Emerald Childrens Camp – Pripyat
The Emerald Children’s Camp is an adventure camp located in the forest just outside Pripyat in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Before the 1986 accident at the nearby nuclear power plant, it was a place for the children of the city to have adventures away on their own. After the disaster, the liquidators used it as a base for clearing the local area. It is now abandoned and disappearing into the forest.
Things have changed in Chornobyl since this was written. Hopefully, one-day peace will return and visiting this special region of Ukraine will be possible.
Emerald Children’s Camp in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone
Just outside of the village of Kopachi, there is a track into the woods. At first, it seems like a gentle stroll but then the remains of wooden huts appear. All are decorated with Russian cartoon characters. Fading in the extremes of weather and the thirty years of neglect.
This summer camp for the children of Pripyat had 100 cabins dotted around the woodland with a cinema and canteen. The children from the city would come and stay in the summer months to explore the outdoors and play in the small river that runs along the edge of the camp mirroring the cooling lake from the nearby Chornobyl Nuclear Power Station.
In 1986, after the disaster, it was abandoned, although liquidators made use of the huts during their time in the area. Today the huts are fading fast, but you can imagine excited children away from their parents for a summer of adventures as you wander the abandoned site.
Photography notes
The Emerald Camp is just a short walk through the woodland from the main road leaving the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The woods are home to wildlife including lynx and deer, which can be seen if you are quiet and are the first to visit during the day.
The huts are scattered within the woodland. Trees surround the area and finding clear lines through the trees can be quite difficult. Leaving the path is not allowed so alternative perspectives and wide-angle shots make the best of the area.
Some of the huts are on the path and these can be explored more easily. These have weathered painted wood which is textured and merges with rusting metal giving some beautiful intimate images. There are a few belongings within the huts, left by the liquidators which add to the atmosphere.
The camp is quite difficult to photograph but the fun that children had in the location can still be felt today despite the trauma of the past.
Finding the Emerald Children’s Camp
Emerald Children’s Camp is located between Chornobyl and Kopachi. It is hard to find and care has to be taken to avoid contamination. You will need to check with tour guides as it may be impossible to visit at the moment.
Visiting the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone can only be done as part of an organised tour.
These tours can be booked online and depart from Kyiv in Ukraine, about 2 hours drive from the first checkpoint into the Exclusion Zone.
Find out more about planning and booking a tour of the Chornobyl Exclusion zone
