Inspiration

The World's Deepest Pits

Whether they're man-made mines or natural sinkholes, these massive holes around the world are anything but the pits. This gallery was originally published in 2014. It has been updated with new information.
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    Chuquicamata Copper Mine, Chile

    Located in the north of Chile, Chuquicamata (colloquially known as "Chuqui") winds 2,790 feet below the ground. The mine has been in operation since 1910, but the 1968 expansion of refining facilities that made 500,000 tons of annual copper production possible is what really put Chuqui on the map. Tour buses take travelers through the abandoned Chuquicamata mining town, and slightly down into the mine itself to a designated viewpoint (photographers, be sure to bring your wide-angle lenses).

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    Devil's Sinkhole, Rocksprings, Texas

    The ominously-named Devil's Sinkhole is an vast vertical cavern, with a 50-foot-wide opening and a staggering depth of more than 400 feet. Some believe that the sinkhole may have been used by Native Americans for burial of the dead, as locals have found arrowheads and burned rocks around the site. Today, the National Natural Landmark is home to more than three million bats during the summer months; visitors can gather by the cave at sundown to see the creatures emerge from the depths in a swirling, black mass.

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    Dean’s Blue Hole, Long Island, Bahamas

    At more than 650 feet deep, Dean’s Blue Hole is the world’s deepest sinkhole with an entrance below water. Located in a bay west of Clarence Town on the Bahamas’ Long Island, its visible diameter is roughly 82–115 feet. The hole is visible above water due to the deep blue color of its water, in contrast with the rest of the bay.

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    Chand Baori, Abhaneri, India

    In the Indian state of Rajasthan, you’ll find one of the largest stepwells in the country. Chand Baori was built between 800–900 A.D. to preserve water from the monsoon season in the otherwise arid region. Three sides of the terraced well contain 3,500 steps that steeply extend to a depth of 100 feet; the fourth side houses a temple. Chand Baori is dedicated to Harshat Mata, the Hindu goddess of joy and happiness.

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    Kimberley Mine (The Big Hole), South Africa

    At a depth of more than 700 feet and a width of 1,519 feet, it’s hard to believe the Big Hole started as a hill. More than 6,000 pounds of diamonds were unearthed from this site, and at one point, up to 50,000 miners had their picks in the earth. This once-massive diamond mine claims to be the largest hand-dug excavation in the world to date.

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    Bingham Canyon Open Pit Copper Mine, Salt Lake City, Utah

    The Bingham Canyon Mine (known locally as Kennecott Copper Mine) is a gaping, 2.5 mile-wide pit located in the Oquirrh Mountains outside Salt Lake City. It has been the site of a massive copper extraction since 1906, an operation that has expanded some 1,900 acres. The mine was named a National Historic Landmark in 1966. It remains the world’s deepest copper mine; you can take a virtual tour on the official website.

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    Door to Hell, Derweze, Turkmenistan

    This ominous hole in earth’s surface has been burning since 1971. Dubbed the "Door to Hell" or "Gates of Hell," it sits above natural gas deposits in the Karakum Desert near Derweze, Turkmenistan. The hole is about 230 feet wide and 66 feet deep, and has been boiling continuously since Soviet geologists first ignited it while drilling for gas.

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    Diavik Diamond Mine, Northwest Territories, Canada

    You’ll find the Diavik Diamond Mind in the Canadian Arctic, accessible only by local airport and an ice road (weather permitting). The site opened for production in 2003 and delivers around 3,500 pounds of diamonds to the rest of the world every year. The open-pit mine reaches depths of more than 600 feet.

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    Berkeley Pit, Butte, Montana

    The Berkeley Pit is a former copper mine that now stretches more than 1,700 feet deep. After the mine closed and pumps were shut off in 1982, the pit began to fill with water that leeches heavy metals and chemicals, like arsenic and sulfuric acid, from surrounding rocks. This mile-wide and half-mile-long bowl of highly acidic water is not suitable for swimming, but the mine is open to tourists for viewing.

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    Great Blue Hole, Belize

    One of the largest sea holes in the world, the Great Blue Hole is located about 60 miles from the coast of Belize in the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The hole is a popular recreational scuba diving spot, made famous by Jacques Cousteau in the early 1970s. This submarine sinkhole is nearly 1,000 feet wide and more than 400 feet deep. The Lighthouse Reef atoll surrounds the Great Blue Hole, where sand and coral contrast intensely with the dark blue water.

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    Crveno Jezero (Red Lake), Imotski, Croatia

    Croatia’s Crveno Jezero is a karst lake that sits in one of the largest sinkholes in the world, at a depth of more than 1,700 feet. High cliffs that contain iron oxides surround the lake, and the burnt hue of the rocks are what give Red Lake its name.