For other spectacular National Parks such as Grand Canyon, Yellowstone … check out the 100 Natural Wonders Of The World.

North America

Valley of the Ten Peaks and Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Canada. [ Photo by Gorgo / public domain ]

Banff National Park is Canada’s oldest national park, established in 1885 in the Rocky Mountains. The park, located 110-180 kilometres (70-110 mi) west of Calgary in the province of Alberta, encompasses 6,641 square kilometres (2,564 sq mi) of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine landscapes. The Icefields Parkway extends from Lake Louise, connecting to Jasper National Park in the north. Provincial forests and Yoho National Park are neighbours to the west, while Kootenay National Park is located to the south and Kananaskis Country to the southeast. The main commercial centre of the park is the town of Banff, in the Bow River valley. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fryatt Valley from the top of the head wall [ Photo by HandsLive / CC BY 2.0 ]

Jasper National Park is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning 10,878 km² (4200 mi²). It is located in the province of Alberta, to the north of Banff National Park and west of the city of Edmonton. The park includes the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, hot springs, lakes, waterfalls and, of course, mountains. Wildlife in the park includes elk, caribou, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, mountain goat, bighorn sheep, grizzly bear, black bear, beaver, Rocky Mountain pika, hoary marmot, gray wolf, mountain lion, and wolverine. Some of the park’s many photogenic vistas include Mount Edith Cavell, Pyramid Lake with Pyramid Mountain, Maligne Lake, Medicine Lake, and the Tonquin Valley all considered best photographed at sunrise except for Maligne Lake, which is best in the evening. (based on a wikipedia article)

Auyuittuq National Park: The two peaks of Mount Asgard [ Photo by Ansgar Walk / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Auyuittuq National Park is a national park located on Baffin Island’s Cumberland Peninsula, Qikiqtaaluk Region, in Nunavut, the largest political subdivision of Canada. It features the many terrains of Arctic wilderness, such as fjords, glaciers, and ice fields. In Inuktitut - the language of Nunavut’s Aboriginal people, Inuit - Auyuittuq means “the land that never melts”. Although Auyuittuq was established in 1976 as a national park reserve, it was upgraded to a full national park in 2000. The most common backpacking route in the park is known as Akshayuk Pass, and follows the Weasel and Owl Rivers via Summit Lake. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fall Foliage in Algonquin Park [ Photo by Jok2000 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Algonquin Provincial Park is a provincial park located between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River in Central Ontario, Canada, mostly within the Unorganized South Part of Nipissing District. It is the oldest provincial park in Canada having been established in 1893. Additions since its creation have increased the park to its current size of about 7653 square kilometres. For comparison purposes, this is about one and a half times the size of Prince Edward Island or the US state of Delaware and about a quarter the size of Belgium. (In fact, the park is contiguous with a number of smaller, administratively separate provincial parks that protect important rivers in the area. As a result the total protected area is somewhat larger yet.) (based on a wikipedia article)

A panorama of the Tsusiat Falls campground on the West Coast Trail, tide out, on an overcast day in August 2007. [ Photo by Burtonpe and Nikater / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Pacific Rim National Park Reserve is a Canadian national park reserve in British Columbia made up of three separate regions: Long Beach, the Broken Group Islands, and the West Coast Trail. The entire park encompasses 511 km² of land and ocean. The park is characterized by rugged coasts and lush temperate rainforests. The park is open from mid-March until mid-October. Long Beach is the most visited and most accessible of the three regions. It is made up of the coastal region from Tofino to Ucluelet. (based on a wikipedia article)

Double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) near Cap Bon-Ami. [ Photo by Danielle Langlois / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Forillon National Park is located on the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec, one of 43 national parks and park reserves across Canada. The park includes forests, sea coast, salt marshes, sand dunes, cliffs, and the northern end of the Appalachians. Created in 1970, Forillon was the first national park in Quebec. It covers 244 km². The word forillon is thought to have referred to a flowerpot island or sea stack which used to be a landmark in the area but has since collapsed into the ocean. The park includes nesting colonies of sea birds and whales, seals, black bears, moose, and other woodland animals. (based on a wikipedia article)

Gros Morne National Park, Western Newfoundland, Canada. Panorama seen on Route 431, overlooking Bonne Bay. [ Photo by Tango7174 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Gros Morne National Park is a world heritage site located on the west coast of Newfoundland. At 1,805 km2 (697 sq mi), it is the second largest national park in Atlantic Canada (surpassed by Torngat Mountains National Park at 9,600 km2/3,700 sq mi). The park takes its name from Newfoundland’s second-highest mountain peak (at 2,644 ft/806 m) located within the park. Its French meaning is “large mountain standing alone,” or more literally “great sombre.” Gros Morne is a member of the Long Range Mountains, an outlying range of the Appalachian Mountains, stretching the length of the island’s west coast. It is the eroded remnants of a mountain range formed 1.2 billion years ago. “The park provides a rare example of the process of continental drift, where deep ocean crust and the rocks of the earth’s mantle lie exposed.” (based on a wikipedia article)

Polar bear mother & two cubs (Wapusk National Park, Manitoba, Canada) [ Photo by Ansgar Walk / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Wapusk National Park is Canada’s 37th national park, established in 1996. The park is located in the Hudson Plains ecozone, 45 km south of Churchill in north-east Manitoba, Canada, on the shores of Hudson Bay. Access to the park is limited due to its remote location and an effort to preserve the park. The name comes from the Cree word for polar bear (wâpask). The Park is also home to Cape Churchill, which is renowned as the best location in the world to view and photograph wild polar bears. The only way people can access Cape Churchill is by helicopter or Tundra Buggy. (based on a wikipedia article)

A great egret in a cypress grove. [ Photo by Everglades National Park website / public domain ]

Everglades National Park is a national park in the U.S. state of Florida. The largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, it contains the southern 25 percent of the original Everglades marshland region of southwestern Florida. It is visited by one million people each year, and it is the third-largest national park in the lower 48 states after Death Valley National Park and Yellowstone National Park. It has been declared an International Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site, and a Wetland of International Importance, only one of three locations in the world to appear on all three lists. (based on a wikipedia article)

Crater Lake [ Photo by TANAKA Juuyoh / CC BY 2.0 ]

Crater Lake is a caldera lake located in the south-central region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fills a nearly 1,958 foot (597 m) deep caldera that was formed around 7,700 (± 150) years ago by the collapse of the volcano Mount Mazama. On June 12, 1853, John Wesley Hillman was reportedly the first European American to see what he named “Deep Blue Lake” in Oregon. The lake was renamed at least three times, as Blue Lake, Lake Majesty, and finally Crater Lake. Crater Lake is known for the “Old Man of the Lake”, a full-sized tree that has been bobbing vertically in the lake for more than a century. Due to the cold water, the tree has been rather well preserved. (based on a wikipedia article)

Zion Canyon at sunset in Zion National Park as seen from Angels Landing looking south. [ Photo by Diliff / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Zion National Park is a national park located in the Southwestern United States, near Springdale, Utah. A prominent feature of the 229-square-mile (593 km2) park is Zion Canyon, 15 miles (24 km) long and up to half a mile (800 m) deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone by the North Fork of the Virgin River. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park’s unique geography and variety of life zones allow for unusual plant and animal diversity. Numerous plant species as well as 289 species of birds, 75 mammals (including 19 species of bat), and 32 reptiles inhabit the park’s four life zones: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. Common plant species include cottonwood, Cactus, Datura, Juniper, Pine, Boxelder, Sagebrush, yucca , and various willows. Notable megafauna include mountain lions, mule deer and Golden Eagles, along with reintroduced California Condors and Bighorn Sheep. (based on a wikipedia article)

Death Valley, California, United States of America [ Photo by Urban / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Death Valley is a desert located in the southwestern United States. Situated within the Mojave Desert, it features the lowest, driest, and hottest locations in North America. Badwater, a basin located within Death Valley, is the specific location of the lowest elevation in North America at 282 ft (85.5 m ) below sea level. This point is only 76 miles (123 km) east of Mount Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous United States with an elevation of 14,505 feet (4,421 m). Death Valley holds the record for the highest reliably reported temperature in the Western hemisphere, 134°F (56.7°C) at Furnace Creek in 1913—just short of the world record, 136°F (58°C) in Al ‘Aziziyah, Libya, on September 13, 1922. (based on a wikipedia article)

Panorama of the Red Rock Canyon NCA, taken from the overlook point. [ Photo by Superfish ]

Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Nevada is an area managed by the Bureau of Land Management as part of its National Landscape Conservation System, and protected as a National Conservation Area. It is located about 15 miles (24 km) west of Las Vegas, and easily seen from the Las Vegas Strip. The area is visited by over 1 million visitors each year. The conservation area showcases a set of large red sandstone peaks and walls called the Keystone Thrust. The walls are up to 3,000 feet (910 m) high, making them a popular hiking and rock climbing destination. The highest point is La Madre Mountain, at 8,154 feet (2,485 m). (based on a wikipedia article)

orcas & humpbacks [ Photo by *christopher* / CC BY 2.0 ]

The area around Glacier Bay in southeastern Alaska was first proclaimed a U.S. National Monument on February 25, 1925. It was changed to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve on Dec. 2, 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in the southeastern part of Alaska west of Juneau. The park area was included in an International Biosphere Reserve in 1986 and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park covers 5,130 mi² (13,287 km²). Most of the park is a designated wilderness area which covers 4,164 mi² (10,784 km²) of the park. (based on a wikipedia article)

A photograph taken of the Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado. [ Photo by Massimo Catarinella / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. The park occupies 81.4 square miles (211 km2) (211 square kilometers) near the Four Corners and features numerous ruins of homes and villages built by the ancient Pueblo people known as the Anasazi. The Anasazi made this stone village their home in the 1200s AD. It is best known for several spectacular cliff dwellings — structures built within caves and under outcroppings in cliffs — including Cliff Palace, which is thought to be the largest cliff dwelling in North America. The Spanish term Mesa Verde translates into English as “green tableland”. (based on a wikipedia article)

Tower of Babel in Arches National Park near Moab, Utah. Panorama created with Hugin software. [ Photo by Jarek Tuszynski / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Arches National Park is a U.S. National Park in eastern Utah. It is known for preserving over 2000 natural sandstone arches, including the world-famous Delicate Arch, in addition to a variety of unique geological resources and formations. The park is located near Moab, Utah, and is 119 square miles (310 km2) in size. Its highest elevation is 5,653 feet (1,723 m) at Elephant Butte, and its lowest elevation is 4,085 feet (1,245 m) at the visitor center. Since 1970, forty-three arches have toppled because of erosion. The park receives 10 inches (250 mm) of rain a year on average. The area, administered by the National Park Service, was originally designated as a national monument on April 12, 1929. It was redesignated a national park on November 12, 1971. (based on a wikipedia article)

White Sands National Monument [ Photo by Stephen Friedt / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The White Sands National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located about 25 km (15 miles) southwest of Alamogordo in western Otero County and northeastern Dona Ana County in the state of New Mexico, at an elevation of 4235 feet (1291 m). The area is in the mountain-ringed Tularosa Basin valley area and comprises the southern part of a 710-km² (275-mi²) field of white sand dunes composed of gypsum crystals. Gypsum is rarely found in the form of sand because it is water-soluble. Normally, rain would dissolve the gypsum and carry it to the sea. Since the Tularosa Basin has no outlet to the sea, rain that dissolves gypsum from the surrounding San Andres and Sacramento Mountains is trapped within the basin, and the rain either sinks into the ground or forms shallow pools which subsequently dry out and leave gypsum in a crystalline form, called selenite, on the surface. During the last ice age, a lake known as Lake Otero covered much of the basin. When it dried out, it left a large flat area of selenite crystals which is now the Alkali Flat. (based on a wikipedia article)

Pāhoehoe Lava and Aā flows at The Big Island of Hawaii. [ Photo by Mila Zinkova / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, is a United States National Park located in the U.S. State of Hawaiʻi on the island of Hawaiʻi. It displays the results of hundreds of thousands of years of volcanism, migration, and evolution—processes that thrust a bare land from the sea and clothed it with complex and unique ecosystems and a distinct Ancient Hawaiian culture. Kīlauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, the most massive, offer scientists insights on the birth of the Hawaiian Islands and visitors’ views of dramatic volcanic landscapes. In recognition of its outstanding natural values, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park has been designated as an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980 and a World Heritage Site in 1987. (based on a wikipedia article)

This is the Haleakala Crater in Maui, Hawaii. [ Photo by Matttrain / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Haleakalā National Park is a United States national park located on the island of Maui in the state of Hawaiʻi. The park covers an area of 30,183 acres (122.15 km2), of which 24,719 acres (100.03 km2) is a wilderness area. The summit area includes Haleakalā Crater, the summit of the volcano, and the area surrounding the summit. This part of the park is accessed by Hawaii state road 378. The main feature of this part of the park is undoubtedly the famous Haleakalā Crater. It is huge: 11.25 kilometres (6.99 mi) across, 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi) wide, and some 800 metres (2,600 ft) deep. The interior of the crater is dotted by numerous volcanic features, including large cinder cones. Two main trails lead into the crater from the summit area: the Halemau’u and Sliding Sands trails. Hikers in the crater can stay in one of three cabins (which need to be reserved through the park first). (based on a wikipedia article)

South America

SantaCruz Upsala, Los Glaciares National Park [ Photo by Marianocecowski / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (Spanish: The Glaciers) is a national park in the Santa Cruz Province, in Argentine Patagonia. It comprises an area of 4459 km². In 1981 it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The national park, created in 1937, is the second largest in Argentina. Its name refers to the giant ice cap in the Andes range that feeds 47 large glaciers, of which only 13 flow towards the Atlantic Ocean. The ice cap is the largest outside of Antarctica and Greenland. In other parts of the world, glaciers start at a height of at least 2,500 meters above mean sea level, but due to the size of the ice cap, these glaciers begin at only 1,500m, sliding down to 200m AMSL, eroding the surface of the mountains that support them. (based on a wikipedia article)

Mane seals (also South American sea lion - Otaria flavescens), Peninsula de Valdes [ Photo by Reinhard Jahn, Mannheim / CC BY-SA 2.0 DE ]

The Valdes Peninsula (Spanish Península Valdés) is a peninsula along the Atlantic coast in the Viedma Department in the north east of Chubut Province, Argentina. Its size is about 3,625 km². The nearest large town is Puerto Madryn. The only town on the peninsula is the small settlement of Puerto Piramides. There are also a number of estancias, where sheep are raised. Most of the peninsula is barren land with some salt lakes. The largest of these lakes is at an elevation of about 40 m below sea level, until recently thought to be the lowest elevation in Argentina and South America. (The lowest point being Laguna del Carbón, Argentina). (based on a wikipedia article)

View of en:Ischigualasto National Park in the province of San Juan, Argentina. [ Photo by As578 / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Ischigualasto is a geological formation and a natural park associated with it in the province of San Juan, north-western Argentina, near the border with Chile. The Ischigualasto Provincial Park is located in the north-east of the province, and its northern border is the Talampaya National Park, in La Rioja, both of which belong to the same geological formation. It has an area of 603.7 km2 (233 sq mi), most of them within the Valle Fértil Department, with a minor part in the Jachal Department of San Juan, at an altitude of about 1,300 m (4,265 ft) above mean sea level. The park is part of the western border of the Pampean Hills, and it features typical desert vegetation (bushes, cacti and some trees) which covers between 10 and 20% of the area. The climate is very dry, with rainfall mostly during the summer, and temperature extremes (minimum -10 °C, maximum 45 °C). There is a constant southern wind with a speed of 20-40 km/h after noon and until the evening, sometimes accompanied by an extremely strong zonda wind. (based on a wikipedia article)

Itatiaia National Park, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil [ Photo by Pedroivan / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Itatiaia National Park (Parque Nacional do Itatiaia), established in 1937, is the oldest national park in Brazil. The park is part of the Mantiqueira mountain range, and home to Brazil’s third highest mountain, Pico das Agulhas Negras, which stands at 2,878 meters. This peak is visible to the northwest of Resende when driving between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro on the Via Dutra highway, which is the easiest route to get there. The park attracts bird watchers from all over the world with its 250 species of birds. Other attractions include hiking and rock climbing. The park is surrounded by the Mantiqueira Mountain Environmental Protection Area which provides an ecological buffer zone for the park. (based on a wikipedia article)

Nationalpark Torres del Paine [ Photo by cordyph / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Torres del Paine National Park is a Chilean National Park encompassing a mountains, glacier, lake, and river-rich area in southern Chile. The Cordillera del Paine is the centerpiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes. The park is located 112 km north of Puerto Natales and 312 km north of Punta Arenas. Bernardo O’Higgins National Park is its neighbour to the west, while Los Glaciares National Park is located to the north in Argentine territory. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Conguillío and Sierra Nevada, Conguillío National Park, Chile. [ Photo by Sarah and Iain / CC BY 2.0 ]

Conguillío National Park is located in the Andes, in the provinces of Cautín and Malleco, in the Araucanía Region of Chile. Its name derives from the Mapuche word for “water with Araucaria seeds”. This national park covers about 608 square kilometers. Among the attractions in the park are the Llaima volcano, Sierra Nevada and wild landscapes characterized by islands of vegetation completely surrounded by vast areas of basaltic to andesitic lava flows. Extensive forests, formed mainly by Araucarias and Nothofagus, and lagoons increase the scenic beauty of the park. It is also known as Los Paraguas (The Umbrellas), due to the shape of the Monkey Puzzle trees. (based on a wikipedia article)

Arrecifes beach in the Tayrona National Park in Santa Marta, Colombia [ Photo by Ben Bowes / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Tayrona National Natural Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona) is a protected area in the Colombian northern Caribbean region and within the jurisdiction of the Department of Magdalena and some 34 km from the city of Santa Marta. The park presents a biodiversity endemic to the area of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range presenting a variety of climates (mountain climate) and geography that ranges from arid sea level to 900 meters above sea level. The park covers some 30 square kilometres of maritime area in the Caribbean sea and some 150 km² of land. (based on a wikipedia article)

Kaieteur Falls, Guyana [ Photo by Bill Cameron / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Kaieteur National Park is a National Park located in the Potaro-Siparuni Region of Guyana. The Park’s boundaries and purpose are defined in the Kaieteur National Park Act, and was created to preserve the natural scenery (including Kaieteur Falls), and its fauna and flora. The Act is administered by the Kaieteur National Park Commission. Original boundaries: Commencing at a point on the left bank of the Potaro River, 200 feet (61 m) below the Tukeit Rest House Compound, then along the trail to the Korume Creek, then up the Korume Creek to its source, then to and including Menzies landing on the left bank of the Potaro River, then across the Potaro River to its right bank, then inland for a quarter mile, then downwards and parallel to the right bank of the Potaro River to an unnamed tributary about 300 feet (91 m) below the foot of Tukeit Falls, then down the left bank of that tributary to the Potaro River, then to the point of origin. In 1999 the Park’s area was increased from 5 sq. miles to 242 sq. miles by a Presidential Order. (based on a wikipedia article)

Canaima National Park [ Photo by Mahanga / free for use ]

Canaima National Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Canaima) is a 30,000 km² park in south-eastern Venezuela that borders Brazil and Guyana. It is located in the state of Bolívar, and roughly occupies the same area as the Gran Sabana region. The park was established on the 12 June 1962. It is the second largest park in the country, after Parima-Tapirapecó and is the size of Belgium or Maryland. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 because of the tepuis (table-top mountains) that are characteristic of this area. (based on a wikipedia article)

A picture of Mochima park from the hills of Los Altos de Santa Fe. [ Photo by Chuck Huber / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mochima National Park is located in the States of Anzoátegui and Sucre (state), on the northeastern coast of Venezuela. The park covers 94,935 hectares and is made up of an exclusively marine area in its western sector (Anzoátegui State), a coastal marine area that includes the Gulf of Santa Fé and Mochima Bay, and a mountainous area that covers the Turimiquire Dam watershed (Sucre State). Mochima Park was created to protect the montane forests of the Turimiquire Range and the country’s eastern Caribbean Sea marine landscapes, which are exceptionally beautiful. (based on a wikipedia article)

Central America & Caribbean

A canopy walkway disappearing into a cloud forest near Santa Elena, Costa Rica. [ Photo by Dirk van der Made / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Monteverde, Costa Rica (Spanish for ‘green mount’) is a small town in Puntarenas, Costa Rica. It is often considered a major tourist destination in Costa Rica, primarily frequented by ecotourists drawn by the high biodiversity of its numerous reserves, the most famous of which is the Reserva Biológica Bosque Nuboso Monteverde. The bulk of Monteverde’s rain forest and cloud forest can be found in the Reserva Biológica Bosque Nuboso Monteverde, a private nature reserve created in 1972 by scientist George Powell and Quaker Wilford Guindon. The area around the park entrance is the most visited, though camping deep in the reserve is possible with reservations. Nine main trails, which total 13 km, are well-kept and easy to access. The reserve features a large network of less accessible trails and a number of rustic research stations, two of which house 10 persons each, as well as one research station that can house as many as 43 persons, though these can now only be used by researchers. (based on a wikipedia article)

Tortuguero Nationalpark, Costa Rica [ Photo by Leyo / CC BY-SA 2.5 CH ]

Tortuguero National Park is a National Park within the Tortuguero Conservation Area. The reserve is also included in the Humedal Caribe Noreste, a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. The park is located in the Limón Province of northeastern Costa Rica. It is the third-most visited park in Costa Rica, despite the fact that it can only be reached by airplane or boat. The park has incredible biological variety, due to the existence within the reserve of eleven different habitats, including rainforest, swamps, beaches, and lagoons. It is located in a tropical climate, is very humid, and receives up to 250 inches (6,300 mm) of rain a year. (based on a wikipedia article)

Valley of desolation in Morne Trois Pitons National Park [ Photo by Nelro ]

Morne Trois Pitons National Park is a World Heritage Site (since 1997) located in Dominica. It was established as a national park by the Dominican government in July 1975, the first to be legally established in the country. It is named after its highest mountain, Morne Trois Pitons, meaning mountain of three peaks. The park is a significant area of volcanic activity. sights include the Valley of Desolation, a region of boiling mud ponds and small geysers; the Boiling Lake, Titou Gorge, and Emerald Pool. (based on a wikipedia article)

Caribbean Flamingos (Poenicopterus ruber ruber) along shore of Lago de Oviedo, Dominican Republic. [ Photo by Tim Ross / public domain ]

Jaragua National Park is a national park of the Dominican Republic. Jaragua National Park is located in Pedenales Province in the extreme southwest of the Dominican Republic. Jaragua National Park has an area of 1374 km² (905 km² of which are marine), making it the largest protected area in the Caribbean region. Jaragua National Park was established by Presidential Decree No. 1315 on August 11, 1983, and was named after a Taíno chief. The park is represented by the Hispaniolan dry forests ecoregion. Spanning the southern slopes of the Baoruco Mountain Range from Oviedo to Cabo Rojo, Jaragua National Park includes dry forest, mangroves, and scrub, as well as land and marine habitats. Beata Island (Isla Beata), Alto Velo Island, Bahia de las Aguilas and Lago de Oviedo (noted for its diverse bird life) are part of the park. (based on a wikipedia article)

The Pitons at Soufriere Saint Lucia [ Photo by Jalo ]

The Pitons are two volcanic plugs in a World Heritage Site in Saint Lucia. The Gros Piton is 771 m, and the Petit Piton is 743 m high; they are linked by the Piton Mitan ridge. The Pitons are located near the towns of Soufrière and Choiseul on the southwestern coast of the island. Situated at the top the Piton Mitan ridge is the Ladera Hotel, offering a view over Piton bay. Saint Lucia’s local brand of beer is named after these two mountains. The Pitons are volcanic plugs. There are still sulfur springs and hot mud pools in the nearby Soufrière caldera, visible remnants of former volcanic activity in the area. (based on a wikipedia article)

Europe

Plitvice Lakes National Park [ Photo by Roybb95 ]

The Plitvice Lakes is a national park in Croatia, situated in the Plitvice Lakes municipality, in the mountainous region of Lika. Plitvice Lakes National Park lies in the Plitvice plateau which is surrounded by three mountains part of the Dinaric Alps: Plješevica mountain (Gornja Plješevica peak 1,640 m) and the Mala Kapela mountain (Seliški Vrh peak at 1,280 m) and Medveđak (884 m). The national Park is underlain by karstic rock, mainly dolomite and limestone with associated lakes and caves, this has given rise to the most distinctive feature of the lakes. The lakes are separated by natural dams of travertine, which is deposited by the action of moss, algae and bacteria. The encrusted plants and bacteria accumulate on top of each other, forming travertine barriers which grow at the rate of about 1 cm per year. (based on a wikipedia article)

Galop - high speed exposure [ Photo by Romanceor / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

The Brijuni (also known as the Brionian Islands; Italian: Brioni) are a group of fourteen small islands in the Croatian part of the northern Adriatic Sea, separated from the west coast of the Istrian peninsula by the narrow Fažana Strait. The largest island, Veli Brijun (5.6 km²), lies 2 km off the coast. Famous for their scenic beauty, the islands are a holiday resort and a Croatian National Park. The majority of the flora on the archipelago of the Brijuni islands has the typical Mediterranean characteristics. The most important plant associations of Veli Brijun are: Maquis shrubland, Holm Oak, and Laurel forest, and Conifers. It is interesting to point out that on the islands there are some plant species that are among the endangered plant species of Istria (marine poppy, wild cucumber, some grass species etc.), but on the islands they are quite widespread and develop freely. (based on a wikipedia article)

Great Lake, Island of Mljet, Croatia [ Photo by Neoneo13 / public domain ]

Mljet is the most southerly and easterly of the larger Adriatic islands of the Dalmatia region of Croatia. Mljet lies south of the Pelješac peninsula, from which it is divided by the Mljet Channel. Its length is 23 miles; its average breadth 2 miles (3.2 km). It is of volcanic origin, with numerous chasms and gorges, of which the longest, the Babino Polje, connects the north and south of the island. Port Polače, the principal harbour in the north, is a port of call for tourist ferries. Mljet contains one hotel - The Odisej (from the Greek Odysseus) in the north-west corner of the island. The northwestern part of the island includes an inland sea as well as a small island within it. It has been a national park since November 12, 1960. (based on a wikipedia article)

Soomaa National Park, Estonia [ Photo by masterplaan / CC BY 2.0 ]

Soomaa National Park (Estonian: Soomaa rahvuspark) is national park in south-western Estonia. Soomaa (”land of bogs”) created in 1993, is the youngest in Estonia, but its area, 390 km², places it second after the Lahemaa National Park. The national park, situated in Transitional Estonia, has been created to protect large raised bogs, flood plain grasslands, paludified forests and meandering rivers. The territory of the national park is mostly covered with large mires, separated from each other by the rivers of the Pärnu River basin — the Navesti, Halliste, Raudna and Lemmjõgi rivers. Of the raised bogs, the most noteworthy is the Kuresoo raised bog, whose steep southern slope, falling into the Lemmejõgi, rises by 8 metres over a distance of 100 m. (based on a wikipedia article)

Viru Bog in Lahemaa National Park in Estonia [ Photo by Lysy / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Lahemaa National Park (established 1971) is located on Northern Estonia, 70 kilometers east from capital Tallinn. Its area covers 725 km² (including 250.9 km² of sea). It was the first national park in the Soviet Union. Its charter calls for the preservation, research and promotion of North-Estonian landscapes, ecosystems, biodiversity and national heritage. The name Lahemaa originates from the most thoroughly studied and visited part of the North-Estonian coast, where four large peninsulas (Juminda, Pärispea, Käsmu and Vergi) are separated from each other by four bays (Kolga, Hara, Eru and Käsmu.) Lahemaa translates roughly as “Land of Bays”. (based on a wikipedia article)

Samaria gorge in Creta [ Photo by Deneb / public domain ]

The Samariá Gorge is a national park on the island of Crete, and a major tourist attraction of the island. The gorge is in the prefecture of Chania in southwest Crete. It was created by a small river running between the White Mountains (Lefká Óri) and Mt. Volakias. There are a number of other gorges in the White Mountains. While some say that the gorge is 18 km long, this distance refers to the distance between the settlement of Omalos on the northern side of the plateau and the village of Agia Roumeli. In fact, the gorge is 16 km long, starting at an altitude of 1,250m at the northern entrance, and ending at the shores of the Libyan Sea in Agia Roumeli. The walk through Samaria National Park is 13 km long, but you have to walk another three km to Agia Roumeli from the park exit, making the hike 16 km. The most famous part of the gorge is the stretch known as the Iron Gates, where the sides of the gorge close in to a width of only four meters and soar up to a height of 500 m. (based on a wikipedia article)

Well (hungarian gémeskút) in the Hortobágy Puszta, Hungary [ Photo by Andreas Poeschek / CC BY 2.0 AT ]

Hortobágy is both the name of a village in Hajdú-Bihar county and an 800 km² national park in Eastern Hungary, rich with folklore and cultural history. The park, a part of the Alföld (Great Plain), was designated as a national park in 1973 (the first in Hungary), and elected among the World Heritage sites in 1999. The Hortobágy is Hungary’s largest protected area, and the largest natural grassland in Europe. Hortobágy is similar to a steppe, a grassy plain with cattle, sheep, oxen, and horses, tended by herdsmen, and it provides habitat for various different species (342 bird species have been documented, including the Common Crane, Dotterel, Stone Curlew and Great Bustard). Its emblematic sight is the Nine-holed Bridge, and this is the place for traditional sweep wells. Visitors might find mirage as well here. (based on a wikipedia article)

Skaftafellsfjöll, facing northeast [ Photo by Debivort / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Skaftafell National Park is situated between Kirkjubæjarklaustur, typically referred to as Klaustur, and Höfn in the south of Iceland. The landscape is very similar to some of the Alps, but it has been formed in thousands of years by different influences of fire (volcanic eruptions of Öræfajökull) and water (the glaciers Skeiðarájökull and Skaftafellsjökull), the rivers Skeiðará, Morsá und Skaftafellsá. Volcanic eruptions under the ice-cap can give rise to glacier runs (Icelandic:jökulhlaup) which swell the Skeiðará river massively. The sandy wasteland between the glacier and the sea caused by jökulhlaups is called the Sandur. The last jökulhlaup occurred in 1996. (based on a wikipedia article)

Flag at Þingvellir; Iceland [ Photo by Andreas Tille / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Þingvellir (Icelandic: Þing: ‘parliament’, vellir: ‘meadows’)(sometimes transliterated Thingvellir), is a place in Bláskógarbyggð in southwestern Iceland, near the peninsula of Reykjanes and the Hengill volcanic area. Þingvellir is a site of historical, cultural, and geological importance and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Iceland. Þingvellir National Park was founded in 1930 to protect the remains of the parliament site and was later expanded to protect natural phenomena in the surrounding area. Þingvellir National Park was the first national park in Iceland and was decreed “a protected national shrine for all Icelanders, the perpetual property of the Icelandic nation under the preservation of parliament, never to be sold or mortgaged.” (based on a wikipedia article)

Snaefellsnes-Snaefellsjökull-Summit in Iceland [ Photo by Jutta234 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Snæfellsjökull is a stratovolcano with a glacier (Icelandic: jökull) covering its summit in western Iceland. The name of the mountain is actually Snæfell, but it is normally called “Snæfellsjökull” to discern it from two other mountains with this name. It is situated on the most western part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula in Iceland. Sometimes it may be seen from the city of Reykjavík over the bay of Faxaflói, at a distance of 120 km. The mountain is one of the most famous sites of Iceland, primarily due to the novel A Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864) by Jules Verne, in which the protagonists find the entrance to a passage leading to the center of the earth on Snæfellsjökull. The mountain is included in the Snæfellsjökull National Park. (based on a wikipedia article)

Sila National Park [ Photo by Ndn / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Sila (or Italian: La Sila) is the name of the mountainous plateau and historic region located in Calabria, southern Italy. It occupies part of the provinces of Crotone, Cosenza and Catanzaro, and is divided (from north to south) into the Sila Greca, Sila Grande and Sila Piccola (”Greek”, “Greater” and “Lesser Sila”, respectively) sub-ranges. The highest peaks are the Botte Donato (1,928 m), in the Sila Grande, and Monte Gariglione (1,764 m) in the Sila Piccola. The Sila houses the eponymous National Park, the Parco Nazionale della Sila, formerly called National Park of Calabria and created in 2002. (based on a wikipedia article)

Gran Paradiso [ Photo by Giustino / CC BY 2.0 ]

Gran Paradiso National Park (Italian: Parco Nazionale del Gran Paradiso) is Italy’s oldest and best known national park. It is located in the Graian Alps. The park is named after Gran Paradiso mountain, which is located in the park. The land the park encompasses was initially protected in order to protect the Alpine ibex, but now also protects other species. The park’s woods are important because they provide shelter for a large number of animals. They are a natural defence against landslides, avalanches, and flooding. The two main types of woods found in the park are coniferous and deciduous woods. The deciduous European beech forests are common on the Piemonte side of the park, and are not found on the dryer Valle d’Aosta side. These forests are thick with dense foliage that lets in very little light during the summer. (based on a wikipedia article)

Devonian sandstone cliffs - Ergelu Cliffs at Gauja River, Latvia [ Photo by Gatis Pāvils / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Gauja National Park (Latvian: Gaujas nacionālais parks) in Vidzeme is the largest national park in Latvia, with an area of 917.45 km² running from north-east of Sigulda to south-west of Cēsis along the valley of the Gauja River, from which the park takes its name. It was established on 14 September 1973 and is thus also the oldest national park in Latvia. The park administration is based in Sigulda. The park is particularly noted for the Devonian sandstone cliffs, in some places as high as 90 metres, along the banks of the Gauja, particularly in the northern parts round Sigulda. In the south-west it is mainly used by the inhabitants of Riga as a leisure facility, while further to the north-east it is more strictly protected. (based on a wikipedia article)

durmitor national park montenegro [ Photo by MichaelTyler / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Durmitor is a mountain and the name of a national park in Montenegro. It reaches a height of 2,522 meters (Bobotov Kuk). The Durmitor National Park, created in 1952, includes the massif of Durmitor, the canyons of Tara, Sušica and Draga rivers and the higher part of the canyon plateau Komarnica, covering the area of 390 km². It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1980. There are beatuifull landscapes and unique nature. A part of the National park Durmitor is also the Tara River Canyon, 80 km long and 1,300 m deep, second largest in the world, just behind Grand Canyon in Arizona. Durmitor mountain is the centre of Montenegrin mountain tourism. The tourist facilities are concentrated around the town of Žabljak. During the winter, main activities on Durmitor are skiing and, increasingly, snowboarding. In the summer, the activities shift to mountaineering and recreational tourism. One of the most prominent attraction of Durmitor mountain are 18 glacial lakes, best known being Crno Lake. (based on a wikipedia article)

Biogradska gora [ Photo by Snežana Trifunović / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Biogradska Gora is a forest and a national park in Montenegro within Kolašin municipality. The National Park is 54 km² in area. Basic elements of the Park are: untouched forest, large mountain slopes and tops over 2000 meters high, six glacial lakes, five at an altitude of 1820 meters and one easy accessible low land lake located at the very entrance to the park, Biogradsko Lake. Swift streams cut through scenery of Biogradska Gora, green pastures and clear lakes reflecting centennial forests. (based on a wikipedia article)

Gjende [ Photo by color line / CC BY 2.0 ]

Jotunheimen (“Home of the Giants”) National Park is a national park in Norway, recognized as one of the country’s premier hiking and fishing regions. The national park covers 1,151 km² and is part of the larger area Jotunheimen. More than 250 peaks rise above 1,900 metres (6,000 feet), including Northern Europe’s two highest peaks: Galdhøpiggen at 2,469 metres, and Glittertind at 2,465 metres. The National Park covers most of the mountainous region of Jotunheimen, including Hurrungane, but Utladalen and its surroundings are within Utladalen Landscape Protection Area. Geographically, it lies in both Oppland and Sogn og Fjordane counties. Geologically the Jotunheimen is a Precambrian province. Glaciers have carved the hard gabbro rock massifs of the Jotunheimen, leaving numerous valleys and the many peaks. (based on a wikipedia article)

Rondane in summer [ Photo by Ot / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Rondane National Park is the oldest national park in Norway, established on 21 December 1962. The park contains ten peaks above 2,000 metres (6,560 ft), with the highest being Rondeslottet at an altitude of 2,178 m (7,146 ft). The park is an important habitat for herds of wild reindeer. The park was extended in 2003, and now covers an area of 963 km2 (372 sq mi) in the counties Oppland and Hedmark. Rondane lies just to the east of Gudbrandsdal and two other mountain areas, Dovre and Jotunheimen are nearby. (based on a wikipedia article)

SPN, Poland [ Photo by Marek and Ewa Wojciechowscy / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Słowiński National Park is a National Park in Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It is situated on the Baltic coast, between Łeba and Rowy. The northern boundary of the Park consists of 32.5 kilometres (20.2 mi) of coastline. There are around 140 kilometers of walking tourist trails. By the lakes there are some observation towers and along the trails one can find benches and resting places. Around the park there are many parking sites as well as hotels and camp sites, especially in Łeba. (based on a wikipedia article)

Bialowieza Forest, Royal Oak Road / Bialowieza Forest, the Royal Oaks Trail [ Photo by Robert Wielgórski / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Białowieża Primaeval Forest, known as Belavezhskaya Pushcha or Belovezhskaya Pushcha in Belarus and Ltspkr.png Puszcza Białowieska in Poland, is an ancient woodland straddling the border between Belarus and Poland, located 70 km (43 mi) north of Brest. It is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest which once spread across the European Plain. The Belavezhskaya Pushcha headquarters at Kamieniuki, Belarus include laboratory facilities and a zoo where wisent (reintroduced into the park in 1929), konik (a semi-wild horse), wild boar, elk, and other indigenous animals may be viewed in enclosures of their natural habitat. (based on a wikipedia article)

Slovensky raj-Stratenska pila [ Photo by Kristian Slimak / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Slovak Paradise National Park is one of the nine national parks in Slovakia, situated in East Slovakia. The National Park protects the area of the Slovak Paradise mountain range, which is located in the north of the Slovenské rudohorie Mountains (Slovak Ore Mountains). The National Park covers an area of 197.63 km² (76.3 mi²), and the buffer zone around the park covers an area of 130.11 km² (50.2 mi²); 327.74 km² together. Eleven national nature reserves and eight nature reserves are situated in the park. The park offers about 300 km of hiking trails, often equipped with ladders, chains and bridges. The Slovak Pradise contains about 350 caves, but only the Dobšinská Ice Cave, which is since 2000 a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is open to the public. (based on a wikipedia article)

Wetlands in Donana [ Photo by Technische_Fred / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Doñana National Park, also called Coto de Doñana, is a national park and wildlife refuge in southwestern Spain. Doñana National Park is located in Andalusia, in the provinces of Huelva and Seville, and covers 543 km², of which 135 km² are a protected area. The park is an area of marsh, shallow streams, and sand dunes in Las Marismas, the Guadalquivir River Delta region where it flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The original area was established in 1963 when the World Wildlife Fund joined with the Spanish government and purchased a section of marshes to protect it. There has been a constant threat to the eco-system, that of drainage of the marshes, the use of river water to boost agricultural production by irrigating land along the coast, and the expansion of tourist facilities. (based on a wikipedia article)

Panorama des Pico de Teide auf Teneriffa [ Photo by Berthold Werner / public domain ]

Mount Teide or, in Spanish, Pico del Teide is the highest elevation of Spain and the islands of the Atlantic (it is the third largest volcano in the world from its base). It is an active volcano which last erupted in 1909 from the El Chinyero vent on the Santiago (northwestern) rift and is located on Tenerife, Canary Islands. The volcano and its surroundings comprise the Teide National Park (Parque Nacional del Teide in Spanish). The park has an area of 18900 hectares and was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on June 29, 2007. It is also from the end of 2007 one of the Twelve Treasures of Spain. The lava flows on the flanks of Teide weather to a very thin, but nutrient and mineral rich soil that supports a diverse amount of plant species. Vascular flora consists of 168 plant species, 33 of which are endemic to Tenerife. (based on a wikipedia article)

Swiss National Park [ Photo by Hansueli Krapf / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Swiss National Park is located in the canton of Graubünden in the east of Switzerland between Zernez, S-chanf, Scuol and the Fuorn Pass in the Engadin valley on the border with Italy. As of 2009, it is the only National Park in Switzerland, though there are plans to create more. It has an area of 174.2 km² and is the largest protected area of the country. It was founded on 1 August 1914, the national holiday of Switzerland. It was one of the earliest national parks in Europe. In the park, one is not allowed to leave the road, make fire or sleep outside the Chamanna Cluozza, the mountain hut located in the park. It is also forbidden to disturb the animals or the plants, or to take home anything found in the park. Dogs are not allowed, not even on a leash. (based on a wikipedia article)

North snowdonia panorama [ Photo by Velela / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Snowdonia (Welsh: Eryri) is a region in north Wales and a national park of 838 square miles (2,170 km2) in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951. Snowdonia National Park (Welsh: Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri) was established in 1951 as the third National Park in England and Wales. It covers 827 square miles (2,140 km2), and has 37 miles (60 km) of coastline. More than 26,000 people live within the Park, of whom about 62% speak Welsh. The Park attracts over 6 million visitors annually, split almost equally between day and staying visitors, making it the third most visited National Park in England and Wales. (based on a wikipedia article)

Yorkshire Dales [ Photo by yaaaay / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Yorkshire Dales (also known as The Dales) is the name given to an upland area, in Northern England. In 1954 an area of 1,770 square kilometres (680 sq mi) was designated the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Most of the National Park is in North Yorkshire, though part lies within Cumbria. However, the whole park lies within the traditional boundaries of Yorkshire, divided between the North Riding and the West Riding. The park is 50 miles (80 km) north east of Manchester; Leeds and Bradford lie to the south, while Kendal is to the west and Darlington to the east. The Park has its own museum, the Dales Countryside Museum, housed in a conversion of the Hawes railway station in Wensleydale in the north of the Park.[9 (based on a wikipedia article)

The Brecon Beacons, seen from the South. [ Photo by Benbowen / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Brecon Beacons (Welsh: Bannau Brycheiniog) is a mountain range in South Wales. It forms the central section of the Brecon Beacons National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog), one of Wales’s three National Parks. The National Park was established in 1957, the last of the three Welsh parks; Snowdonia was first in 1951 with the Pembrokeshire Coast being the other. It covers 519 square miles (1344 km²), 332 100 acres stretching from Llandeilo in the west to Hay-on-Wye in the east. It encompasses the ranges confusingly named the Black Mountains (in the east of the park, on the border with England) and the Black Mountain (in the west). The area to the west of the Brecon Beacons range is known as Fforest Fawr (Great Forest). (based on a wikipedia article)

Pacific & Antarctica

Brumbies, Yellow Water, Kakadu NP, NT [ Photo by Cgoodwin / CC BY 3.0 ]

Kakadu National Park is in the Northern Territory of Australia, 171 km southeast of Darwin. Kakadu National Park is located within the Alligator Rivers Region of the Northern Territory of Australia. It covers an area of 1,980,400 ha (4,894,000 acres), extending nearly 200 kilometres from north to south and over 100 kilometres from east to west. It is the size of Israel, about one-third the size of Tasmania, or nearly half the size of Switzerland. The Ranger Uranium Mine, one of the most productive Uranium mines in the world, is contained within the park. Kakadu’s flora is among the richest in northern Australia with more than 1700 plant species recorded which is a result of the Park’s geological, landform and habitat diversity. Kakadu is also considered to be one of the most weed free national parks in the world. (based on a wikipedia article)

Kata Tjuta or the Olgas is a rock formation near Uluru/Ayers Rock. Panorama of three landscape images. [ Photo by Christian Mehlführer / CC BY 2.5 ]

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is UNESCO World Heritage-listed in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located 1431 kilometres south of Darwin by road and 440 kilometres south-west of Alice Springs along the Stuart and Lasseter Highways. The park covers 1398 square kilometres and includes the features it is named after - Uluru / Ayers Rock and, 40 kilometres to its west, Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga and is serviced by flights from most Australian capital cities. Uluru is Australia’s most recognisable natural icon. The world-renowned sandstone inselberg stands 348 metres high with most of its bulk below the ground. The aboriginals believe that the spirit that turned into ayers rock was a turtlespirit. Kata Tjuta, meaning ‘many heads’, is a group of 36 rock domes that dates back 500 million years. Both Uluru and Kata Tjuta have great cultural significance for the Anangu traditional landowners, who lead walking tours to inform visitors about the local flora and fauna, bush foods and the Aboriginal Dreamtime stories of the area. (based on a wikipedia article)

Purnululu From The Air [ Photo by Happy Little Nomad / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Purnululu National Park is a World Heritage Site in Western Australia. It was declared in 1987. It is located in north east of Western Australia. The nearest major town is Kununurra to the north, or Halls Creek to the south. Purnululu is the name given to the sandstone area of the Bungle Bungle Range by the Kija Aboriginal people. The name means sandstone or may be a corruption of bundle grass. The range, lying fully within the park, has elevations as high as 578 metres above sea level. It is famous for the sandstone domes, unusual and visually striking with their striping in alternating orange and grey bands. The banding of the domes is due to differences in clay content and porosity of the sandstone layers: the orange bands consist of oxidised iron compounds in layers that dry out too quickly for cyanobacteria to multiply; the grey bands are composed of cyanobacteria growing on the surface of layers of sandstone where moisture accumulates. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Te Anau, The South Island, New Zealand [ Photo by James Shook / CC BY 2.5 ]

Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest corner of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest of the 14 national parks in New Zealand, with an area of 12,500 km², and a major part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site. The park is administered by the Department of Conservation. During the cooler past, glaciers carved many deep fiords, the most famous (and most visited) of which is Milford Sound. Other notable fiords include Doubtful Sound and Dusky Sound. From one of the peaks within Fiordland National Park, a view of Mount Aspiring/Tititea to the far north can be observed. Fiordland’s coast is steep and crenellated, with the fiords running from the valleys of the southern ranges of the Southern Alps, such as the Kepler and Murchison Mountains. At the northern end of the park, several peaks rise to over 2000 metres. (based on a wikipedia article)

Low cloud of the Abel Tasman coastal path [ Photo by Abi Skipp / CC BY 2.0 ]

Abel Tasman National Park is a national park located at the north end of the South Island of New Zealand. The park was founded in 1942 and with a coverage of only 225.3 square kilometres, is the smallest of New Zealand’s national parks. The park consists of forested, hilly country to the north of the valleys of the Takaka and Riwaka Rivers, and is bounded to the north by the waters of Golden Bay and Tasman Bay. It is named after Abel Tasman, who in 1642 became the first European explorer to sight New Zealand. Abel Tasman National Park does not extend beyond Mean High Water Mark on the adjacent coast. Between Mean High Water and Mean Low Water Springs, the beaches are gazetted as a Scenic Reserve, covering 7.74 km² in total (about 70 km long). (based on a wikipedia article)

New Zealand's three active central North Island volcanoes, seen from the northwest. Snow-capped Ruapehu is to the left, the cone of Ngauruhoe is in the centre, and the broad dome of Tongariro is to the right. [ Photo by James Dignan / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Tongariro National Park is the oldest national park in New Zealand, located in the central North Island. It has been acknowledged by UNESCO as one of the 25 mixed cultural and natural World Heritage Sites. Tongariro National Park was the fourth National Park established in the world. The active volcanic mountains Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro are located in the centre of the park. There are a number of Māori religious sites within the park, such as one at the grave to Te Heuheu Herekeikei. The summits of Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu are tapu (sacred). The Tongariro National Park is a rough and partly unstable environment. To the north and west of the park, a podocarp-broadleaf rain forest near Lake Taupo stretches over an area of 30 km², and up to an elevation of 1000 m. The main activities are hiking and climbing in summer, and skiing and snowboarding in winter. There is also opportunity for hunting, game fishing, mountain biking, horse riding, rafting and scenic flights. (based on a wikipedia article)

Panoramic views of Lake Rotoiti and St bandwidth. Arnaud (right by the lake) from the top of Robert Ridge. [ Photo by Zoharby / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Nelson Lakes National Park is located in the South Island of New Zealand. It was formed in 1956 and covers some 1,020 km². It is centered at two large lakes, Rotoiti and Rotoroa. The park also includes surrounding valleys (including Travers, Sabine, and D’Urville, upper reaches of the Matakitaki) and mountain ranges (Saint Arnaud Range, Mount Robert). The park is a popular area for camping, tramping and fishing. The main campgrounds are on the shores of Lake Rotoiti; there is a smaller campground at Lake Rotoroa. There is a network of tramping tracks throughout the park. Tracks range from short nature walks at Lake Rotoiti and Lake Rotorua, to multi-day backcountry tramps. Day tramps include the Lake Rotoiti circuit, St. Arnaud Range and Mt. Robert. The most popular long-distance tramping routes are the Travers-Sabine Circuit and other loops through Lake Angelus. (based on a wikipedia article)

matukituki vally - new zealand [ Photo by Psychoticfish ]

Mount Aspiring National Park is located in the Southern Alps of the South Island of New Zealand, north of Fiordland National Park, and between Otago and south Westland. The Haast Pass, one of the three principal road routes across the Southern Alps, is found in the north-eastern corner of the park. In April 2005 the Nature Heritage Fund purchased private land in the Landsborough River valley as an addition to the park. In December 2007, the New Zealand Conservation Authority declined an amendment to the Mount Aspiring National Park Management Plan that would have allowed for the construction of a new road and tunnel within Mount Aspiring National Park. (based on a wikipedia article)

The picture shows the Whanganui River on the North Island of New Zealand [ Photo by James Shook / CC BY 2.5 ]

The Whanganui National Park is a national park located in the North Island of New Zealand. Established in 1986, it covers an area of 742 km² bordering the Whanganui River. It incorporates areas of Crown land, former state forest and a number of former reserves. The river itself is not technically part of the park. (based on a wikipedia article)

Africa

Lioness in Moremi game reserve. [ Photo by Africanprince10 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Moremi Game Reserve is a National Park in Botswana. It rests on the eastern side of the Okavango Delta and was named after Chief Moremi of the BaTawana tribe. Moremi was designated as a Game Reserve, and not a National Park, since when it was created. The BaSarwa or Bushmen that lived there were supposed to be allowed to stay in the reserve. The Moremi Game Reserve covers much of the eastern side of the Okavango Delta, and combines permanent water, with drier areas – making for some startling, and unexpected contrasts. Prominent geographical features of the Reserve are Chiefs Island and the Moremi Tongue. In the Moremi one can experience excellent savannah game viewing by 4×4, as well as bird-watching on the lagoons. There are also thickly wooded areas, which are home to the shy, and rare, Leopard. To the northeast lies the Chobe National Park which borders the Moremi Game Reserve. (based on a wikipedia article)

Gnus and zebras in the Maasai Mara park reserve in Kenya. Wildebeest and zebra migration in Masai Mara. [ Photo by Key45 / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Masai Mara (also spelled Maasai Mara) is a large game reserve in south-western Kenya, which is effectively the northern continuation of the Serengeti National Park game reserve in Tanzania. Named after the Maasai people (the traditional inhabitants of the area) and their description of the area when looked at from a viewpoint - “Mara”, which is Maa (Maasai language) for spotted: an apt description for the circles of trees, scrub, savannah and cloud shadows that mark the area. It is famous for its exceptional population of Big Cats, game, and the annual migration of zebra, Thomson’s gazelle and wildebeest from the Serengeti every year from July to October, a migration so immense it is called the Great Migration. (based on a wikipedia article)

Weaver birds - Sunset over the waterhole, Etosha, Namibia [ Photo by Lisa J G / CC BY 2.0 ]

Etosha National Park is a national park in the Kunene Region of northwestern Namibia. The park shares boundaries with the regions of Oshana, Oshikoto and Otjozondjupa. The Etosha Pan dominates the park. The salt pan desert is roughly 130 km long and as wide as 50 km in places. The salt pan is usually dry, but fills with water briefly in the summer, when it attracts pelicans and flamingos in particular. Perennial springs attract a variety of animals and birds throughout the year, including the endangered Black Rhinoceros and the endemic Black-faced Impala. In the dry season, winds blowing across the salt pan pick up saline dust and carry it across the country and out over the southern Atlantic. This salt enrichment provides minerals to the soil downwind of the pan on which some wildlife depends, though the salinity also creates challenges to farming. (based on a wikipedia article)

The Olifants River in the Kruger National Park [ Photo by Malapo Country Lodge / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Kruger National Park is one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers 18,989 square kilometres (7,332 sq mi) and extends 350 kilometres (220 mi) from north to south and 60 kilometres (37 mi) from east to west. To the west and south of the Kruger National Park are the two South African provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga. In the north is Zimbabwe, and to the east is Mozambique. It is now part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, a peace park that links Kruger National Park with the Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe, and with the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique. The park is part of the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere, an area designated by the United Nations Education and Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) as an International Man and Biosphere Reserve (the “Biosphere”). The park has 9 main gates that allow entrance to the different camps. (based on a wikipedia article)

White rhino female with a young at Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa [ Photo by Joonas Lyytinen / CC BY 2.5 ]

The Pilanesberg Game Reserve is located in North West Province in South Africa, west of Pretoria. The park borders with the entertainment complex Sun City. The park was originally owned by three local tribes, and is now administered by the North West Parks and Tourism Board. The area is fringed by three concentric ridges or rings of hills, of which the formation rises from the surrounding plains, this is the parks primary geological feature named the Pilanesberg Alkaline Ring Complex. This vast circular geological feature is ancient even by geological standards as it is the crater of a long extinct volcano and the result of eruptions some 1,200 million years ago. It is one of the largest volcanic complexes of its type in the world, the rare rock types and formations make it a unique geological feature. A number of rare minerals occur in the park. Pilanesberg Game Reserve rates high amongst the world’s outstanding geological phenomena. (based on a wikipedia article)

Elephant at the Hampoor Dam in the Addo Elephant National Park [ Photo by NJR ZA / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Addo Elephant National Park is an elephant park situated close to Port Elizabeth in South Africa and is recognized as one of the country’s twenty national parks. The park receives about 120,000 visitors annually. International visitors make up 54% of this number, with German, Dutch and British nationals making up the majority. There is a main and four other rest camps as well four camps run by concessionaires. The main entrance as well as two looped tourist roads in the park are tarred while the others are graveled. There is also an additional access road through the southern block of the park feeding off the N2 highway near Colchester; it joins up with the existing tourist roads in the park. (based on a wikipedia article)

View of Table Mountain from Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens [ Photo by Didier B / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Kirstenbosch is the name of a famous botanical garden nestled at the foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town. (It is on the eastern slopes of the mountain, not on the northern side normally depicted in the standard tourist snapshots). (Kirstenbosch should not be confused with the similarly named suburb of Kirstenhof which lies some 10 km to the south.) The garden is one of eight National Botanical Gardens covering five of South Africa’s six different biomes. When Kirstenbosch, the most famous of the gardens, was founded in 1913 to preserve the country’s unique flora, it was the first botanical garden in the world with this ethos. Furthermore, what makes the Gardens so famous worldwide is that (with minor exceptions) only indigenous plants are cultivated. (based on a wikipedia article)

Pelicans - Lake Manyara [ Photo by Stig Nygaard / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lake Manyara is a shallow freshwater lake in Tanzania. Said by Ernest Hemingway to be the “loveliest [lake] … in Africa,” it is also the home of a diverse set of landscapes and wildlife. The name “Manyara” comes from the Maasai word emanyara, which is a euphorbia species of plant that is grown into a hedge around a family homestead (Euphorbia tirucalli). Of the 127 square miles (329 km2) of Lake Manyara National Park, the lake’s alkaline waters cover approximately 89 square miles (231 km2). While most known for baboons, the lake and its environs is also home to herbivores such as hippos, impalas, elephants, wildebeests, buffalo, warthogs and giraffes. Giant fig trees and mahogany seen in the groundwater forest immediately around the park gates draw nourishment from the underground springs replenished continuously from crater highlands directly above the Manyara basin. Leading away from the forest to the fringes of Lake Manyara are the flood plains. To the south are visible the acacia woodlands. Leopards, although in abundance, are hard to get a glimpse of, just like the other elusive carnivores - the lions - of this park. (based on a wikipedia article)

A panorama of the Mikumi National Park in Tanzania. [ Photo by Muhammad Mahdi Karim / GFDL ]

The Mikumi National Park is a national park in Mikumi, near Morogoro, Tanzania. The park was established in 1964, currently covers an area of 3230 km² and is the fourth largest in the country. The landscape of Mikumi is often compared to that of the Serengeti. The road that crosses the park divides it into two areas with partially distinct environments. The area north-west is characterized by the alluvial plain of the river basin Mkata. The vegetation of this area consists of savannah dotted with acacia, baobab, tamarinds, and some rare palm. In this area, at the furthest from the road, there are spectacular rock formations of the mountains Rubeho and Uluguru. The southeast part of the park is less rich in wildlife, and not very accessible. (based on a wikipedia article)

Mountain Gorrilas in Bwindi NP, Uganda [ Photo by Duncan Wright / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda in East Africa. The park is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, and is situated along the Democratic Republic of Congo border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge of the western Great Rift Valley. It comprises 331 square kilometres of jungle forests and contains both montane and lowland forest and is accessible only on foot. The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site. The forest is one of the richest ecosystems in Africa, and the diversity of species is a feature of the park. The park provides habitat for some 120 species of mammals, 346 species of birds, 202 species of butterflies, 163 species of trees, 100 species of ferns, 27 species of frogs, chameleons, geckos and many endangered species. In particular the area shares in the high levels of endemisms of the Albertine Rift. (based on a wikipedia article)

Asia

Evening at Inle Lake [ Photo by Ralf-André Lettau / free for use ]

Inle Lake is a freshwater lake located in the Shan Hills in Myanmar (Burma). It is the second largest lake in Myanmar with an estimated surface area of 44.9 square miles (116 km2), and one of the highest at an altitude of 2,900 feet (880 m). During the dry season, the average water depth is 7 feet (2.1 m), with the deepest point being 12 feet (3.7 m), but during the rainy season this can increase by 5 feet (1.5 m). The best time of the year to visit is during September and October. The ceremonial Hpaung Daw U Festival, which lasts for almost three weeks, is closely followed by the Thadingyut festival of lights. Inthas and Shan turn out in their best clothes in great numbers to celebrate the Buddhist Lent. Traditional boat racing, with dozens of leg-rowers in Shan dress in a team on each boat, is a famous event during the Hpaung Daw U Festival. (based on a wikipedia article)

Wuyishan clouds [ Photo by 老过 / CC BY 2.5 CN ]

The Wuyi Mountains are a mountain range located at the prefecture Nanping, at the northern border of Fujian province with Jiangxi province, China. The mountains cover an area of 60 km². In 1999, Mount Wuyi entered UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites, both natural and cultural. It is the most outstanding biodiversity conservation zone of Southeast China. Numerous types of tea are produced around Mount Wuyi; it is the origin of the real Da Hong Pao tea and Lapsang souchong, further described in Wuyi tea. The Wuyi Mountains act as a protective barrier against the inflow of cold air from the northwest and retain warm moist air originating from the sea. As a result, the area has a humid climate (humidity 80 to 85%) with high rainfall (annual average 2,200 millimeters in the south-west and 3,200 millimeters in the north) and common fogs. Lower altitudes experience annual temperatures in the range from 12 to 18 °C. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fog curls around the peaks of Mt Lushan in Jiangxi province, China. The trees have been identified as Pinus hwangshanensis, or Huangshan Pine. [ Photo by pfctdayelise / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Mount Lu is a mountain in the People’s Republic of China, situated south of the city of Jiujiang in Jiangxi Province, near Lake Poyang. Its highest point is the Dahanyang Peak (1,474m above sea level). The mountain is a prominent tourist attraction, especially domestically. Hui-yuan founded Pure Land Buddhism here on the northwest slope in 402. Also, Donglin Temple is located here. Lushan National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (cultural), and Lushan Quaternary Glaciation National Geopark is a member of UNESCO Global Geoparks Network. The Lushan Botanical Gardens features tens of thousands of plant species. (based on a wikipedia article)

Zhang Jia Jie National Forest Park. Photo taken April 2005 by Taylor Weston Hickem. Zhang Jia Jie, Hunan, China. [ Photo by Thedeftguitarist / public domain ]

The Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is a unique national forest park located in Zhangjiajie City in northern Hunan Province in the People’s Republic of China. In 1982 it was recognized as China’s first national forest park (4,810 hectares). Zhangjiajie National Forest Park was designated a much larger (397.5 km²) Wulingyuan National Park by the State Council on August 1, 1988. In 1992, Wulingyuan National Park was officially recognized as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site. It was then approved by the Ministry of Land and Resources as Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest National Geopark (3,600 km²) in 2001. In 2004, Zhangjiajie Geopark was listed as a UNESCO Global Geopark. (based on a wikipedia article)

View on the lake Namtso (Nam-tso/Nam co) and the holy rock [ Photo by Peter Vigier / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Namtso or Lake Nam is a mountain lake at the border between Damxung County of Lhasa Prefecture and Baingoin County of Nagqu Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, approximately 112 kilometres (70 mi) NNW of Lhasa. The lake lies at an elevation of 4,718 m, and has a surface area of 1,870 square kilometres. It is the highest salt lake in the world, and largest salt lake in the Tibet Autonomous Region. However, it is not the largest salt lake in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. That title belongs to Qinghai Lake (almost twice the size of Namtso); which lies over 1,000 km [650 miles] to the north-east in China’s Qinghai province. (based on a wikipedia article)

Tiger Bandavgarh [ Photo by Tania1234 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Bandhavgarh National Park is one of the popular national parks in India located in the Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh. Bandhavgarh was declared a national park in 1968 with an area of 105 km². The buffer is spread over the forest divisions of Umaria and Katni and totals 437 km². The park derives its name from the most prominent hillock of the area, which is said to be given by Hindu Lord Rama to his brother Lakshmana to keep a watch on Lanka (Ceylon). Hence the name Bandhavgarh (Sanskrit: Brother’s Fort). This park has a large biodiversity. The density of the tiger population at Bandhavgarh is one of the highest known in India. The park has a large breeding population of Leopards, and various species of deer. Maharaja Martand Singh of Rewa captured a white tiger in this region in 1951. This white tiger, Mohan, is now stuffed and on display in the palace of the Maharajas of Rewa. (based on a wikipedia article)

View of the Valley of flowers, Uttaranchal, India [ Photo by Araghu / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Valley of Flowers National Park is an Indian national park, Nestled high in West Himalaya, is renowned for its meadows of endemic alpine flowers and outstanding natural beauty. This richly diverse area is also home to rare and endangered animals, including the Asiatic black bear, snow leopard, brown bear and blue sheep. The gentle landscape of the Valley of Flowers National Park complements the rugged mountain wilderness of Nanda Devi National Park. Together they encompass a unique transition zone between the mountain ranges of the Zanskar and Great Himalaya. The park stretches over an expanse of 87.50 km². The Valley of Flowers is an outstandingly beautiful high-altitude Himalayan valley that has been acknowledged as such by renowned mountaineers and botanists in literature for over a century and in Hindu mythology for much longer. Its ‘gentle’ landscape, breathtakingly beautiful meadows of alpine flowers and ease of access complement the rugged, mountain wilderness for which the inner basin of Nanda Devi National Park is renowned. (based on a wikipedia article)

View of the Tengger caldera crater from Penanjakan. There was quite a bit of volcanic smoke and clouds. [ Photo by NeilsPhotography / CC BY 2.0 ]

Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park is located in East Java, Indonesia. It consist of hills and mountains, with Mount Semeru (3,676m) as its highest peak. This is also the highest mountain on Java. There are also 4 lakes and 50 rivers in this national park. It is the location of the 10-kilometre wide Tengger Caldera within which lies the Bromo Crater. Some endangered flora are protected in this park, such as: Fagaceae, Moraceae, Sterculiaceae, Casuarina junghuhniana, Anaphalis longifolia and about 200 species of endemic orchids. There are also about 137 species of birds, 22 species of mammals and 4 species of reptiles protected. Examples are: Accipiter virgatus, Pavo muticus, Cervus timorensis, Cuon alpinus and Panthera pardus. (based on a wikipedia article)

Canopy Walkway in the Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia [ Photo by RoB / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Taman Negara National Park was established in Malaysia in 1938/1939 as the King George V National Park. It was renamed to Taman Negara after independence, which literally means “national park” in Malay. Taman Negara (total area 4,343 km²) has a reputation as the world’s oldest tropical rainforest. Taman Negara encompasses three states, Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu, each with its own legislation. The Taman Negara Enactment (Pahang) No. 2 of 1939 is enforced in the state of Pahang, the Taman Negara Enactment (Kelantan) No. 14 of 1938 in the state of Kelantan and the Taman Negara Enactment (Terengganu) No. 6 of 1939 in the state of Terengganu. The enactments have similar contents. (based on a wikipedia article)

Panoramic view of Lake Khövsgöl from the mountains to the west of the lake. [ Photo by Zoharby / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Lake Khövsgöl, also referred to as Khövsgöl dalai or Dalai Eej is the second largest lake in Mongolia. The Lake area is a National Park bigger than Yellowstone and strictly protected as a transition zone between Central Asian Steppe and Siberian Taiga. Despite Hovsgol’s protected status, illegal fishing is common and prohibitions against commercial fishing with gillnets are seldom enforced. The lake is traditionally considered sacred in a land suffering from arid conditions where most lakes are salty. The Park is home to a variety of wildlife such as ibex, argali, elk, wolf, wolverine, musk deer, brown bear, Siberian moose and sable. (based on a wikipedia article)

Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam from Tengboche [ Photo by stevehicks / CC BY 2.0 ]

Sagarmāthā National Park, is located in eastern Nepal, containing parts of the Himalayas and the southern half of Mount Everest. The park was created July 19, 1976 and in 1979 was inscribed as a Natural World Heritage Site. Sagarmāthā is a Sanskrit word, from sagar = “sky” (not to be confused with “sea/ocean”) and māthā = “forehead” or “head”, and is the modern Nepali name for Mount Everest. The park encompasses an area of 1,148 km² and ranges in elevation from its lowest point of 2,845 m (9,335 ft) at Jorsalle to 8,850 m (29,035 ft) at the summit of Everest. Barren land above 5,000 m (16,400 ft) comprises 69% of the park while 28% is grazing land and the remaining 3% is forested. Most of the park area is very rugged and steep, with its terrain cut by deep rivers and glaciers. Unlike other parks, this park can be divided into four climate zones because of the rising altitude. (based on a wikipedia article)

One horn Rhino at Chitawan National Park (UNESCO World Heritage site) , Chitawan, Nepal. [ Photo by TheDreamSky / CC BY 2.0 ]

Chitwan National Park (CNP), formerly called Royal Chitwan National Park (RCNP), covers an area of 932 km², and is the oldest national park in Nepal. Established in 1974, it was granted the status of a World Heritage Site in 1984. The park is located at subtropical inner Terai lowlands of South-Central Nepal in Chitwan district, 200km away from capital Kathmandu. Chitwan National Park is rich in flora and fauna, including one of the last populations of single-horned Indian Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) and the Bengal tiger Panthera tigris tigris. The area was known as “Four Mile Forest” and a hunting reserve for big game hunting until 1951. The park is now a popular destination for ecotourists and includes canoeing, elephant rides, and guided jungle walks. Adjacent to the National Park in the east is the Parsa Wildlife Reserve (49.900 ha) and further east the Bara Hunting Reserve (25.900 ha). In the south the Chitwan is contiguous with the Indian Valmiki Tiger Reserve. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park [ Photo by Gdr / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park is a national park in Yamanashi, Shizuoka, and Kanagawa Prefectures, and western Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. It consists of Mount Fuji, Fuji Five Lakes, Hakone, the Izu Peninsula, and the Izu Islands. Rather than being a specific spot, the park is a collection of dispersed tourist sites that dot the region. The farthest point south, the isle of Aogashima, is several hundred kilometers from Mount Fuji. Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park was established in February 2, 1936 as Fuji-Hakone National Park, and is one of the first four national parks established in Japan. In 1950, the Izu islands were added to the park, and its name changed to its present designation. Due to its proximity to the Tokyo metropolis and ease of transportation, it is the most visited national park in all Japan, with the number of visitors per year exceeding 100 million. (based on a wikipedia article)

This is Lake Chuzenji, in Nikko National Park, Japan, at dusk. [ Photo by Geomr / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Nikkō National Park is a national park in the Kantō region, on the main island of Honshū in Japan. The park spreads over four prefectures: Tochigi, Gunma, Fukushima, and Niigata. Nikkō Tōshō-gū is a Shinto shrine located in Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the “Shrines and Temples of Nikkō”, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tōshō-gū is dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Initially built in 1617, during the Edo period, while Ieyasu’s son Hidetada was shogun, it was enlarged during the time of the third shogun, Iemitsu. Ieyasu is enshrined here, and his remains are entombed here. (based on a wikipedia article)

Asahidake in Daisetsusan National Park, Hokkaido, Japan. [ Photo by Geomr / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Daisetsuzan National Park, or Taisetsuzan is located in the mountainous center of the northern Japanese island of Hokkaidō. At 2267.64 square kilometers, Daisetsuzan is the largest national park in Japan. The name means “Great Snowy Mountain(s)”, an apt description of these peaks — there are 16 peaks over 2000 meters with trails and many more without trails — that offer some of the most rugged scenery in Japan. There are three volcanic mountain groups. The groups consist of stratovolcanoes piled on top of each other. As one vent becomes active, it builds a peak then stops until a new vent appears. (based on a wikipedia article)

Jeep crossing suspended bridge at Deosai Plateau [ Photo by Haseebs / public domain ]

The Deosai National Park is located in the Skardu, Northern Areas of Pakistan that is known as the Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA). The park is located on the Deosai Plains, that are among the highest plateaus in the world with an average height of 4,114 metres above the sea level, covering an area of about 3,000 square kilometers. For just over half the year - between November and May - Deosai is snow-bound. In the summer months when the snow clears up, Deosai is accessible from Skardu in the north and the Astore Valley in the west. Deosai is well known for its spring season when it is covered by a carpet of millions of flowers and a wide variety of butterflies. (based on a wikipedia article)

Seoraksan, Gangwon-do, South Korea [ Photo by mera136 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Seoraksan is the highest mountain in the Taebaek mountain range in the Gangwon province in eastern South Korea. It is located in a national park near the city of Sokcho. After the Hallasan volcano on Jeju Island and Jirisan in the south, Seoraksan is the third highest mountain in South Korea. The Daechongbong Peak of Seoraksan reaches 1,708 metres (5,603 feet). The Taebaek mountain chain is often considered the backbone of the Korean peninsula. The national park attracts many national and international tourists all year round, but the main season for Seoraksan national park is autumn. The autumn colours in the area are considered amongst the most beautiful in Korea. The red and yellow forest is interrupted by rocks and small mountain streams flow amidst this. During the rainy season in summer—especially after a typhoon—these streams can swell. (based on a wikipedia article)

Seven Star Mountain with hot springs on the side + some grass, Yangmingshan National Park Taiwan [ Photo by Allen Timothy Chang / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

One of the seven national parks in Taiwan, the Yangmingshan National Park is located between Taipei City and Taipei County, Taiwan. Under Japanese rule, it was designated part of the Daiton National Park in 1937. Yangmingshan is the home of famous writer Lin Yutang, the summer residence of Chiang Kai-shek, residences of foreign diplomats, the Chinese Culture University, the meeting place of the now defunct National Assembly of the Republic of China at the Chung-Shan Building, and the Kuomintang Party Archives. Yangmingshan is also the rumored location of an electronic intelligence listening post maintained by the Republic of China government in cooperation with the United States to monitor communications within the People’s Republic of China. (based on a wikipedia article)

Chieo Lan See, Khao Sok National Park, Thailand [ Photo by Troxx / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Khao Sok national park is located in Surat Thani province in Thailand. Its land area is 739 km², and it includes the Chiao Lan reservoir dammed by the Ratchaprapha dam. The park comprises the largest area of virgin forest in Southern Thailand and is a remnant of rainforest which is older and more diverse than the Amazon Rainforest. The wild mammals include, Malayan Tapir, Asian Elephant, Tiger, Sambar Deer, Bear, Guar, Banteng, Serow, Wild Boar, Pig Tailed Macaque, Langur, White handed Gibbon, Squirrel, Munjak and Mouse Deer. It is perhaps most famous for the Bua Phut (Rafflesia kerrii) flower which grows within the park. In addition to its exotic flora, Khao Sok is inhabited by a wide variety of animals, including gibbons and barking deer. (based on a wikipedia article)

Middle East

Coral reef in Ras Muhammad nature park at southernmost point of Sinai Peninsula, Egypt [ Photo by Sergei Rubliov ]

Ras Mohammad is a national park in Egypt at the southern extreme of the Sinai Peninsula, overlooking the Gulf of Suez on the west and the Gulf of Aqaba to the east. Ras Muhammad National Park is situated in the tourist region of the Red Sea Riviera, located 12 km from the city of Sharm-el-Sheikh. The park spans an area of 480 km², including 135 km² of surface land area and 345 km² area over water. Marsa Bareika is a small bay inlet in Ras Mohammed, and Marsa Ghozlani is a very small inlet located across from the park visitors center. The park is situated in the tourist region of the Red Sea Riviera, located 12 km from the city of Sharm-el-Sheikh. The park spans an area of 480 km², including 135 km² of surface land area and 345 km² area over water. Marsa Bareika is a small bay inlet in Ras Mohammed, and Marsa Ghozlani is a very small inlet located across from the park visitors center. (based on a wikipedia article)

Goreme Panorama From Southeast [ Photo by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Göreme, located among the “fairy chimney” rock formations, is a town in Cappadocia, a historical region of Turkey. It is in the Nevşehir Province in Central Anatolia and has a population of around 2,500 people. Former names of the town have been Korama, Matiana, Maccan and Avcilar. When Göreme Valley nearby was designated an important tourist destination, a “center” for all tourism in Cappadocia, the name of the town was changed to Göreme for practical reasons. The Göreme National Park (Göreme Milli Parklar in Turkish) was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985. The location of Göreme was first settled back in the Roman period. Christianity was then the prevailing religion in the region, which is evident from many rock churches that can still be seen today. (based on a wikipedia article)

I believe there are still many natural wonders not listed here. Please feedback for any natural wonders you might have discovered, share with us through the comment of this post.

North America

The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, shines above Bear Lake [ Photo by Senior Airman Joshua Strang ]

Auroras, sometimes called the northern and southern (polar) lights or aurorae (singular: aurora), are natural light displays in the sky, usually observed at night, particularly in the polar regions. They typically occur in the ionosphere. They are also referred to as polar auroras. In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis. The aurora borealis is also called the northern polar lights, as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the North Magnetic Pole, which is currently in the arctic islands of northern Canada. (based on a wikipedia article)

Overlooking the Bay of Fundy [ Photo by Inmouchar ]

The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine. The Bay of Fundy is known for its high tidal range and the bay is contested as having the highest vertical tidal range in the world with Ungava Bay in northern Quebec and the Severn Estuary in the UK. Some sources believe the name “Fundy” is a corruption of the French word “Fendu”, meaning “split”, while others believe it comes from the Portuguese fondo, meaning “funnel. (based on a wikipedia article)

Dinosaur Provincial Park Hoodoo [ Photo by Joanne Merriam / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Dinosaur Provincial Park is a World Heritage Site located about two and a half hours drive southeast of Calgary, Alberta, Canada or 48 kilometers (30 mi) northeast of Brooks. The park is situated in the valley of the Red Deer River, which is noted for its striking badland topography. The park is well known for being one of the richest dinosaur fossil locales in the world. Forty dinosaur species have been discovered at the park and more than 500 specimens have been removed and exhibited in museums across the globe. (based on a wikipedia article)

Same old shot, but beautiful [ Photo by Mel B. / CC BY 2.0 ]

Yosemite National Park is a national park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of 761,266 acres (308,073 ha) and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain. Yosemite is visited by over 3.5 million people each year, many of whom only spend time in the seven square miles (18 km2) of Yosemite Valley. Designated a World Heritage Site in 1984, Yosemite is internationally recognized for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, Giant Sequoia groves, and biological diversity. (based on a wikipedia article)

Grand Canyon, USA [ Photo by ritesh3 / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided gorge carved by the Colorado River in the United States in the state of Arizona. It is largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park, one of the first national parks in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major proponent of preservation of the Grand Canyon area, and visited it on numerous occasions to hunt and enjoy the scenery. Grand Canyon National Park is one of the world’s premier natural attractions, attracting about five million visitors per year. Overall, 83% were from the United States (based on a wikipedia article)

Bryce Canyon [ Photo by Chris Isherwood / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Bryce Canyon National Park is a national park located in southwestern Utah in the United States. Contained within the park is Bryce Canyon. Despite its name, this is not actually a canyon, but rather a giant natural amphitheater created by erosion along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. Bryce is distinctive due to its geological structures, called hoodoos, formed from wind, water, and ice erosion of the river and lakebed sedimentary rocks. The red, orange and white colors of the rocks provide spectacular views to visitors. (based on a wikipedia article)

Castle geyser [ Photo by my camera and me / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress as a national park on March 1, 1872, is located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, though it also extends into Montana and Idaho. The park was the first of its kind, and is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful Geyser, one of the most popular features in the park. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is dominant. (based on a wikipedia article)

Redwood National Park, California [ Photo by Michael Schweppe / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) are located in the United States, along the coast of northern California. The parks consist of a combined area of 131,983 acres (534.12 km2) located entirely within Del Norte and Humboldt Counties and they protect 45% of all remaining Coastal Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) old-growth forests, totaling at least 38,982 acres (157.75 km2). These trees are the tallest and one of the most massive tree species on Earth. In addition to the redwood forests, the parks preserve other indigenous flora, fauna, grassland prairie, cultural resources, portions of rivers and other streams, and 37 miles (60 km) of pristine coastline. (based on a wikipedia article)

Mammoth Cave tour [ Photo by Daniel Schwen / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mammoth Cave National Park is a U.S. National Park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave, the longest cave system known in the world. The official name of the system is the Mammoth-Flint Ridge Cave System for the ridge under which the cave has formed. The park was established as a national park on July 1, 1941. It became a World Heritage Site on October 27, 1981, and an international Biosphere Reserve on September 26, 1990. (based on a wikipedia article)

South America

2 weeks before the rupture of the glacier. [ Photo by Marianocecowski / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Perito Moreno Glacier is a glacier located in the Los Glaciares National Park in the south west of Santa Cruz province, Argentina. It is one of the most important tourist attractions in the Argentine Patagonia. Due to its size and accessibility, Perito Moreno is one of the major tourist drawcards to southern Patagonia. It is less than two hours by bus from El Calafate, and many tour companies run daily visits. (based on a wikipedia article)

Laguna Colorada - Vermelha mesmo! [ Photo by Valdiney Pimenta / CC BY 2.0 ]

Laguna Colorada (Red Lagoon) is a shallow salt lake in the southwest of the altiplano of Bolivia, within Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve and close to the border with Chile. The lake contains borax islands, whose white color contrasts nicely with the reddish color of its waters, which is caused by red sediments and pigmentation of some algae. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Titicaca on the Andes from Bolivia [ Photo by Vico ricab / CC BY 3.0 ]

Lake Titicaca is a lake located on the border of Peru and Bolivia. It sits 3,812 m (12,500 ft) above sea level, making it one of the highest commercially navigable lakes in the world. By volume of water it is also the largest lake in South America. The lake is located at the northern end of the endorheic Altiplano basin high in the Andes on the border of Peru and Bolivia. The western part of the lake lies within the Puno Region of Peru, and the eastern side is located in the Bolivian La Paz Department. (based on a wikipedia article)

Taken in Rurrenabaque, El Beni, Bolivia [ Photo by Paul Bridgewater / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Amazon Rainforest, also known as Amazonia, or the Amazon jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America. This basin encompasses seven million square kilometers (1.7 billion acres), of which five and a half million square kilometers (1.4 billion acres) are covered by the rainforest. This region includes territory belonging to nine nations. The majority of the forest is contained within Brazil, with 60% of the rainforest, followed by Peru with 13%, and with minor amounts in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. States or departments in four nations bear the name Amazonas after it. The Amazon represents over half of the planet’s remaining rainforests, and it comprises the largest and most species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world. (based on a wikipedia article)

Iguazu Falls - Garganta Del Diablo [ Photo by gamillos / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Iguazu Falls, Iguassu Falls, or Iguaçu Falls are waterfalls of the Iguazu River located on the border of the Brazilian state of Paraná and the Argentine province of Misiones. The falls divide the river into the upper and lower Iguazu. The waterfall system consists of 275 falls along 2.7 kilometers (1.67 miles) of the Iguazu River. The falls can be reached from the two main towns on either side of the falls: Foz do Iguaçu in the Brazilian state of Paraná, and Puerto Iguazú (based on a wikipedia article)

Fernando de Noronha - dois Irmãos - praia do sancho [ Photo by Magglz / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Fernando de Noronha is an archipelago of 21 islands and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, around 354 km (220 miles) offshore from the Brazilian coast. The main island has an area of 18.4 square kilometres (7.1 sq mi) and had a population of 3,012 in the year 2008. The area is a special municipality (distrito estadual) of the Brazilian state of Pernambuco (despite being closer to the state of Rio Grande do Norte) and is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its timezone is UTC−2h. The local population and travellers can get to Noronha by plane or cruise from Recife (545km) or by plane from Natal (360km). A small environmental preservation fee is charged from tourists upon arrival by Ibama (Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources). (based on a wikipedia article)

Desert landscape, With the geyser (actually fumaroles) of El Tatio and the Andes in the background. [ Photo by magical-world / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Atacama Desert is a virtually rainless plateau in South America, covering a 600-mile (1,000 km) strip of land on the Pacific coast of South America, west of the Andes mountains. The Atacama desert is, according to NASA, National Geographic and many other publications, the driest desert in the world. The rain shadow on the leeward side of the Chilean Coast Range, as well as a coastal inversion layer created by the cold offshore Humboldt Current, keep this over 20 million-year-old desert 50 times drier than California’s Death Valley. The Atacama occupies 40,600 square miles (105,000 km2) in northern Chile, composed mostly of salt basins (salares), sand, and lava flows. (based on a wikipedia article)

Close-up to one of the geysers in "El Tatio" in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. [ Photo by AndresGottlieb ]

El Tatio is a geyser field located within the Andes Mountains of northern Chile at 4,200 meters above mean sea level. Contrary to some reports, it is not the highest-elevation geyser field in the world. Puchuldiza Geyser Field, Chile, and possibly several other fields are higher in elevation (Glennon, J.A. and Pfaff, R.M., 2003). Tourists often visit the geysers while touring the nearby Atacama Desert and the village San Pedro de Atacama. “With over 80 active geysers, El Tatio is the largest geyser field in the southern hemisphere and the third largest field in the world, after Yellowstone, USA, and Dolina Giezerov (partially destroyed June 2007), Russia” (Glennon, J.A. and Pfaff, R.M., 2003). (based on a wikipedia article)

Teleferico Chicamocha [ Photo by Serepasare ]

Chicamocha National Park also known as Panachi is a Colombian Natural park along the Chicamocha Canyon (Cañón del Chicamocha) located 50 km from the city of Bucaramanga, Santander. The site is a tourist attraction due to is spectacular landscape and the variety of outdoor activities that it offers such as paragliding, spelunking, bushwalking, camping, fishing, kayaking, rafting, mountain climbing, etc. Cultural activities include the Museo Guane, Plaza de los Costumbres and the Salón de Exposiciones. (based on a wikipedia article)

Egret [ Photo by dagpeak / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Galápagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, 972 km west of continental Ecuador. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site: wildlife is its most notable feature. The Galápagos islands and its surrounding waters are part of a province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 40,000, which is a 40-fold expansion in 50 years. (based on a wikipedia article)

Kaieteur Falls, Guyana [ Photo by madmack66 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Kaieteur Falls is a magnificent, high-volume waterfall on the Potaro River in central Guyana. It is located in Kaieteur National Park. It is 226 meters (741 ft) when measured from its plunge over a sandstone cliff to the first break. It then flows over a series of steep cascades that, when included in the measurements, bring the total height to 251 meters (822 ft). While many falls have greater height, few have the combination of height and water volume. This has given Kaieteur Falls the misleading label of “largest single drop” waterfall in the world which is often misinterpreted as “tallest single drop.” However, it is likely one of the most powerful waterfalls in the world. (based on a wikipedia article)

Colca Canyon [ Photo by Bruno Girin / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru. It is located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northwest of Arequipa. It is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon in the United States 4,160 m. However, the canyon’s walls are not as vertical as those of the Grand Canyon. Since they are such major features of the landscape.The Colca Valley is a colorful Andean valley with towns founded in Spanish Colonial times and formerly inhabited by the Collaguas and the Cabanas. The local people still maintain ancestral traditions and continue to cultivate the pre-Inca stepped terraces. (based on a wikipedia article)

Taulliraju mountain in Huascarán National Park in Peru [ Photo by Florian Ederer / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Huascarán National Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Huascarán) is a national park in the Cordillera Blanca, a range of the Andes, in Ancash of central Peru. It was also pronounced as Natural Heritage of Humanity and recognized as Reserve of Biosphere Core. The highest mountain in Peru is located in the park (also named Huascarán, reaching 6,768 meters high). This park is the habitat of the Puya raimondi, the Cougar, the Jaguar, the Llama, the Guanaco, the Marsh Deer, the Peruvian Tapir, the Peruvian Piedtail, a hummingbird species, and many kinds of ducks including the Southern Pochard. (based on a wikipedia article)

Salto Angel from Raton [ Photo by Yosemite / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Angel Falls is the world’s highest waterfall, with a height of 979 m (3,212 ft) and a plunge of 807 m (2,647 ft). It is located in the Canaima National Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Canaima), a UNESCO World Heritage site, in the Gran Sabana region of Bolivar State, Venezuela. The height of the falls is so great that before getting anywhere near the ground, the water is atomized by the strong winds and turned into mist. The mist can be felt a mile away. The base of the falls feeds into the Kerep River (alternatively known as the Rio Gauya), which flows into the Churun River, a tributary of the Carrao River. (based on a wikipedia article)

Central America & Caribbean

Dean's Blue Hole, Bahamas [ Photo by Caprice7 ]

Dean’s Blue Hole is the world’s deepest blue hole (underwater sinkhole), which plunges 202 metres (663 ft) to the ocean floor, in a bay west of Clarence Town on Long Island, Bahamas. Blue holes are the results of rainwater having soaked through fractures of limestone bedrock onto the watertable of glacial sea levels during the Pleistocene epoch (ice age), some 15,000 years ago. The maximum depth of other known blue holes and sinkholes is 110 metres (360 ft), which makes the 202 metres (663 ft) depth of Dean’s Blue Hole quite exceptional. (based on a wikipedia article)

Coco Island - the most magnificent island in the world [ Photo by jonrawlinson / CC BY 2.0 ]

Cocos Island is an uninhabited island located off the shore of Costa Rica. It constitutes the 11th district (one of 13) of Puntarenas Canton of the province of Puntarenas. It is one of the National Parks of Costa Rica. It is located in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 550 km (340 mi) from the Pacific shore of Costa Rica. With an area of approximately 23.85 km² (9.2 mi²), about 8×3 km (5×1.9 mi) and a perimeter of around 23.3 km[4] this island is more or less rectangular in shape. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Coatepeque [ Photo by Andrew / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lake Coatepeque (Lago de Coatepeque) is a large crater lake in the east part of the Coatepeque Caldera. It is in Coatepeque municipality, Santa Ana, El Salvador. There are hot springs near the lake margins. At 26 km², it is one of the largest lakes in El Salvador. In the lake is the island of Teopan, which was a Mayan site of some importance. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Atitlan - Lago de Atitlán [ Photo by alq666 / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Lake Atitlan (Lago de Atitlán) is a large endorheic lake (one that does not flow to the sea) in the Guatemalan Highlands. While Atitlan is recognized to be the deepest lake in Central America, its bottom has not been completely sounded. Estimates of its maximum depth range up to 340 meters. The lake is shaped by deep escarpments which surround it and by three volcanoes on its southern flank. Lake Atitlan is further characterized by towns and villages of the Maya people. (based on a wikipedia article)

Volcán Concepción [ Photo by Mat Honan / CC BY 2.0 ]

Ometepe is an island formed by two volcanoes rising from Lake Nicaragua in the Republic of Nicaragua. Its name derives from the Nahuatl words ome (two) and tepetl (mountain), meaning two mountains. The two volcanoes, Concepción and Maderas, are joined by a low isthmus to form one island in the shape of an hourglass. Ometepe has an area of 276 km². It is 31 km long and 5 to 10 km wide. The island has a population of 42,000, and an economy based on livestock, agriculture, and tourism. Plantains are the major crop. (based on a wikipedia article)

Sumidero clouds [ Photo by Eternalsleeper ]

Sumidero Canyon is a canyon located about 40 km from Tuxtla Gutiérrez, capital of the Mexican state of Chiapas. Its cliffs are 900 meters above sea level and overlook the Grijalva River, which extends across the states of Chiapas and Tabasco and flows into the Gulf of Mexico. In its southern entrance, the canyon begins near the city of Chiapa de Corzo, and flows into the reservoir of the hydroelectric dam–Manuel Moreno Torres, best known as Chicoasén. (based on a wikipedia article)

Parícutin, Volcán de Parícutin, Paricutín [ Photo by Karla Yannín Alcázar Quintero / CC BY 2.0 ]

Parícutin (or Volcán de Parícutin, also accented Paricutín) is a cinder cone volcano in the Mexican state of Michoacán, close to a lava-covered village of the same name. It appears on many versions of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Paricutín is part of the Michoacán-Guanajuato Volcanic Field, which covers much of west central Mexico. (based on a wikipedia article)

A panoramic view of El Yunque National Park from atop Yokahu Tower, 1575ft elevation [ Photo by Kamran Saraf / CC BY 3.0 ]

El Yunque National Forest, formerly known as the Luquillo National Forest and the Caribbean National Forest, is located on the island of Puerto Rico. It is commonly known as only El Yunque, a Spanish approximation of the aboriginal Taino word “Yu-ke”, thought by scholars to mean “White Lands”. However the lightning storms that occur there were to the Spaniards the sound of a giant hammer hitting an anvil (yunque in Spanish). It is also the name of the second highest mountain peak in the Forest (based on a wikipedia article)

Europe

Ohrid Lake [ Photo by Apcbg ]

Lake Ohrid straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern Republic of Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of Europe’s deepest and oldest lakes, preserving a unique aquatic ecosystem with more than 200 endemic species that is of worldwide importance. The importance of the lake was further emphasized when it was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1979. However, human activity on the lake shores and in its catchment area is resulting in the ecosystem coming under stress. (based on a wikipedia article)

Entrance to Eisriesenwelt Ice Caves [ Photo by Dale Harvey / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Eisriesenwelt (German for “World of the Ice Giants”) is a natural limestone ice cave located in Werfen, Austria, about 40 km south of Salzburg. The cave is inside the Hochkogel mountain in the Tennengebirge section of the Alps. It is the largest ice cave in the world, extending more than 42km and visited by about 200,000 tourists every year. The tour begins at the entrance to the cave, and continues inwards to Posselt Hall, a large room with a stalagmite called Posselt Tower in the centre. Past the Posselt Tower, one encounters an ashen cross on the wall of the cave, marking the farthest point of exploration of Anton Posselt. (based on a wikipedia article)

Grotten van Han - grot [ Photo by Hullie / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Caves of Han-sur-Lesse (in French: Grottes de Han-sur-Lesse or simply Grottes de Han) are a major Belgian tourist attraction (around half a million visitors per year) located on the outskirts of the village of Han-sur-Lesse. The caves are the result of the underground erosion of a limestone hill by the river Lesse. The river forces its way under the hill over a distance of over one kilometer as the crow flies. The caves have a constant temperature of 13°C (55°F) and a high level of humidity. Access is only possible via a vintage streetcar, a remnant of the country’s once extensive vicinal tramway system, which departs from the center of Han-sur-Lesse. (based on a wikipedia article)

The Rocks of Belogradchik, Bulgaria… [ Photo by Klearchos Kapoutsis / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Belogradchik Rocks are a group of bizarrely shaped sandstone, limestone and conglomerate rock formations located on the western slopes of the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) near the town of Belogradchik in northwest Bulgaria. The Belogradchik Rocks are a major tourist destination in northwest Bulgaria, along with the town of Belogradchik and the Belogradchik Fortress, which incorporates the rocks as part of its natural defense, and the nearby Magura Cave, situated near the village of Rabisha. Another tourist attraction in the area is the Baba Vida medieval fortress in the nearby town of Vidin on the Danube river. (based on a wikipedia article)

Saimaan Aalto [ Photo by Tuohirulla ]

Lake Saimaa is a lake in southeastern Finland. At approximately 4,400 square kilometres (1,700 sq mi), it is the largest lake in Finland, and the fourth largest in Europe. It was formed by glacial melting at the end of the Ice Age. Major towns on the lakeshore include Lappeenranta, Imatra, Savonlinna, Mikkeli, Varkaus, and Joensuu. The Vuoksi River flows from Saimaa to Lake Ladoga. Most of the lake is spotted with islands, and narrow canals divide the lake in many parts, each having their own names. (based on a wikipedia article)

Blick über den Mittleren Schwarzwald [ Photo by Arminia / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Black Forest (German: Schwarzwald) is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres (4,898 ft). The region is almost rectangular with a length of 200 km (120 mi) and breadth of 60 km (37 mi). Hence it has an area of approximately 12,000 km2 (4,600 sq mi). The cities of Freiburg and Baden-Baden are popular tourist destinations on the western edge of the Black Forest; towns in the forest include Bad Herrenalb, Baiersbronn, Calw (the birth town of Hermann Hesse) Freudenstadt, Furtwangen, Gengenbach, Gütenbach, Sasbachwalden, Schramberg, Staufen, Titisee-Neustadt, Hausach, and Wolfach. (based on a wikipedia article)

Olympus Litochoro [ Photo by JFKennedy ]

Mount Olympus is the highest mountain range in Greece, its highest peak Mýtikas rising to 2,919 metres high (9,577 feet). It is one of the highest peaks in Europe in terms of topographic prominence. It is located in the borders of Thessaly and Macedonia, about 100 km away from Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city. (based on a wikipedia article)

Cliffs of Moher [ Photo by Tobias Helfrich / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Cliffs of Moher are located in the parish of Liscannor at the south-western edge of the Burren area near Doolin, which is located in County Clare, Ireland. The cliffs rise 120 meters (394 ft) above the Atlantic Ocean at Hag’s Head (Irish: Ceann na Cailleach), and reach their maximum height of 214 meters (702 ft) just north of O’Brien’s Tower, eight kilometres away. The cliffs boast one of Ireland’s most spectacular views. On a clear day the Aran Islands are visible in Galway Bay, as are the valleys and hills of Connemara. The Cliffs of Moher is amongst the most popular tourist destinations in Ireland, and topped the list of attractions in 2006 by drawing almost one million visitors. (based on a wikipedia article)

Grimsvötn in Vatna Jökull glacier in Iceland on 29 Jul 1972. [ Photo by Roger McLassus / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Vatnajökull (English: Glacier of lakes) is the largest glacier in Iceland. It is located in the south-east of the island, covering more than 8% of the country. With a size of 8,100 km², it is the largest glacier in Europe in volume (3,100 km³) and the second largest (after Austfonna on Nordaustlandet, Svalbard) in area (not counting the still larger ice cap of Severny Island of Novaya Zemlya, Russia, which is located in the extreme northeast of Europe). (based on a wikipedia article)

Matterhorn Panorama ding dong [ Photo by Canon in 2D / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Matterhorn (German), Cervino (Italian) or Cervin (French), is a mountain in the Pennine Alps. With its 4,478 metres (14,692 ft) high summit, lying on the border between Switzerland and Italy, it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps and its 1,200 metres (3,937 ft) north face is one of the Great north faces of the Alps. It is one of the deadliest peaks in the Alps: from 1865 – when it was first climbed – to 1995, 500 alpinists died on it. The mountain overlooks the town of Zermatt in the canton of Valais to north-east and Cervinia in the Aosta Valley to the south. (based on a wikipedia article)

Vesuvius from Pompeii [ Photo by Morn the Gorn / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mount Vesuvius (in Italian Monte Vesuvio and in Latin Mons Vesuvius) is a stratovolcano east of Naples, Italy. It is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years, although it is not currently erupting. The two other volcanoes in Italy, (Etna and Stromboli) are located on islands. Mount Vesuvius is best known for its eruption in AD 79 that led to the destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and the death of 10,000 to 25,000 people. (based on a wikipedia article)

Grotta azzurra, Capri, Italy [ Photo by Frédéric de Goldschmidt / CC BY 3.0 ]

The Blue Grotto (Grotta Azzurra) is a noted sea cave on the coast of the island of Capri, Italy. Sunlight, passing through an underwater cavity and shining through the seawater, creates a blue reflection that illuminates the cavern. The beauty of the Blue Grotto was described in 1826 by the German writer August Kopisch. Since then, the Blue Grotto has become the emblem of the island of Capri. The grotto was known by the Romans, as proved by the antique statues which were found in the Grotto. (based on a wikipedia article)

Seen from Ornevegen (the Eagles Road), Norway. It's a fjord, so it's at sea level. [ Photo by doegox / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Geiranger fjord (Geirangerfjorden) is a fjord in the Sunnmøre region, located in the southernmost part of the county Møre og Romsdal in Norway. It is a 15 km long branch of the Storfjord (Great Fjord). At the head in the fjord lies the small village of Geiranger. The fjord is one of Norway’s most visited tourist sites and has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, jointly with Nærøyfjord, since 2005, although this status is now threatened by the disputed plans to build power lines across the fjord. (based on a wikipedia article)

Morning, Bialowieza Forest [ Photo by vlod007 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Białowieża Primaeval Forest, known as Belavezhskaya Pushcha or Belovezhskaya Pushcha in Belarus and Puszcza Białowieska in Poland, is an ancient woodland straddling the border between Belarus and Poland, located 70 km (43 mi) north of Brest. It is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest which once spread across the European Plain. This UNESCO World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve lies in parts of the Brest Voblast (Kamianiec and Pruzhany districts) and Hrodna Voblast (Svislach district) in Belarus, and near the town of Białowieża in the Podlaskie Voivodeship (62 km (39 mi) south-east of Białystok and 190 km (120 mi) north-east of Warsaw) in Poland. (based on a wikipedia article)

Duero River, Portugal [ Photo by Paula Santos / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Douro or Duero River is one of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, flowing from its source near Duruelo de la Sierra in the province of Soria across northern-central Spain and Portugal to its outlet at Porto. Its total length is 897 km, of which only sections on the Portuguese river are navigable by light rivercraft. Once the Douro enters Portugal, major population centres are less frequent. Except for Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia at the river mouth, the only population centres of any note are Foz do Tua, Pinhão and Peso da Régua. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Matka [ Photo by Markus Bernet / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Matka is a canyon located west of Skopje, the capital of the Republic of Macedonia. Covering roughly 5,000 hectares, Matka is one of the most popular outdoor destinations in Macedonia and is home to several medieval monasteries. There are 10 caves at Matka Canyon, with the shortest in length being 20 metres (65.6 feet) and the longest being 176 metres (577.4 feet). The canyon also features two vertical pits, both roughly extending 35 metres (114.8 feet) in depth. (based on a wikipedia article)

Piton-des-Neiges and its cloud @ Ile de la Reunion, Early morning on the way Piton de la Fournaise. [ Photo by Simon-And-You / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Piton de la Fournaise (French): “Peak of the Furnace” is a shield volcano on the eastern side of Réunion island (a French territory) in the Indian Ocean. It is currently one of the most active volcanoes in the world, along with Kīlauea in the Hawaiian Islands (Pacific Ocean), Stromboli, Etna (Italy) and Mount Erebus in Antarctica. A recent eruption began in August 2006 and ended in January 2007. The volcano erupted again in February 2007, and on 21 September 2008. Most recently, an eruption occurred on 5th November 2009. Piton de la Fournaise is often known locally as le Volcan (The Volcano); it is a major tourist attraction on Réunion island. (based on a wikipedia article)

Gura Apei [ Photo by pgpdesign (paul) / CC BY 2.0 ]

Retezat National Park is a natural reserve area located in the Retezat Mountains in Hunedoara county, Romania. Containing more than 60 peaks over 2,300 metres (7,500 ft) and over 100 crystal clear deep glacier lakes, the Retezat Mountains are some of the most beautiful in the Carpathians. In 1935 the Government of Romania set aside an area of the Retezat Mountains creating the country’s first national park. (based on a wikipedia article)

Đavolja Varoš [ Photo by Nikolic / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Đavolja Varoš is a peculiar rock formation, located in south Serbia on the Radan Mountain near Kuršumlija. It features 202 exotic formations described as earth pyramids or “towers”, as the locals refer to them. They are 2-15 m tall and 4-6 m wide at the base. These formations were created by strong erosion of the soil that was scene of intense volcanic activity millions of years ago. Most of the towers have “caps” or “heads” of andesite, which protect them from further erosion. (based on a wikipedia article)

Bled Overview [ Photo by Adiel lo / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Lake Bled is a glacial lake in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, where it adjoins the town of Bled. The area is a popular tourist destination. The lake is 2,120 m long and 1,380 m wide, with a maximum depth of 30.6 metres. The lake is situated in a picturesque environment, surrounded by mountains and forests. A medieval castle stands above the lake on the north shore. (based on a wikipedia article)

Štrba Lake, Slovakia [ Photo by Ján Ťažký / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Štrbské pleso is a picturesque mountain lake of glacial origin and a top tourist destination in the High Tatras, Slovakia. Štrbské pleso is now part of the neighborhood of Štrbské Pleso (spelled with a capital P). It is on the municipal lands of the village of Štrba, after which Štrbské pleso (”Lake Štrba”) is now named. The word pleso (”tarn”) is applied only to mountain lakes. The locals used to call it “the puddle” or “pond” (mláka) in the past. It is the second largest glacial lake on the Slovak side of the High Tatras, after Hincovo pleso to which it loses by 0.8 acres (3,200 m2). It is fed by underground springs and has no visible outflow stream. Its surface remains frozen for around 155 days per year. (based on a wikipedia article)

Aletsch is beautiful [ Photo by Jo Simon / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Aletsch Glacier or Great Aletsch Glacier is the largest glacier in the Alps. It has a length of about 23 km and covers more than 120 square kilometres (more than 45 square miles) in the eastern Bernese Alps in the Swiss canton of Valais. The Aletsch Glacier is composed by three smaller glaciers converging at Concordia, where its thickness is estimated to be near 1 km. It then continues towards the Rhone valley before giving birth to the Massa river. The Aletsch Glacier is one of the most impressive features of the Swiss Alps. The whole area, including other glaciers is part of the Jungfrau-Aletsch Protected Area, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2001. (based on a wikipedia article)

Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland. [ Photo by pawelbak / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Giant’s Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic eruption. It is located in County Antrim, on the northeast coast of Northern Ireland, about two miles (3 km) north of the town of Bushmills. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986, and a National Nature Reserve in 1987 by the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland. In a 2005 poll of Radio Times readers, the Giant’s Causeway was named as the fourth greatest natural wonder in the United Kingdom. (based on a wikipedia article)

White Cliffs of Dover [ Photo by Ian Wilson / CC BY 2.0 ]

The white cliffs of Dover are cliffs which form part of the British coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliffs are part of the North Downs formation. The cliff face, which reaches up to 348ft (106m) high, owes its striking façade to its composition of chalk (pure white calcium carbonate) accentuated by streaks of black flint. The cliffs spread east and west from the town of Dover in the county of Kent, an ancient and still important English port. (based on a wikipedia article)

Pacific & Antarctica

Ross Ice Shelf, 1997 [ Photo by Michael Van Woert ]

The Ross Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica (an area of roughly 487 000 km2, and about 800 km across: about the size of France). It is several hundred meters thick. The nearly vertical ice front to the open sea is more than 600 km long, and between 15 and 50 meters high above the water surface. 90 percent of the floating ice, however, is below the water surface. Ice shelves are thick plates of ice, formed continuously by glaciers, that float atop an ocean. The presence of the shelves acts as “brakes” for the glaciers. (based on a wikipedia article)

Big, big underwater flowers [ Photo by Shayan (USA) / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres (1,600 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi). The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland in northeast Australia. The most significant threat to the Great Barrier Reef is climate change. Mass coral bleaching events due to rising ocean temperatures occurred in the summers of 1998, 2002 and 2006, and coral bleaching will likely become an annual occurrence. (based on a wikipedia article)

Uluru sunset [ Photo by Richard.Fisher / CC BY 2.0 ]

Uluru, also referred to as Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone rock formation in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. It lies 335 km (208 mi) south west of the nearest large town, Alice Springs; 450 km (280 mi) by road. Kata Tjuta and Uluru are the two major features of the Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park. Uluru is sacred to the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara, the Aboriginal people of the area. It has many springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Site. (based on a wikipedia article)

A photo of the Three Sisters taken on the 17th of June, 2005 from the Katoomba lookout shortly before sunset. [ Photo by Diliff / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

The Blue Mountains is a mountainous region in New South Wales, Australia. It borders on Sydney’s metropolitan area, its foothills starting approximately 50 kilometres west of the state capital. The area begins on the west side of the Nepean River and extends westward as far as Cox’s River. When the Europeans arrived in Australia, the Blue Mountains had already been inhabited for several millennia. Proof of this can be found in many places. In the Red Hands Cave, a rock shelter near Glenbrook, the walls contain hand stencils from adults and children (based on a wikipedia article)

Zachodnia Australia. Pustynie Pinnacles [ Photo by Andrzej Kulka / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Pinnacles are limestone formations contained within Nambung National Park, near the town of Cervantes, Western Australia. The raw material for the limestone of the Pinnacles came from seashells in an earlier epoch rich in marine life. These shells were broken down into lime rich sands which were blown inland to form high mobile dunes. This represented the raw material for the formation the Pinnacles. (based on a wikipedia article)

Bora Bora [ Photo by tensaibuta / CC BY 2.0 ]

Bora Bora is an island in the Leeward group of the Society Islands of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island, located about 230 kilometres (140 mi) northwest of Papeete, is surrounded by a lagoon and a barrier reef. In the center of the island are the remnants of an extinct volcano rising to two peaks, Mount Pahia and Mount Otemanu, the highest point at 727 metres (2,385 ft). The original name of the island in the Tahitian language might be better rendered as Pora Pora, meaning “First Born”; an early transcription found in 18th- and 19th century accounts, is Bolabolla or Bollabolla. (based on a wikipedia article)

Sterling Falls Impact [ Photo by AdamSelwood / CC BY 2.0 ]

Milford Sound (Piopiotahi in Māori) is a fjord in the south west of New Zealand’s South Island, within Fiordland National Park and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site. It has been judged the world’s top travel destination in an international survey, and is acclaimed as New Zealand’s most famous tourist destination. Rudyard Kipling had previously called it the eighth Wonder of the World. (based on a wikipedia article)

Franz Josef Glacier [ Photo by reurinkjan / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Franz Josef (Ka Roimata o Hinehukatere in Māori) is a 12 km long glacier located in Westland National Park on the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island. Together with the Fox Glacier 20 km to the south, it is unique in the fact that it descends from the Southern Alps to less than 300 metres above sea level amidst the greenery and lushness of a temperate rainforest. The area surrounding the two glaciers is designated a World Heritage Site. The river emerging from the glacier terminal of Franz Josef is known as the Waiho River. (based on a wikipedia article)

Norfolk Island Captain Cook lookout [ Photo by Steve Daggar / CC BY 3.0 ]

Norfolk Island National Park is a protected area of 6.50 km². It comprises two sections, the Mt Pitt section on Norfolk Island in the South Pacific Ocean with an area of 4.60 km² and the neighbouring 1.90 km² Phillip Island, as well as the much smaller Nepean Island. The Norfolk Island group is an Australian territory and the park is managed by Parks Australia. It is the only place in the world where the Norfolk Island Parakeet and the White-chested White-eye occur. (based on a wikipedia article)

Africa

Tunisia Sahara Desert [ Photo by Tom T / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Sahara “The Greatest Desert” is the world’s largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres (3,500,000 sq mi), it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean. To the south, it is delimited by the Sahel: a belt of semi-arid tropical savanna that comprises the northern region of central and western Sub-Saharan Africa. (based on a wikipedia article)

Pt Thomson Batian Nelion Mt Kenya [ Photo by Chris 73 / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mount Kenya is the highest mountain in Kenya and the second highest in Africa, after Kilimanjaro. The highest peaks of the mountain are Batian (5,199 metres (17,057 ft)), Nelion (5,188 metres (17,021 ft)) and Point Lenana (4,985 metres (16,355 ft)). The glaciers on Mount Kenya are retreating rapidly. The Mountain Club of Kenya in Nairobi has photographs showing the mountain when it was first climbed in 1899, and again more recently, and the retreat of the glaciers is very evident. Most of the peaks on Mount Kenya have been summited. The majority of these involve rock climbing as the easiest route, although some only require a scramble or a walk. (based on a wikipedia article)

Avenue of the Baobabs [ Photo by Bernard Gagnon / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Avenue or Alley of the Baobabs is a prominent group of baobab trees lining the dirt road between Morondava and Belon’i Tsiribihina in the Menabe region in western Madagascar. Its striking landscape draws travelers from around the world, making it one of the most visited locations in the region. It has been a center of local conservation efforts, and was granted temporary protected status in July 2007 by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, the first step toward making it Madagascar’s first national monument. (based on a wikipedia article)

At the big Tsingy. [ Photo by Olivier Lejade / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve is a nature reserve located close to the western coast of Madagascar (Tsigy). Because of the unique geography, preserved mangrove forests, and wild bird and lemur populations of the area, it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990. Since that time the southern end of the protected area has been changed into a national park covering 666 square kilometres (257 sq mi). The northern end of this protected area complex remains a strict nature reserve (Réserve Naturelle Intégrale) covering 853 square kilometres (329 sq mi). (based on a wikipedia article)

Sossusvlei [ Photo by untipografico / CC BY 2.0 ]

Sossusvlei is a clay pan in the central Namib Desert, lying within the Namib-Naukluft National Park, Namibia. Fed by the Tsauchab River, it is known for the high, red sand dunes which surround it forming a major sand sea. Vegetation, such as the camelthorn tree, is watered by infrequent floods of the Tsauchab River, which slowly soak into the underlying clay. The Dead Vlei and Hidden Vlei clay pans lie near Sossusvlei. (based on a wikipedia article)

Cape Town & Table Mountain View from Signal Hill [ Photo by Hilton Teper / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa, and is featured in the flag of Cape Town and other local government insignia. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top. The mountain forms part of the Table Mountain National Park. Hiking on Table Mountain is popular amongst locals and tourists, and a number of trails of varying difficulty are available. (based on a wikipedia article)

Kibo summit of Mt Kilimanjaro. [ Photo by Yosemite / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Mount Kilimanjaro, with its three volcanic cones, Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira, is an inactive stratovolcano in north-eastern Tanzania rising 4,600 m (15,092 ft) from its base (and approximately 5,100 m/16,732 ft from the plains near Moshi), and is additionally the highest peak in Africa at 5,892 metres (19,331 ft), providing a dramatic view of the surrounding plains. The views of Mount Meru are also dramatic. (based on a wikipedia article)

Black Rhinos in Ngorongoro Crater. [ Photo by Mila Zinkova / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area or NCA is a conservation area situated 180 km (112 miles) west of Arusha in the Crater Highlands area of Tanzania. The main feature of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area is the Ngorongoro Crater, which is the world’s largest unbroken, unflooded volcanic caldera. The Crater, which formed when a giant volcano exploded and collapsed on itself some two to three million years ago, is 610 m (2,001 ft) deep and its floor covers 260 km² (102 square miles). Estimates of the height of the original volcano range from fifteen to nineteen thousand feet (4500 to 5800 metres) high. (based on a wikipedia article)

Zebra in the Serengeti Wildebeest Migration [ Photo by DavidDennisPhotos.com / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region located in north-western Tanzania and extends to south-western Kenya between latitudes 1 and 3 S and longitudes 34 and 36 E. It spans some 30,000 km2. The Serengeti hosts the largest and longest overland migration in the world, a semi-annual occurrence. This migration is one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world. The region contains several national parks and game reserves. Serengeti is derived from the Maasai language, Maa; specifically, “Serengit” meaning “Endless Plains”. (based on a wikipedia article)

Victoria Falls [ Photo by John Walker ]

The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Mist that Thunders) is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are some of the largest in the world. By the end of the 1990s, almost 300,000 people were visiting the falls annually, and this was expected to rise to over a million in the next decade. (based on a wikipedia article)

Asia

Gobustan Mud Volcnoes [ Photo by indigoprime / CC BY 2.0 ]

The term mud volcano or mud dome is used to refer to formations created by geo-excreted liquids and gases, although there are several different processes which may cause such activity. Temperatures are much cooler than igneous processes. The largest structures are 10 km in diameter and reach 700 metres in height. Azerbaijan and its Caspian coastline are home to nearly 400 mud volcanoes, more than half the total throughout the continents. In 2001, one mud volcano 15 kilometers from Baku made world headlines when it suddenly started ejecting flames 15 meters high. (based on a wikipedia article)

Cox's Bazar Himchari [ Photo by Shahnoor Habib Munmun ]

The main attraction of Cox’s Bazar is the long sandy beach that stretches from the mouth of the Bakkhali river going all the way to Teknaf. Although commonly known as Cox’s Bazar beach, it stretches far beyond the area designated as Cox’s Bazar town. Cox’s Bazar, arguably the best tourist spot in Bangladesh, is visited by a large number of tourist from Britain, America, Korea, Japan, India, Nepal, Pakistan and many more countries each year. (based on a wikipedia article)

Dawn near the Bay of Bengal [ Photo by joiseyshowaa / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Sundarbans is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world. The name Sundarban can be literally translated as “beautiful jungle” or “beautiful forest” in the Bengali language (Sundar, “beautiful” and ban, “forest” or “jungle”). The name may have been derived from the Sundari trees that are found in Sundarbans in large numbers. The forest lies at the feet of the Ganges and is spread across areas of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India, forming the seaward fringe of the delta. The seasonally-flooded Sundarbans freshwater swamp forests lie inland from the mangrove forests. The forest covers 10,000 km2 of which about 6,000 are in Bangladesh. It became inscribed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1997. (based on a wikipedia article)

Mount Everest from base camp one [ Photo by Rupert Taylor-Price / CC BY 2.0 ]

Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth, and the highest point on the Earth’s continental crust, as measured by the height above sea level of its summit, 8,848 metres (29,029 ft). The mountain, which is part of the Himalaya range in Asia, is located on the border between Sagarmatha Zone, Nepal, and Tibet, China. The highest mountain in the world attracts climbers of all levels, from well experienced mountaineers to novice climbers willing to pay substantial sums to professional mountain guides to complete a successful climb. (based on a wikipedia article)

K2 in the morning [ Photo by mariachily / CC BY 2.0 ]

K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth (after Mount Everest). With a peak elevation of 8,611 metres (28,251 ft), K2 is part of the Karakoram range, and is located on the border between the Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County of Xinjiang, China and Gilgit, in Gilgit-Baltistan of Pakistan. K2 is known as the Savage Mountain due to the difficulty of ascent and the 2nd highest fatality rate among the ‘eight thousanders’ for those who climb it. For every four people who have reached the summit, one has died trying. (based on a wikipedia article)

Around China: Huang shan [ Photo by andreaqi / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Mount Huang, also known as Huangshan, is a mountain range in southern Anhui province in eastern China. The area is well known for its scenery, sunsets, peculiarly-shaped granite peaks, Huangshan Pine trees, and views of the clouds from above. Mount Huang is a frequent subject of traditional Chinese paintings and literature, as well as modern photography. Today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of China’s major tourist destinations. (based on a wikipedia article)

Shilin Stone Forest Entrance [ Photo by Chenyun / CC BY-SA 2.5 ]

Shilin (Stone Forest) is a notable set of karst formations in Shilin Yi Autonomous County, in the Yunnan province of southwest China, approximately 85 km from the city of Kunming. The tall rocks seem to emanate from the ground in the manner of stalagmites, with many looking like trees made of stone, creating the illusion of a forest made of stone. Each year around the 24th and 25th day of the sixth lunar month, many Yi people celebrate the Torch Festival, which features folk dances and wrestling competitions. (based on a wikipedia article)

This shows one of the many multi-level waterfalls in Jiuzhaigou Valley in northern Sichuan province, China. [ Photo by Gjl / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Jiuzhaigou National Park is a nature reserve in the north of Sichuan, a province in south western China. It is known for its many multi-level waterfalls and colorful lakes, and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. It belongs to the category V (Protected Landscape) in the IUCN system of protected area categorization. Jiuzhaigou is composed of three valleys arranged in a Y shape. The Rize and Zechawa valleys flow from the south and meet at the centre of the site where they form the Shuzheng valley, flowing north to the mouth of the valley. (based on a wikipedia article)

Kaziranga National Park in India [ Photo by Peter Andersen / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. A World Heritage Site, the park hosts two-thirds of the world’s Great One-horned Rhinoceroses. Kaziranga boasts the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006. The park is home to large breeding populations of elephants, wild water buffalo, and swamp deer. Kaziranga is recognised as an Important Bird Area by Birdlife International for conservation of avifaunal species. Compared to other protected areas in India, Kaziranga has achieved notable success in wildlife conservation. Located on the edge of the Eastern Himalaya biodiversity hotspot, the park combines high species diversity and visibility. (based on a wikipedia article)

Komodo Dragon [ Photo by Thomas Hirsch / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Komodo National Park is a national park in Indonesia located near the Lesser Sunda Islands in the border region between the provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara. The park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Rinca and Padar, as well as numerous smaller ones, and a total area of 1817 km² (603 km² of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 in order to protect the Komodo dragon. Later it was dedicated to protecting other species, including marine species. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fuji Sunrise Kawaguchiko [ Photo by Fg2 ]

Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776 m (12,388 ft). Along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku, it is one of Japan’s “Three Holy Mountains”. An active volcano that last erupted in 1707–08, Mount Fuji is just west of Tokyo, and can be seen on a clear day. Mount Fuji’s exceptionally symmetrical cone is a well-known symbol of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and photographs, as well as visited by sightseers and climbers. (based on a wikipedia article)

Fish in Anemone [ Photo by 88rabbit / CC BY 2.0 ]

Sipadan is the only oceanic island in Malaysia, rising 600 metres (2,000 ft) from the seabed. It is located in the Celebes Sea east of the major town of Tawau and off the coast of East Malaysia on the Island of Borneo. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct volcanic cone that took thousands of years to develop. Sipadan is located at the heart of the Indo-Pacific basin, the centre of one of the richest marine habitats in the world. More than 3,000 species of fish and hundreds of coral species have been classified in this ecosystem. (based on a wikipedia article)

Climbing Mount Kinabalu [ Photo by Robert Nyman / CC BY 2.0 ]

Mount Kinabalu is a prominent mountain in Southeast Asia. It is located in Kinabalu National Park (a World Heritage Site) in the east Malaysian state of Sabah, which is on the island of Borneo in the tropics. It is the 4th tallest mountain in the Malay Archipelago after Indonesian Papua’s Puncak Jaya, Puncak Trikora and Puncak Mandala. The mountain and its surroundings are among the most important biological sites in the world, with over 600 species of ferns, 326 species of birds, and 100 mammalian species identified. (based on a wikipedia article)

Cave of The Winds (Borneo) [ Photo by ALEX GOOI / CC BY 2.0 ]

Gunung Mulu National Park near Miri, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses incredible caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting. The park is famous for its caves and the expeditions that have been mounted to explore them and their surrounding rainforest, most notably the Royal Geographical Society Expedition of 1977 - 1978, which saw over 100 scientists in the field for 15 months. (based on a wikipedia article)

Maldives, a place you want to be [ Photo by nattu / CC BY 2.0 ]

The Maldives or Maldive Islands, officially Republic of Maldives, is an island country in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls stretching in a north-south direction off India’s Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and Chagos Archipelago. It stands in the Laccadive Sea, about seven hundred kilometres (435 mi) south-west of Sri Lanka. (based on a wikipedia article)

Lake Saiful Muluk has a touch of the unreal about it, nestling 3,200 metres [ Photo by Hassan Sarmad / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lake Saiful Muluk is a lake located at the northern end of the Kaghan Valley near Naran. It is in the north east of Mansehra District in the North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan. At an altitude of 3,224 m (10,578 feet) above sea level it is amongst one of the highest lakes in Pakistan. The Guardian ranked Lake Saiful Muluk as the 5th Best Tourist Destination in Pakistan. Mansehra District has had a flourishing tourism industry in the past due to its many mountain ranges and the Saiful Muluk Lake. (based on a wikipedia article)

View on the Chocolate Hills from the Chocolate Hills Complex, Carmen, Bohol, The Philippines. [ Photo by Jeroen Hellingman / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Chocolate Hills are an unusual geological formation in Bohol, Philippines. According to the latest accurate survey done, there are 1,776 hills spread over an area of more than 50 square kilometres (20 sq mi). They are covered in green grass that turns brown during the dry season, hence the name. The Chocolate Hills are a famous tourist attraction of Bohol. They are featured in the provincial flag and seal to symbolize the abundance of natural attractions in the province. They are in the Philippine Tourism Authority’s list of tourist destinations in the Philippines;[3] they have been declared the country’s 3rd National Geological Monument and proposed for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. (based on a wikipedia article)

Caves entrance exit [ Photo by Paul Chin / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park is located about 50 kilometers north of the city of Puerto Princesa, Palawan, Philippines. The National Park is located in the Saint Paul Mountain Range on the northern coast of the island. It is bordered by St. Paul Bay to the north and the Babuyan River to the east. The City Government of Puerto Princesa has managed the National Park since 1992. It is also known as St. Paul’s Subterranean River National Park, or St. Paul Underground River. The entrance to the Subterranean River is a short hike from the town of Sabang. Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park has been nominated for the “New Seven Wonders of Nature” competition. (based on a wikipedia article)

Samseonghyeol [ Photo by Dolmang / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Jeju-do (transliterated Korean for Jeju Province, short form of Jeju Special Self-governing Province) is the only special autonomous province of South Korea, situated on and coterminous with the country’s largest island. Jeju-do lies in the Korea Strait, southwest of Jeollanam-do Province, of which it was a part before it became a separate province in 1946. Its capital is the city of Jeju. The island contains the Natural World Heritage Site entitled Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes. (based on a wikipedia article)

Yu Shan Summit Trek [ Photo by Prince Roy / CC BY 2.0 ]

Yushan National Park is one of the seven national parks in Taiwan and was named after the summit Yushan, the highest peak of the park. The Park covers a total of 105,490 hectares including large sections of the Central Mountain Range. The Park contains over thirty peaks more than 3,000 meters in elevation, and two-thirds of the area within the park is above 2,000 meters. The elevation difference in the park is 3,600 meters, and there are many canyons, cliffs, and valleys. (based on a wikipedia article)

Ha Long Bay with boats [ Photo by Ekstazo ]

Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in Quảng Ninh province, Vietnam. Administratively, the bay belongs to Ha Long City, Cam Pha Town and part of Van Don District. The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. Ha Long Bay is a center of a larger zone which includes Bái Tử Long bay to the northeast, and Cát Bà islands to the southwest. These larger zones share similar geological, geographical, geomorphological, climate and cultural characters. Ha Long Bay has an area of around 1,553 km², incuding 1,960 islets, most of which are limestone. (based on a wikipedia article)

Middle East

Damavand in winter [ Photo by Hamed Khorramyar ]

Mount Damāvand also known as Donbavand, a potentially active volcano and the highest peak in Iran, has a special place in Persian mythology and folklore. Located in the middle Alborz Range, adjacent to Varārū, Sesang, Gol-e Zard and Mīānrūd, it is the highest point in the Middle East and the highest volcano in all of Asia. It is a potentially active volcano, since there are fumaroles near the summit crater emitting sulfur, which were known to be active on July 6, 2007 (based on a wikipedia article)

Dead Sea by David Shankbone [ Photo by David Shankbone / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

The Dead Sea, also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake in Jordan to the east and in the West Bank and Israel to the west. Its surface and shores are 422 metres (1,385 ft) below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth’s surface on dry land. The Dead Sea is 378 m (1,240 ft) deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world. It is also one of the world’s saltiest bodies of water, with 33.7% salinity. Only Lake Assal (Djibouti), Garabogazköl and some hypersaline lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica (such as Don Juan Pond and perhaps Lake Vanda) have a higher salinity. It is 8.6 times as salty as the ocean. (based on a wikipedia article)

Wadi Rum, Jordan [ Photo by Effi Schweizer ]

Wadi Rum is a valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock in southwest Jordan. It is the largest wadi in Jordan. The name Rum most likely comes from an Aramaic root meaning ‘high’ or ‘elevated’. To reflect its proper Arabic pronunciation, archaeologists transcribe it as Wadi Ramm. The area is now also one of Jordan’s important tourist destinations, and attracts an increasing number of foreign tourists, particularly trekkers and climbers, but also for camel and horse safari or simply ‘day-trippers’ from Aqaba or Petra. (based on a wikipedia article)

fish madness [ Photo by jon hanson / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. The Red Sea is a rich and diverse ecosystem. The rich diversity is in part due to the 2,000 km (1,240 mi) of coral reef extending along its coastline; these fringing reefs are 5000-7000 years old and are largely formed of stony acropora and porites corals. The reefs form platforms and sometimes lagoons along the coast and occasional other features such as cylinders (such as the Blue Hole (Red Sea) at Dahab). These coastal reefs are also visited by pelagic species of red sea fish, including some of the 44 species of shark. (based on a wikipedia article)

View of Cappadocia [ Photo by Mila Zinkova / CC BY-SA 3.0 ]

Cappadocia is a region in central Turkey, largely in Nevşehir Province. The name was traditionally used in Christian sources throughout history and is still widely used as an international tourism concept to define a region of exceptional natural wonders, in particular characterized by fairy chimneys and a unique historical and cultural heritage. The term, as used in tourism, roughly corresponds to present-day Nevşehir Province. (based on a wikipedia article)

This place is a dreamlike landscape, it constantly change colors along with the moving sunlight. When I keep my eyes on these wonderful photos, I feel like entering the world’s most beautiful natural art galleries. Perhaps, there is nowhere else on this planet can represent its unique features.

Portrait View

The light inside - Antelope Canyon [ Photo by Rob Inh00d / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Utah [ Photo by Rob Inh00d / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Arizona [ Photo by Rob Inh00d / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Taken in Coconino County, Arizona [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Taken in Coconino County, Arizona [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Taken in Coconino County, Arizona [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Taken in Coconino County, Arizona [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon - Taken in Coconino County, Arizona [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lower Antelope Canyon, Near Page Arizona [ Photo by Alex E. Proimos / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon [ Photo by VirtualErn / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon [ Photo by VirtualErn / CC BY 2.0 ]

Light Beam [ Photo by seantoyer / CC BY 2.0 ]

Rigid Light [ Photo by seantoyer / CC BY 2.0 ]

Landscape View

Antelope Canyon 1 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 2 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 3 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 4 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 5 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 6 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 7 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 8 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 9 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 10 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon 11 [ Photo by Allie_Caulfield / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lower Antelope Canyon, Near Page Arizona [ Photo by Alex E. Proimos / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lower Antelope Canyon, Near Page Arizona [ Photo by Alex E. Proimos / CC BY 2.0 ]

Lower Antelope Canyon, Near Page Arizona [ Photo by Alex E. Proimos / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon (Page) [ Photo by VirtualErn / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon (Page) [ Photo by VirtualErn / CC BY 2.0 ]

Antelope Canyon (Page) [ Photo by VirtualErn / CC BY 2.0 ]

I like green & natural. The global excessive wastage and resources exploitation are damaging our planet. I believe we should preserve what we still have in our planet. People are now more aware about environmental problems, more & more action has been taken for this challenges.

Environmental issues aside, the color of GREEN is simply beautiful, especially when it is related to nature plants. Scroll down & take a look …

A Path Through Darkness Often Leads to a Brighter Future [ Photo by bbsc30 / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Loner. Lost in Tuscany. [ Photo by rayced / CC BY 2.0 ]

green [ Photo by Shahram Sharif / CC BY 2.0 ]

Landscape with dandelions [ Photo by tillwe / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Simple Landscape [ Photo by davidChief / CC BY 2.0 ]

Bucovina Landscape. Near Campulung Moldovenesc, Romania. [ Photo by Constantin B. / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Kodhayar Forest. Shot at Kodhayar Forest. TN. Kerala,kanyakumari border [ Photo by lensbug.chandru / CC BY 2.0 ]

cottage [ Photo by Rankeelaw / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

From above [ Photo by simonkoležnik / CC BY 2.0 ]

Vincennes - Frondaisons - 03-08-2007 - 18h21 [ Photo by Panoramas / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The nature shows fantastic forms…these are pumpkin leves [ Photo by jonycunha / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Its a fern frond this afternoon as I have no other suitable models. Had to run it through neat image to get rid of the noise. [ Photo by aussiegall / CC BY 2.0 ]

hosta leaf [ Photo by leezie5 / CC BY 2.0 ]

wonderful plant. touching two leaves. [ Photo by tomooka / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Verda vortex. Raindrops on Chatham Island forget me not leaf - plus a swirl [ Photo by W J (Bill) Harrison / CC BY 2.0 ]

Aloe polyphylla Schönland ex Pillans [ Photo by brewbooks / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Green is Beautiful. A tree on the way to the local shops. [ Photo by Cyron / CC BY 2.0 ]

Arm Of The Monkey Puzzle [ Photo by left-hand / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

digital bath [ Photo by visualpanic / CC BY 2.0 ]

The drops. Beautiful color and pattern on the leaf. [ Photo by ansik / CC BY 2.0 ]

Green Swirl [ Photo by stonethestone / CC BY 2.0 ]

The spiral [ Photo by alejandro_c / CC BY 2.0 ]

Helecho, Verde esmeralda [ Photo by Bruno. C. / CC BY 2.0 ]

Célula [ Photo by Bruno. C. / CC BY 2.0 ]

Green Heart (And the Green Grass Grows All Around, All Around) [ Photo by CarbonNYC / CC BY 2.0 ]

The army. On the way to office. [ Photo by linh.ngân / CC BY 2.0 ]

orchidée au "vert" [ Photo by Mzelle Biscotte / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Grass in the evening sun. Grundvik. June 2007. [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

High dynamic range imaging (HDR) is a digital imaging technique to produce a photo from a set of photos taken with a mixture of exposures, from the light to the dark areas of a scene.

Lay out here is some of HDR landscape photos in two category: “Clean & Clear” and “Dark & Cloudy“. Hope you enjoy the dynamic view of this natural elements.

Clean & Clear

Warm autumn day [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Swamp landscape [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Grazing Highland cows [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Blooming apple tree HDR [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Winter feeling [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Swamp landscape [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The stone cross on the hill [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Another HDR landscape [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The Fecht river [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The red row [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Wittewerf Marken [ Photo by bslmmrs / CC BY 2.0 ]

Santa Elena HDR [ Photo by Tycho Moon / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

il grano2 [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

Ronda Marbella San Pedro de Alcántara [ Photo by BK59 / CC BY 2.0 ]

San Francisco - Bay Bridge HDR [ Photo by Maschinenraum / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

View from Bárrás [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

Landscape in Hungary [ Photo by txd / CC BY 2.0 ]

Mount Diablo Foothills [ Photo by John-Morgan / CC BY 2.0 ]

Plateau de La Godivelle [ Photo by Panoramas / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The Morning [ Photo by KrätzschePhotography / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

View of the Tengger caldera crater from Penanjakan [ Photo by NeilsPhotography / CC BY 2.0 ]

Revealing Herself [ Photo by country_boy_shane / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

El Bosque HDR [ Photo by seiho / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

A Dutch Scene [ Photo by huees / CC BY 2.0 ]

On the road near Heavenly Village at Lake Tahoe. February 2008. [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

Dark & Cloudy

alba a settembre [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

la nebbia di settembre [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

il risveglio della natura [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

Podenzana Aulla 2 [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

Podenzana Aulla 3 [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

podenzana aulla bis [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

A photo of this spring, looking always towards Barberino Val d'Elsa [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

La vista dal mio giardino (hdr) [ Photo by francesco sgroi / CC BY 2.0 ]

Christmas day sunset [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

Colored lake [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

Evening at the fairytale island of Christiansö. We spent a week with Santtu and Minttu sailing on their new boat in the Baltics. July 2008. [ Photo by wili_hybrid / CC BY 2.0 ]

San Francisco Bay Area- California [ Photo by Februum / CC BY 2.0 ]

Beautiful Brisbane sunset evening in HDR [ Photo by Burning Image / CC BY 2.0 ]

Taken in Cambrils, Catalonia [ Photo by Amir K. / CC BY 2.0 ]

Colorful sunset over the landside [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Sunset on the Charles [ Photo by Pear Biter / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

no trespassing [ Photo by Seattle Miles (offline) / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Lake taken in Nau Shahr, Mazandaran [ Photo by Shahram Sharif / CC BY 2.0 ]

Black Sheep [ Photo by u n c o m m o n / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Herkenbosch Rolvennen Meinweg HDR [ Photo by BK59 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Grain, grain, grain and clouds! [ Photo by Maurice / CC BY 2.0 ]

Nové Dvory [ Photo by philip.bitnar / CC BY 2.0 ]

Stormy Weather [ Photo by Jsome1 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Another Storm Over Cayuga [ Photo by Adam_Baker / CC BY 2.0 ]

The End of a Cold Night [ Photo by lrargerich / CC BY 2.0 ]

There are many types of forest around the world, such as Rain Forest, Dry Forest, Hardwood Forest, etc. Some of the forests are extremely beautify when captured & processed in the still image, share with you here beautiful photos of forest.

suntreehaze [ Photo by baronsquirrel, dad-in-training / CC BY 2.0 ]

tranquility [ Photo by josef.stuefer / CC BY 2.0 ]

into the light [ Photo by mindfulness / CC BY 2.0 ]

to the light [ Photo by alicepopkorn / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

search the light [ Photo by [le]doo / CC BY 2.0 ]

Mist [ Photo by frielp / CC BY 2.0 ]

Transfixed [ Photo by Nicholas_T / CC BY 2.0 ]

Bamboo forest 竹林の道 [ Photo by ajari / CC BY 2.0 ]

Du Weldenvarden [ Photo by gibffe / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Corbett national park forest [ Photo by netlancer2006 / CC BY 2.0 ]

bridge and forest pond [ Photo by jalex_photo / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Into the Woods [ Photo by dwhopkins / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Sun through the forest [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The border of the forest [ Photo by Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Ablaze [ Photo by Nicholas_T / CC BY 2.0 ]

HerbstFeuer [ Photo by Wolfgang Staudt / CC BY 2.0 ]

Loose-Leaf [ Photo by Nicholas_T / CC BY 2.0 ]

Gold Rush [ Photo by Nicholas_T / CC BY 2.0 ]

Upward [ Photo by Nicholas_T / CC BY 2.0 ]

Where Time Stands Still (Morning Glory) [ Photo by Joel Bedford / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

Autumn Goddess Altar [ Photo by korona-pl / CC BY 2.0 ]

Forest in Burgundy [ Photo by tinken / CC BY 2.0 ]

If you go down to the woods today [ Photo by Richard0 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Misty Path [ Photo by bogenfreund / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Iced Over [ Photo by country_boy_shane / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

The Woods [ Photo by Three if by Bike / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Into the enchanted forest [ Photo by James Jordan / CC BY-ND 2.0 ]

enchanted [ Photo by tick followed tock / CC BY 2.0 ]

Forest [ Photo by orderlyschism / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Light behind forest [ Photo by shaymus022 / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Human activity are the greatest threat to coral reefs. Nevertheless, there are many non-profit organizations working hard to keep coral reefs alive. Such as : Coral Reef Alliance, Marine Conservation Society, Cousteau Society, Earthwatch, etc. All of them have a mission to protect and restore coral reefs.

I believe you’ve seen many coral reef photos before, in this post I would like to share with you some difference view …ie. the Panoramic View of Underwater Coral Reef. Stunning & Interesting.

In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis, named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for north wind, Boreas, by Pierre Gassendi in 1621. The aurora borealis is also called the northern polar lights, as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the North Magnetic Pole, which is currently in the arctic islands of northern Canada. Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from further away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the sun were rising from an unusual direction.

The aurora borealis most often occurs near the equinoxes; from September to October and from March to April. The northern lights have had a number of names throughout history. The Cree people call this phenomenon the “Dance of the Spirits.” In the middle age the auroras has been called by sign of God (see Wilfried Schröder, Das Phänomen des Polarlichts, Darmstadt 1984). Auroras can be spotted throughout the world. It is most visible closer to the poles due to the longer periods of darkness and the magnetic field. (source)

Aurora Borealis, the colored lights seen in the skies around the North Pole, the Northern Lights, from Bear Lake, Alaska, Beautiful Christmas Scene, Winter Star Filled Skies, Scenic Nature [ Photo by BL1961 / CC BY 2.0 ]

Aurora [ Photo by Hello, I am Bruce / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Aurora, The Honda Element doubles as a decent camera stand should you be in want of one due to the sudden appearance of aurora. [ Photo by Kevin Saff / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Aurora borealis [ Photo by dalli58 / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

Aurore boréale Northern light. It is incredible to see how the lights dance. [ Photo by peupleloup / CC BY-SA 2.0 ]

northern lights [ Photo by