In the winter of 1959, a group of nine experienced hikers set out on a trek across the Ural Mountains in the USSR, led by Igor Dyatlov. They arrived at a mountain known locally as Kholat Syakhl (“Dead Mountain”).
On the night of February 1st, something terrifying occurred. The group slashed their tent from the inside, and fled the campsite into the freezing forest in little or no clothing—despite sub-zero temperatures.
When search teams found them, the bodies were scattered across the slope. Some had severe internal injuries without corresponding external wounds; others were dressed only in underwear. Some showed signs of unusual radiation. The cause remains unresolved.
Investigators later concluded that a sudden snow slab (an avalanche) may have forced them out of their tent, but the strange injuries and behaviours have made this case one of the greatest mountaineering mysteries of the 20th century.
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