Been to Disappointment Cove or Lonesome Lake? Instagram account documents the world's saddest place names

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Been to Disappointment Cove or Lonesome Lake? Instagram account documents the world's saddest place names

By Amy Swales

10 years ago

Have you ever ended up in Disappointment Cove? How about Mount Despair, Lonesome Lake or the town of Defeated? Nope, you’re not a character in a choose-your-own-adventure novel (as fun as those were), these are all real places, and one man has taken it upon himself to compile the most depressingly named spots in the world into one handy Instagram account.

Sad Topographies is the work of Australian artist Damien Rudd, who became interested in the saddest towns, roads, creeks and coves worldwide after coming across Mount Hopeless in South Australia, telling CBC Radio's As It Happens: “The name kind of caught me off guard and I decided to come back later and research it.

“I actually found that there were many more places that had surprisingly depressing names. That kind of got me started on the project.”

While some sound like bad horror films (Lake of No Return, Murder Island) and have some connection to historical events, and others are almost cute (hello Grumpy Dog Road), he says his favourite is the simple Sad Road in Lancaster, America: “It was one of the first places I found. It's so simple, but it's so beautiful as well.”

We're still waiting for Dumpsville.

Scroll through some of the best examples below, and check out @sadtopographies.

Images: @sadtopographies, Google Street View

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