00:05:32
middle of the South Atlantic Ocean and
00:05:34
it sits over 1490 mi from the nearest
00:05:37
mainland in South Africa and more than
00:05:39
2050 mi from South America. There are no
00:05:41
airports, no runways, and no air strips.
00:05:43
So, the only way to reach it is by boat,
00:05:45
and only a handful of ships make the
00:05:47
trip each year, mainly from Cape Town,
00:05:49
with the journey taking around a full
00:05:51
week at sea in often rough conditions.
00:05:53
Even when ships do arrive, setting foot
00:05:55
on the island isn't guaranteed. There's
00:05:57
no deep water harbor, so docking depends
00:05:59
entirely on the weather. Strong swells
00:06:01
often make it impossible to get out of
00:06:03
the ship. And even before all of that,
00:06:05
you need approval from the island
00:06:06
council, proof of health insurance
00:06:08
covering medical evacuation, a fully
00:06:10
paid return ticket, and accommodation
00:06:11
booked in advance. Since there are no
00:06:13
hotels, only guest houses or private
00:06:16
homes that take visitors. Because of its
00:06:18
extreme isolation, Tristan Duna has
00:06:20
managed to preserve a unique way of
00:06:22
life. The island has one small village,
00:06:24
no mobile network, and a community of
00:06:26
under 250 people, most of whom are
00:06:29
descendants of just a few families. All
00:06:31
land is communally owned, and outsiders
00:06:33
are not allowed to buy property or
00:06:35
settle permanently. Supplies come by
00:06:37
ship just a few times a year, and the
00:06:39
internet only became somewhat functional
00:06:41
in recent years with the arrival of
00:06:42
satellite connections like Starlink,
00:06:44
Oyakhan. Oyakan in Russia is the coldest
00:06:48
inhabited place on Earth. It sits in a
00:06:50
valley surrounded by mountains in the
00:06:52
Yana Oyakhan Highlands, which is one of
00:06:54
the main reasons it gets so cold. These
00:06:56
mountains trap cold air like a freezer,
00:06:58
and during winter, warm winds simply
00:07:00
can't get in. At the same time, Oyakan
00:07:02
gets just a few hours of sunlight in the
00:07:04
middle of winter, making it even harder
00:07:06
for temperatures to rise. This extreme
00:07:08
geography led to one of the lowest
00:07:10
temperatures ever recorded in a place
00:07:12
where people live, - 89.9° Fahrenheit,
00:07:15
measured in 1933. There's even a
00:07:17
monument in town commemorating an
00:07:19
unofficial reading of - 96.2° F from
00:07:23
1924. For comparison, that's colder than
00:07:25
the inside of a freezer and not far from
00:07:27
the surface temperatures seen on Mars.
00:07:29
In the past, Oyakon had around 2,500
00:07:32
residents, while today fewer than 900
00:07:35
people remain. Travel is no easier too.
00:07:38
O Yakan lies along the Kyma Highway,
00:07:40
also known as the road of bones, which
00:07:43
was built by Gulag prisoners. Reaching
00:07:44
it by road is long and risky, especially
00:07:47
in winter, and air access is limited. If
00:07:49
anything goes wrong, help is too far
00:07:51
away. Bouvet Island. While Tristan Duna
00:07:54
was the most remote inhabited island in
00:07:56
the world, Bouvet Island is the most
00:07:58
remote island point blank. It's a small
00:08:00
volcanic island in the South Atlantic
00:08:02
Ocean under the Norwegian government,
00:08:03
and it sits over 1056 miles away from
00:08:06
Antarctica and even farther from the
00:08:08
nearest inhabited places. Covered almost
00:08:10
entirely by glaciers and surrounded by
00:08:12
rough seas, landing on the island is
00:08:14
extremely difficult. The only somewhat
00:08:16
accessible point is a rocky area called
00:08:18
Neroa, formed by a landslide in the
00:08:20
1950s, where Norway has built a small
00:08:23
automated weather station. Its isolation
00:08:25
has even made it the subject of mystery.
00:08:27
In 1964, a British expedition found an
00:08:30
abandoned lifeboat on the island with no
00:08:32
clear explanation of how it got there.
00:08:34
And in 1979, a US satellite detected a
00:08:37
double flash near Bouvet Island,
00:08:39
something consistent with the nuclear
00:08:41
test, but the source remains officially
00:08:43
unexplained. As of today, the island
00:08:45
remains mostly untouched with large
00:08:47
populations of penguins and seals.
00:08:49
Ammonson Scott South Pole Station. The
00:08:51
Ammonson Scott station is the
00:08:53
southernmost permanently inhabited place
00:08:55
on Earth. It sits right at the
00:08:57
geographic south pole and it's run by
00:08:59
the US National Science Foundation, so
00:09:01
the station falls under US jurisdiction.
00:09:03
Built in 1956, it was the first
00:09:05
permanent structure at the pole. Before
00:09:07
that, Antarctica's interior had
00:09:09
practically no human presence. Most
00:09:11
activity was confined to the coast.
00:09:13
That's because getting there is pretty
00:09:14
hard and the living conditions are
00:09:16
pretty extreme. The station gets 6
00:09:18
months of non-stop sunlight followed by
00:09:20
6 months of complete darkness.
00:09:22
Temperatures can drop below - 999° F.
00:09:25
And during the polar night, violent
00:09:27
storms and blizzards are common. But
00:09:28
those harsh conditions also make it
00:09:30
perfect for things like astronomy and
00:09:32
studying cosmic radiation. There's no
00:09:34
port or road connecting it to the
00:09:36
outside world, just seasonal flights
00:09:38
from McMmero station and a 994 m
00:09:40
overland supply route called the South
00:09:42
Pole Traverse. In summer, the station
00:09:44
hosts about 150 people, including
00:09:47
scientists and support staff. In winter,
00:09:49
only about 40 to 50 people stay behind,
00:09:52
completely isolated for nearly 8 months.
00:09:54
There's even a tradition. Once the last
00:09:56
plane leaves for winter, the team
00:09:57
watches all three versions of the thing
00:09:59
back to back. The Kirgalan Islands, also
00:10:02
known as the Desolation Islands, they're
00:10:04
more than 2050 mi from the nearest
00:10:06
inhabited territory, and you can't fly
00:10:08
there as there's no airport. The only
00:10:10
way to reach them is by ship, usually a
00:10:12
supply vessel from Reunion Island that
00:10:14
makes just a few trips a year. The main
00:10:16
island, Grand is surrounded by hundreds
00:10:19
of smaller ones, and the seas around are
00:10:21
rough. The weather is cold and wet and
00:10:23
strong winds are almost constant, making
00:10:25
travel and anchoring difficult. There
00:10:27
are no permanent residents, but France
00:10:29
maintains a scientific base at Porto
00:10:31
Franc with a rotating team of
00:10:32
researchers and support staff, usually
00:10:34
between 50 and 100 people. Point Nemo.
00:10:38
Point Nemo is the most unreachable point
00:10:40
in any ocean. Located in the middle of
00:10:42
the South Pacific, it's known as the
00:10:44
oceanic pole of inaccessibility. The
00:10:46
spot in the sea that's farthest from any
00:10:48
land in any direction. If you were to
00:10:50
fall off a ship here, you'd be about
00:10:52
1670 mi away from the nearest land in
00:10:55
all directions. The three closest land
00:10:57
points, tiny islands like Ducey, Moi
00:10:59
near Easter Island, and Mahair Island
00:11:01
off Antarctica, are so far that at any
00:11:04
given time, the nearest humans to Point
00:11:06
Nemo, might actually be astronauts
00:11:08
flying overhead on the International
00:11:10
Space Station. Because it's located in
00:11:11
the middle of a massive rotating ocean
00:11:14
current known as the South Pacific Gy,
00:11:16
the waters around Point Nemo are cut off
00:11:18
from most nutrient flows. There's almost
00:11:20
no marine life, no islands, no ships,
00:11:22
and no aircraft routes passing nearby.
00:11:24
It's essentially a biological desert. So
00:11:27
much so that when satellites or space
00:11:28
stations reach the end of their life,
00:11:30
they are often guided to re-enter
00:11:32
Earth's atmosphere and crash into the
00:11:34
ocean around Point Nemo. Hundreds of
00:11:36
decommissioned spacecraft lie at the
00:11:38
bottom of the sea here, earning the
00:11:39
region the nickname spacecraft cemetery.
00:11:41
Even the International Space Station is
00:11:43
planned to fall here when it's retired
00:11:45
in 2031. If you like this video,
00:11:47
subscribe for similar ones or join my
00:11:49
Discord to suggest another.
