Super Secret Soviet Submarine Base opens for Tourism

It’s very rare in life, but occasionally some of those super-secret, underground complexes that house submarine bases or other military facilities are actually opened to the public.

A regular diet of James Bond movies while growing up has always made me excited to seek out and explore such villainous lairs despite the fact that they were merely the dreams of scriptwriters.

The reality, however, is that such places actually exist. They are not the creation of super villains wanting to take over the world, however, but rather super powers wanting to take over the world.

Recently, one of the world’s most secretive Soviet cities, Balaklava, has decommissioned the nuclear submarine base stationed there and has now opened up the underground complex for guided tours.

Located 10 kilometers from Sevastopol in the Crimea, the complex actually bores right into solid rock; submarines simply disappeared into the secret entrance. The rock, as well as outer doors weighing 120 tons, would have protected the facility from a direct nuclear strike. If one had occurred, the complex was designed to support a full staff for up to three years.

The attack never came. Instead, the Cold War ended and all the secrecy surrounding this city has been lifted. The submarine base was stripped of its technology and transformed into a museum.

For a detailed and very cool James Bondish photo tour, be sure to click here. Or click here for a video tour.

Homemade Sub to Central America!

Ok, so it’s not yet for rent for your next Caribbean vacation, but it’s an interesting way to travel, nonetheless. Authorities were alerted when someone spotted three plastic pipes moving through Pacific waters 103 miles off the coast of Costa Rica this weekend.

They found four men inside a 50-foot, wood-and-fiberglass homemade submarine. Oh, did we mention it had three tons of cocaine in it? It’s not the first time, either. In March, Columbian navy ships stopped a 60-footer. And back in 2000, Columbian authorities found a 100-footer, under construction. Apparently, the subs are used to rendezvous with speedboats that do most of the transport work between drug sellers and buyers.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that the sub had a glass bottom for sealife viewing.