We want to go to there. There being a massive trampoline installation in Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales that transformed an abandoned slate mine into a cavernous playground. Yes, you read that correctly. Someone installed a series of trampolines inside the underground caverns of an old Welsh mining town, and people can jump on it.
Wanderlust: activated.
The unexpected bouncy castle of sorts, measuring in at roughly twice the size of St. Paul's Cathedral, is pegged as the world's largest underground trampoline. It consists of three giant nets and accompanying trampolines, as well as a 60-foot slide tucked inside the Llechwedd caverns. The trampolines are positioned at heights of 20 feet to 180 feet above the cavern floor, according to This Is Colossal, and are set aglow by a configuration of technicolor lights.
Essentially, "Bounce Below," as it's called, is the mythical amusement park you've always wanted, combining our creepy fascination with abandoned spaces and our undying love of things that bounce. Toss in a light show and a titillating dose of claustrophobia, and this subterranean attraction just blew Russia's 170-foot long bouncy road out of the water.
In case you're still reading this article and not already hitching a ride to North Wales, here's a bit of background. The caverns are what's left of a Victorian slate mine, carved out by young men in the 19th century and later turned into the Miners' Underground Tramway in 1972.
"If Bounce Below has a meaning beyond being fun, and spectacular, it surely has to do with Britain's ever faster escape from its industrial revolution," The Guardian's Jonathan Jones wrote. "Not so long ago, places like Llechwedd Slate Caverns were being dug out of the rock by workers who risked their lives... Today, slate mines, coal mines and other relics of the industrial revolution are preserved around Britain as places to explore the past."
Let us know your thoughts on the spectacular project below. (To enjoy the beauty IRL, you need only fork over £15-20 for an entry fee. Head over to the Bounce Below website for more details.)
Blaenau Ffestiniog