next »

[shahrukh]

A thick blanket of snow covers West Thumb Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. There are more geysers in this park than anywhere else in the world.

[shahrukh]

Towers of salt and a riverbed colored by crystallized salt create an otherworldly landscape in Ethiopia’s Danakil Desert. Sitting more than 300 feet (90 meters) below sea level, with temperatures reaching 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius), local inhabitants prize the Danakil for one thing: its salt deposits.

[shahrukh]

A deep gorge drops some 650 feet (198 meters) near the abandoned city of Araden, Crete. Visitors can descend into the gorge and walk a little more than 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) to the Mediterranean Sea. In addition to magnificent scenery, the gorge provides a 2,460-foot (750-meter) descent to the sea.

[shahrukh]

Towering in close symmetry, these basalt columns near Fingal’s Cave form the base of the Scottish island of Staffa. The columns formed when cooling lava flows met bedrock and the region’s cold weather. The island contains three main caves.