Island of red rocks Helgoland interesting facts. Heligoland Island: Unexplored Germany that you didn't know about. Catamaran and flight from Hamburg to Helgoland

Population

As of 2009, about 130 people permanently live on the island. Almost all of them are ethnic Hawaiians and live in the largest settlement of the island - the village of Puuvai. (English)Russian. Part of the island's population receives income from fishing and agriculture, the other part depends on social benefits. Niihau has no telephone service, no cars, and no paved roads. Only horses and bicycles are used as transport. Solar batteries fully provide the population of the island with electricity. Also, there is no running water on Niihau; Water comes from rainwater harvesting. There are no hotels or shops on the island; goods and products are shipped by ship from Kauai.

The native language of the island's population is a dialect of Hawaiian that differs slightly from modern Standard Hawaiian. To date, Niihau is the only island in the archipelago whose main language of the population is Hawaiian.

Some residents of the island have radios and televisions, but the use of the latter is actually limited to watching video cassettes and DVDs due to poor coverage of the territory. Sometimes, during severe droughts, the population of Niihau is completely evacuated to Kauai before the first rains, which can fill the local water supply system. Niihau has a school providing a full 12-year education. Like other buildings on the island, the school is also fully powered by solar panels. The number of students varies from 25 to 50 as many families live part of the time on Kauai. In addition, some students from Niihau study permanently in 2 schools on the island of Kauai.

Island owners

Since 1864, the island has been the private property of the Robinson family. Robinson Family).

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Notes

Links

• Niʻihau, the last Hawaiian island. - Press Pacifica, 1987. - ISBN 0-916630-59-5.

An excerpt characterizing Niihau

German island Heligoland December 7th, 2013

But did you know this about Germany?

Helgoland (Helgoland-German or Heligoland-English), in Russian-language literature for some reason always called helgoland- miniature German archipelago in Northern sea. It is located 46 kilometers from mainland Germany and consists of two islands: a triangular inhabited main island Hauptinsel(an area of ​​about 1 sq. km) and located to the west of it is much lower Dune(0.7 sq. km), almost entirely consisting of sandy beaches and having as a permanent population only the staff of several tourist campsites and a small airfield.

Lost in the sea infinity, an island with a high rocky coast of bright red sandstone cannot but arouse admiration. Looking at this incredible creation of nature, it is hard to imagine that it is not located in distant exotic lands, but in the North Sea, which washes some of the coldest countries in Europe - Great Britain, Denmark, Norway. The landscape of this bizarre triangular piece of land, only 1 sq. km, is completely uncharacteristic of the continental coast of the North Sea. Vertical fifty-meter cliffs stretched like a motley wall along the sea line in the north, west and south-west, where, moreover, steep cliffs fall another 56 meters below the water level. Interestingly, the variegated sandstone of these rocks, dating from the Triassic geologic era, is older than the white chalk rock of its base, the rock from which the White Cliffs of Dover and similar German and Danish islands in the Baltic Sea are also formed.

On the north side stands a stunning 47-meter red sandstone cliff, which is called Long Anna (Lange Anna). It is known that at the beginning of the First World War, this was the name of a tall waitress from a nearby cafe, but why the cliff was named after her remains a mystery. Thousands of years ago, "Long Anna" was part of the island, then, under the influence of water erosion, an arch was formed, washed with sea water.

Currently, we see only a remnant of that arch - a giant miraculous column, which has become a symbol of Helgoland and has become the highlight of this amazing place. Unfortunately, the elements continue to seriously affect the magnificent natural monument, and the threat of its destruction is growing every day.

The history of the island is extremely interesting. Since prehistoric times, it has been inhabited by people who came here along a seventy-kilometer spit that once connected the island with the mainland and subsequently went under water due to wind erosion.

More than 6000 years ago, Helgoland was several times larger, and rivers flowed on its surface. Gradually, the deep sea began to destroy the rock of the island, advancing from the north and south, washing out the sheer cliffs.

Around the 7th century, the Frisians settled on it - one of the small Germanic peoples. For a long time, the island was considered a haven for pirates who traded in the North Sea.

In the XII-XIII centuries, Heligoland belonged to Denmark, and then went to the German Duchy of Schleswig, which, in turn, after a few centuries, itself came under the control of the Danish crown.

It was not without the intervention of people - by the 18th century, numerous mining and stone mining led to the fact that the island split into two parts, connected to each other by the thinnest bridge. The strongest storm in the winter of 1721 destroyed it, finally dividing Helgoland into two parts. Today, a second small island called Dune is located just 1.5 km from Helgoland and part of it serves as an airstrip.

1890

Thanks to its advantageous geographical position, Helgoland has always played a prominent role during military operations, from the time of Napoleon to the world wars of the 20th century. By the beginning of the First World War, the island was turned into a powerful German naval base, with many underground tunnels, bunkers, shelters and mines. Today, traces of that time can be found everywhere - dilapidated underground passages, entrances carved into the rocks, bomb craters overgrown with grass, and the lighthouse at the northern end of the island was once an air defense structure.

After the end of the Second World War, the British government decided to destroy the island, thus eliminating the possibility of a future military threat. In 1947, the strongest non-nuclear explosion in world history thundered on the island - Helgoland survived, but its appearance was significantly changed. So, many coasts collapsed, and a lowland formed in the south.

In 1950, the island again passed into the hands of Germany, the inhabitants evacuated during the war returned here, and calm times came for Helgoland. Travelers, artists, writers, intellectuals began to come here, which turned Helgoland into a famous resort place, which it remains to this day. And no wonder, because this charming island has something to offer tourists - numerous routes will take you through the most picturesque corners of the island, where you can see majestic rocks and cliffs, green meadows where cows and sheep graze, dunes, seals basking on the seashore .

At the beginning of June, in Lummenfelsen Wildlife Sanctuary, the smallest game reserve in the world, home to thousands of guillemots, auks, northern cormorants and gulls, you will be able to watch a truly amazing spectacle - the time comes for guillemot chicks to learn to fly and, having never spread their wings, they throw themselves down the cliff, but miraculously do not break.

What makes Helgoland even more special is its climate. Favorable proximity to the warm Gulf Stream and a small land area that does not hold back the cold create truly wonderful weather conditions. It is the sunniest and warmest place in Germany: even in winter, the temperature does not drop below 10 °C, which makes it possible to grow heat-loving plants such as figs here. The two long, beautiful beaches of the neighboring islet of Dune, with fine sand, are reminiscent of the Caribbean with palm trees leaning over the turquoise sea - a paradise for swimming.

Helgoland is an ideal choice not only for those who dream of plunging into the world of nature, taking a break from the hustle and bustle of the city, but also for lovers of a beautiful life: there is a yacht club, spa resorts, mini-golf courses, outdoor swimming pools with sea water, cozy cottages and duty-free shops. Traveling here will leave an indelible impression, and you will certainly want to return to this wonderful island.

Helgoland GPS coordinates: 54.1825, 7.885278

Heligoland is one of the oldest European resorts. The first seaside resort appeared here back in 1826, when the islands were the property of the British crown. Many famous personalities of that time rested here. He was visited more than once by Heinrich Heine.

Sunbathing seals and walruses can be admired on the beach of Dune Island. And they have already adapted so much to the frequent visits of guests that they are not at all afraid of people.

But only those tourists who are not afraid of cold water will be able to swim on the islands. After all, even on the hottest days, the water temperature does not exceed 20 ° C.

At present, the idea is being hatched to fill up the strait between the main islands. It is proposed to build several hotels on the territory reclaimed from the sea, increasing the number of hotel beds by almost three times, as well as to equip a marina and a more spacious and comfortable beach.

In a referendum held on June 26, 2011, the people of Helgoland voted against plans to expand the island. Mayor of Heligoland, Joerg Singer, who actively supported the artificial embankment project, said that the results of the referendum in no way negate plans for the further development of the island. According to him, now is the time to consider other opportunities to build up the island territory.

Previously, the majority of the population of the islands spoke the Helgolandic dialect of the Frisian language, but now it is almost supplanted by the German language. Despite this, Frisian is the official language.

Official website of the Helgoland archipelago, helgoland.de/en/welcome.html, will help you to get acquainted with the infrastructure of this German seaside resort in more detail.

At the end of World War II, the British Army had a huge surplus of ammunition and explosives that needed to be disposed of. It was proposed to use surplus ammunition for seismic experiments by setting up controlled explosions to generate seismic waves. In this way, it was planned to simulate small earthquakes. It was impractical and dangerous to carry out such experiments in England because of the very high risks involved. Thus, the British turned to the defeated Germany, and specifically to the island of Helgoland.

The British had just ended the biggest war in human history, but explosives and aggression still lingered in excess. In July 1946, an ammunition depot near the city of Soltau in northern Germany was blown up. Seismic waves from the explosion were observed at distances up to 50 km from the epicenter. But the British needed something more. Thus, they began to prepare for the most powerful non-nuclear explosion in the world, which eventually became known as the "British Strike". The target was a small archipelago called Helgoland off the German coastline.


Heligoland is a small archipelago located about 46 kilometers from the German coastline in the North Sea. It consists of two islands - a one square kilometer inhabited main island and an uninhabited small island nearby called "Dune", which also has an airstrip.


Because of its strategic location, Heligoland has a fascinating military history of its own. Initially occupied by Frisian shepherds and fishermen, the island came under the control of the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein in 1402 and then became a Danish possession in 1714. territory.

The Germans evacuated the civilian population of the island and turned it into the largest naval base, with an extensive harbor, shipyard, underground fortifications and coastal batteries. Here the famous battle took place in Helgoland Bay. When the First World War ended, the islanders returned and the island became a popular tourist resort for the German upper class. During the Nazi era, the island again became a naval stronghold and suffered severe Allied bombing towards the end of World War II.


With the defeat of Germany, the population was again evacuated. The British decided to destroy the remaining fortifications, underground bunkers and the submarine base in one powerful explosion, while simultaneously recording the readings of seismic sensors for science. On April 18, 1947, the Royal Navy detonated 6,700 tons of explosives, causing a black mushroom cloud to rise into the sky for several kilometers. People on the mainland 60 kilometers from the explosion were asked to open their windows to avoid implosion, and seismic waves were even recorded in Sicily. The Guinness Book of World Records recognizes the Helgoland explosion as the largest non-nuclear explosion in history.


The detonation was equivalent in power to one-third of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. The British expected the island to be completely destroyed, but it survived, forever changed in the process. A huge crater formed at the southern tip of Helgoland, which is today a famous tourist attraction.





The RAF continued to use the island as a training ground until it was returned to West Germany on 1 March 1952. The town, harbor and resort on Dune Island have been rebuilt and Heligoland has once again become a tourist destination. Helgoland is in the top 10 list