Mother Nature is a brilliant creator, and from time to time she gets particularly creative. Listed below are ten of Earth’s most unusual features, compiled by The Epoch Times (theepochtimes.com).
Cano Cristales
Depending upon the season, the waters of the Cano Cristales Riverin Colombia may run red, green, blue, yellow, or orange. Some refer to it as the ‘Liquid Rainbow’, while others opt for the more poetic ‘river that ran away from paradise.’
Lake Hillier
The bright pink Lake Hillier is on the edge of Middle Island, Recherche Archipelago, off the south coast of Western Australia. It is not the world’s only rose-tinged body of water, but it does possess the unique ability to retain its color when temperatures shift.
Cave of Crystals
The Cave of Crystals is in the Naica Mine, Mexico. Crystals forming in caves are not all that newsworthy, but when pillars of gypsum grow to be numerous times larger than a human, it turns some heads. The site was discovered around 2000 by a couple of miners who were out in search of lead.
Pamukkale
Pamukkale translates to ‘Cotton Palace’ as that is the image the terraced hollows and expansive white mineral depots evoke. The water that washes over them is believed to have medicinal properties, making the site in Denizli Province, Turkey a popular wellness destination.
Danxia Landform
Mountains are generally awe-inspiring, but Zhangye Danxia landforms in Gansu Province, China, are definitely more so than most. It took about 25 million years for the sands and minerals of various harmonious colors to be deposited and eroded into the dazzling effect.
Blood Falls
It is not really blood that is flowing from the tongue of Taylor Glacier onto the ice-covered surface of West Lake Bonney in Victoria Land, East Antarctica, forming the so-called Blood Falls. What causes the water to take on a ruddy appearance stems from it having been isolated from the rest of the world for millions of years? Over time it has become particularly salty and iron-rich, which gives it a reddish hue.
Pozzo del Merro
The Italian pit of Pozzo del Merro is the deepest known water-filled sinkhole in the world. The depth of this geological feature in the countryside northeast of Rome has been recorded at 392 meters. In 2002, after previous attempts which failed, a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) reached the bottom of the sinkhole, but discovered a narrow passage continuing horizontally.
The Eye of the Sahara
In the midst of the desert, near Ouadane, west central Mauritania rests a rock bull’s-eye that measures approximately 50 km across named the Eye of the Sahara. The circular feature, which is also called Richat Structure, is believed to have started off as a dome pushed up from the Earth’s surface. From there it was likely carved out by years of environmental wear and tear.
Cuevas de Marmol
Cuevas de Marmol, also known as Marble caves of Patagonia in Chile, are not easy to get to, but the cave network, dubbed as the most beautiful, is considered well worth the trip. While the swirled cavern walls are a sight to behold all on their own, it is their reflection on the surrounding blue waters that is often considered to be the most breathtaking.
Goblin Valley State Park
If running through a naturally formed mountain maze amidst 150-foot tall sandstone goblins sounds like having a good time, one may want to book a trip to Goblin Valley State Park in Utah, USA. Years of erosion resulted in the formation of shapes that many say look just like creatures of lore.
