Spectacular rock columns built by 'giant' gracing the coast of Northern Ireland - Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast 369 Giant's Causeway What and Why The Giant's Causeway is the northern coastline along Northern Ireland where more than 40,000 interlocking basalt rock columns were formed and lined, forming a spectacular vista. These rock columns were formed due volcanic eruption some 50 to 60 million years ago, during the Paleocene epoch, and underwent slow cooling unde

Prime destination for geology, palaeontology and natural splendour - Monte San Giorgio 1090 Monte San Giorgio from Morcote (from internet) What and Why Monte San Giorgio , located in the canton of Ticino of Switzerland ( Italian : Svizzera ) and overlooking Lake Lugano ( Lago di Lugano ) , is one of the world's most important palaeontological sites. The pyramidal shaped Monte San Giorgio offers a fascinating blend of natural beauty, scientific significance, and cultural h

A treat for speleogists: world's longest cave system - Mammoth Cave National Park 150 Mammoth Cave What and Why The Mammoth Cave National Park , containing the same-named cave, is the longest known cave system in the world . The cave system connects two cave systems: the original Mammoth Cave and an even larger Flint Ridge, and forms a humongous cave passageways of more than 686 km, and this number is still growing with new discoveries every year. This connexion was made in

A beautiful park with an impressive ecosystem under a blue haze cover - Great Smoky Mountains National Park 259 Great Smoky Mountains National Park What and Why The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is surprisingly the most popular national parks in America , way more visited than the more well-known Yellowstone National Park (as blogged in Yellowstone - North loop and Yellowstone - South loop ). Edging the Appalachian Mountains , it protects some of the oldest and hi

Formation of Alps in Switzerland - Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona 1179; Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps 1363; Avalanche risk management 01380; Alpinism 01471; Alpine pasture season 01966; Yodelling 02287 Piz Sardona What and Why The Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona ( German : Weltnaturerbe TektonikArena Sardona ) is a major mountain thrust fault caused by the collision of the African and Eurasian tectonic plates 100 million years ago! This major shearing action no

The sacred mountain in Malaysia with a rich biodiversity - Kinabalu Park 1012 Low's peak What and Why Mount Kinabalu ( Malay : Gunung Kinabalu ) inside Kinabalu Park ( Taman Kinabalu ) is considered a sacred mountain within the local community, especially the aborigines of Malaysia . The park is located near a small town called Kundasang , an hour drive away from the main city Kota Kinabalu in the state of Sabah . They believe that their ancestors will eventually inhabit

Top of Europe and the most distinctive sights of the Alps - Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch 1037; Alpinism 01471 Sphinx (from internet) What and Why Against popular beliefs, Jungfraujoch is technically not a mountain or a peak, but a saddle or ridge between two main peaks, the Jungfrau and Mönch of the Swiss Alps ( German : Alpen ) . The saddle is also home to one of the largest glaciers in Europe: the Aletsch Glacier ( Aletschgletscher ) . The area, snow-covered year round

A vista of a thousand karst formations of beautiful shapes and forms in the sea - Ha Long Bay 672 Halong Bay What and Why Halong Bay ( Vietnamese : Vịnh Hạ Long ) is the most popular tourist destination of Vietnam ( Việt Nam ) which features an extremely scenic ocean of karst formations in the sea. The entire bay occupies more than 1,500 km2 of area, including almost 2,000 islets or various limestone forms. Many of these karsts are hollow with enormous caves within. Whil

Wading through beautiful limestone caves sitting inland - Trang An Landscape Complex 1438; Quan Họ Bắc Ninh folk songs 00183 Tam Coc What and Why Tr à ng An is a very scenic area located near the city of Ninh Bình which features beautiful limestone mountains and caves along the river. A common tourist activity is to ride a boat and wade through the limestone caves and witness the beautiful sceneries. The river itself nurtures an aquatic ecosystem of various seafood species

The world's tallest trees - Redwood National and State Parks 134 Redwood National and State Parks What and Why The Redwood National and State Park is a park in the North California famous of its groves of huge trees. I n fact, Redwood is known as the home to the tallest trees on Earth, some of them more 100 m tall and have lived for more than a thousand years. These trees, mainly sequoia or redwood, are the tallest, largest and oldest, and one of the most massive tree sp

Iconic fjords, massive waterfalls, canyon valleys and impressive railway - West Norwegian Fjords – Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord 1195; Craft techniques and customary practices of cathedral workshops, or Bauhütten, in Europe, know-how, transmission, development of knowledge and innovation 01558; Nordic clinker boat traditions 01686 Nærøyfjord What and Why The scenic and narrow Nærøyfjord , a branch of the large Sognefjord , is 18-km fjord is often cited as one of the most bea

Stunning karst above and underground - Gunung Mulu National Park 1013; Songket 01505 My wife reaching the Pinnacles What and Why The Gunung Mulu National Park ( Malay : Taman Negara Mulu ) is a national park famous for two things: the extensive and massive underground cave networks and the amazing sharp-bladed limestone karst formation on the slope of a mountain rainforest. One of the most famous of these caves is actually the world's largest cave, the 12 million m³ Saraw

Protected native area and ecosystems across two countries - Waterton Glacier International Peace Park 354 Waterton Glacier International Peace Park What and Why Glacier National Park is a national park located at the northern border of America renowned for its extensive ecosystems: both in terms of animal and plants and hence it is often referred to as the ' Crown of the Continent Ecosystem '. Together with the Waterton Lakes Park of Canada , it forms the Waterton-Glacier

National park with three distinctive climates - Olympic National Park 151 Olympic National Park What and Why Olympic National Park is a national forest distinctive in a number of ways: It is a relative small area but within the park there are three or four distinct ecosystems , including subalpine forest , temperate forest , glaciated mountains , and the rugged Pacific coast. As a result it offers a diversity of distinct endemism and plant species that varies within the pa

Resort island formed by molten lava - Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes 1264; Culture of Jeju Haenyeo (women divers) 01068 Ilchulbong (from internet) What and Why Jeju City ( Korean : 제주시, Jejusi ) is located on the island province Jeju ( 제주 ) , which the island was formed as a result of massive volcano eruptions. The island is famous for its various geological and volcanic formations, mainly responsible by the main volcano Hallasan ( 한라산 ) . Jeju is scientifically valua

A rock that has become a testimony to resistance to slavery - Le Morne Cultural Landscape 1259; Traditional Mauritian Sega 01003 Le Morne Brabant viewed from the sea What and Why Le Morne is the peninsular area at the Southwestern tip of Mauritius , highlighted by a huge and steep 556-m basaltic monolith called Le Morne Brabant . The peninsula is a representation of the history of slavery and its ultimate resistance. The peninsula was a major refuge or hiding place for Mar

Largest icefield in North America - Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks 304 Columbia Icefield What and Why The largest of the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks , Jasper National Park is famous for its spectacular ice fields scattered around spectacularly scenic mountains, gorges, waterfalls and lakes. Jasper’s landscapes emphasise scale and remoteness. Massive mountain ranges, extensive forests, and large river systems create habitats for wildlife and opportunities for outdoor expl

The ultimate photospot of the Rockies - Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks 340 Lake Louise What and Why Banff National Park , is one of the six national parks around the Canadian Rockies that form the UNESCO WHS Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks . Banff National Park is actually the first national park of Canada , established since the late 19th century, and is famous for its exceptionally picturesque landscape, especially the glaciers, glacial lakes, snow mountains and alpine fores

Glacial valley landscape high up in the mountain - Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley 1160 What and Why The Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley...

An ultra-modern bridge overlooking ancient farmlands - The Causses and the Cévennes, Mediterranean agro-pastoral Cultural Landscape 1153;...