Strange Planet: Islands You Never Want to Visit

Our friends over at Atlas Obscura, “a compendium of the world’s wonders, curiosities, and esoterica,” have published the Atlas Obscura Guide to Islands You Never Want to Visit.

It is the “definitive guide to the worst, most horrible islands in the world” and includes places from radioactive beaches to “the island kingdom of a murderous madman.”

Still intrigued? Read on.

The types of places populating this list are filled with the weird, dangerous, and disgusting. Take Ball Island for example, located just off Lord Howe Island in Oceania which remains uninhabited save for a population of creepy-crawling, Lord Howe stick bugs that seem to have defied extinction.

Across the Pacific, the name “Snake Island” may charm you, but even if you wanted to visit Brazil’s Ilha de Queimada Grande you couldn’t gain permission. The government of Brazil has prohibited access to the island due to the overwhelming number of snakes living there. It’s estimated that one to five snakes (golden lancehead pit vipers) exist per three feet.

For the complete list of “Islands You Never Want to Visit,” check out the Atlas Obscura guide online.

Photo: Balls Pyramid near Lord Howe Island, Hartmut Gottschalk/My Shot