The Salt Lake of Kharkiv Oblast: The Technological Wonder of Antonivka
Out in the open steppe of the Kehychivka district in Ukraine’s Kharkiv Oblast, right beside the village of Antonivka, lies a remarkable Salt Lake with an almost cinematic origin story. Rather than being carved by a glacier or a river, this basin was born from an industrial gas-drilling blowout decades ago – yet today it is a peaceful, mineral-rich turquoise oasis roughly 135 kilometers from Kharkiv.
Emerald water at the Antonivka Salt Lake, framed by steep clay banks and wild steppe grass.
At first glance, the lake immediately stands out for its circular crater shape, steep earthen slopes, and vivid blue-green color unlike any ordinary freshwater pond in the region. Its exact GPS coordinates are 49.321695, 35.813552.
How It Formed: A Gas Blowout, Collapse, and Salt Dome
The lake’s origin goes back to the 1960s and 1970s, when geological teams were exploring Kharkiv Oblast for new natural gas and oil reserves. Under the prevailing hypothesis, pockets of gas and oil could be trapped beneath deep underground salt domes (salt lenses), with water-bearing strata resting below.
A drilling rig was set up near Antonivka to sink a borehole roughly 3,000 meters deep right through the salt layer. Nobody anticipated the extreme formation pressure – around 300 atmospheres. Gas erupted out of the well in a roaring 20-meter jet, forcing the emergency evacuation of Antonivka’s residents in case of toxic gas leaks or fire.
Wide panorama of the roughly 60-meter-wide crater left behind after the drilling rig collapsed underground.
Crews managed to cap the blowout briefly, but two days later pressure broke back through and the ground around the rig began giving way. A sudden collapse opened a crater roughly 60 meters across, swallowing the drilling tower whole. Over time groundwater flooded the sinkhole, dissolving salt from the subterranean dome and turning the crater into a genuinely salty lake.
Mirror-calm water inside the sheltered basin, shielded from steppe winds by high embankments.
Depth Myths, Cold Thermocline, and Buoyant Water
Local folklore loves exaggerating the crater’s depth – stories circulate of a “bottomless” pit 400 meters or even 2.5 kilometers deep, or of divers descending 48 meters without touching bottom. Actual soundings (including depth checks in 2012) tell a much more grounded story: silting and slumping clay walls have settled the lake bed around 10–12 meters down. Still, swimming above a submerged drilling rig somewhere under the silt gives the place an unmistakable sense of mystery.
On bright summer days the mineral water turns vivid turquoise, drawing swimmers to the gentler entry path on the left bank.
Once in the water, the high mineral density is immediately obvious: the lake buoyantly lifts you up and makes diving deep noticeably harder. Swimming here genuinely feels like being by the sea, complete with a faint marine scent in the air and crystals of salt drying on your skin and hair afterward. Predictably, neither fish nor freshwater mollusks live in these waters.
- Steep drop-off: Depth increases sharply barely a meter from the shoreline, so keep a close eye on children near the water’s edge.
- Sharp thermocline: Sun warms the top layer nicely in summer, but below roughly 1.5 meters the temperature plunges abruptly into icy water.
- Skin & scrapes: The brine stings eyes and minor cuts at first, yet small scrapes and skin abrasions often seem to heal surprisingly quickly afterward.
Shoreline reeds and layered clay banks descending straight into the turquoise basin.
Firsthand Impressions from August 26, 2018
After first mapping out the lake’s coordinates and reading its story years earlier, I finally made the trip to see the Salt Lake in person on August 26, 2018. Short verdict: we loved it – floating in crisp salt water surrounded by open farmland really feels like discovering a hidden sea cove in the middle of the steppe.
A narrow shoreline ledge beneath the steep clay cliff where visitors set down bags and wade into the water.
Because word has spread, there was a bit of litter along the edge from careless visitors, and getting down the steep clay bank takes a little care (a shovel to carve proper steps wouldn’t have hurt). Even so, a couple of tents were pitched nearby, the water was clean and refreshing, and we swam to our heart’s content.
Clear mineralized shallows right along the grassy shore before the sudden drop into deeper water.
Coordinates and How to Get There from Kharkiv
By road, the trip from Kharkiv is roughly 135 kilometers southwest toward Kehychivka and Antonivka. Driving is the easiest option – the final stretch runs along country dirt tracks that any standard car can handle in dry weather. You can open the exact spot directly here: view the Antonivka Salt Lake on Google Maps (49.321695, 35.813552).
Satellite view: the round turquoise sinkhole sits clearly visible just south of Antonivka village off road T2118.
Public transit is also doable by intercity bus from Kharkiv Bus Station No. 1 (Yuri Gagarin Ave / Airport direction) heading toward Vlasivka or Kehychivka, getting off on the highway at the Antonivka turnoff and walking 15–20 minutes along the village road. Booking round-trip bus tickets in advance at the station helps ensure a guaranteed seat, and locals in Antonivka are always glad to point the way.
Practical Tips Before You Go
- Water & food: There are no kiosks, shops, or freshwater taps by the lake – bring plenty of drinking water (plus extra to rinse salt off your face) and your own snacks.
- Sun protection: The crater sits in treeless open steppe with virtually no shade, so sunscreen, a hat, and a beach umbrella or canopy are essential.
- Sturdy footwear: The steep clay access path can get slick after rain, so proper shoes make getting in and out much easier.
- Leave no trace: Pack out everything you bring so this unusual natural landmark stays clean for future travelers.