Skrunda‑1 is an abandoned Soviet military town in western Latvia, built in the 1960s to support a secret early‑warning radar complex watching NATO airspace. At its peak, it housed several thousand soldiers, technicians, and families, functioning as a closed city with its own school, shops, and apartment blocks. The site’s two Dnepr radar stations —code named by NATO as Hen House— formed part of the USSR’s ballistic‑missile detection network, and a newer Daryal radar was under construction when the Soviet Union collapsed.
After Latvia regained independence, Russia operated the facility until 1998, when the radars were dismantled and the town was vacated almost overnight. For years, the empty buildings—still filled with Soviet‑era remnants—made Skrunda‑1 a magnet for urban explorers. Although the Latvian government has explored redevelopment, much of the site has deteriorated or been partially demolished, and public access is now restricted.
Today, Skrunda‑1 stands as a fading Cold War relic slowly being reclaimed by the surrounding forest.
Those who found it without a hint:
- Zorro the Fox
- Phil Ower
- Garfield
- Martin de Bock
- Eloy Cano
- Lighthouse
- Paul Voestermans
And after the hint:
- krenek
- Graham Hedley