30 Kickass and Surreal Places on Earth

Here are 30 Kickass and Surreal Places on Earth. We don’t own any copyrights to these photographs.

1. Tunnel of love, Ukraine
   

The Tunnel of Love, located in Ukraine, used to be just another train rail section , but eventually abandoned. As trees were left to grow freely around the rails, the passing train was the only thing shaping its way through. Eventually, by crossing the Kleven village forest back and forth three times a day, the train shaped a closed tunnel according to its size. Today the Tunnel of Love is highly popular among lovers.

1. Salar de Uyuni (One of World’s Largest Mirrors), Bolivia
   

Salar de Uyuni is one of the world’s largest salt flats. What you are seeing below is not a layer of water, but it is actually a layer of salt that is highly reflective. The areas they occur in are former bodies of water.

1. Hitachi Seaside Park, Japan
   

This place does look like a scene straight out of Dr. Suess’ books. This is one of the gardens of Hitachi Seaside Park, a public park in Japan. This park covers an area of 190 hectares and the park features blooming flowers of different colors in the different parts of the park around the year.

1. Mendenhall Ice Caves, Juneau, Alaska
   

These Ice Caves are located inside the Mendenhall Glacier of Juneau, Alaska. Its entrance is just right up on the side of the glacier near where it meets the water. The access is pretty dependent on things like time of year, movement of the glacier, etc.

1. Red Beach, Panjin, China
   

The Red Beach is located in the Liaohe River Delta of Panjin City in China. Its flaming red appearance is caused by a type of sea weed that flourishes in the saline-alkali soil. The weed starts growing during April or May and remains green during the summer. In autumn, this weed turns flaming red, and the beach looks as if it was covered by an infinite red carpet that creates a rare red sea landscape.

1. Zhangye Danxia Geological Park, Gansu Province, China
   

The incredibly colorful “rainbow mountains” are part of the Zhangye Danxia Landform Geological Park in Gansu, China. The rainbow mountains became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010. The vivid mountains are the result of mineral deposits and red sandstone from over 24 million years ago. Layers formed on top of one another, creating the colorful patterns of rock strata.

1. Mount Roraima, Venezuela
   

Mount Roraima, one of the oldest formations on Earth, is a natural border between Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana in South America. It is also called Roraima Tepui or Cerro Roraima. Mount Roraima was the inspiration for the setting of the Pixar film “Up.” The plateau is so large that it can hold enough water to keep the waterfalls running uninterrupted.

1. Tianzi Mountains, China
   

Found in the Hunan province of China, the unique views from atop the Tianzi Mountains can only be accessed by cable car. These mountains were the inspiration for the Avatar’s floating mountains.

1. Black Forest, Germany
   

Black Forest gets its name from its dark, slightly sinister canopy of evergreens. The vast expanse of hills, valleys, rivers and forests stretch from the swish spa town of Baden-Baden to the Swiss border, and from the Rhine almost to Lake Constance.

1. Lake Hillier, Australia
   

The vibrant Lake Hillier is located in the Middle Island in the Recherche Archipelago, in Western Australia. The lake spans only about 600 meters wide but its rose pink colour is unmistakable. Pink lakes tend to have a striking colour due to the presence of algae that produces carotenoids, such as Dunaliella Salina, a type of halophile green micro-algae especially found in sea salt fields. Once the lake water reaches a salinity level greater than that of sea water, the temperature is high enough and adequate light conditions are provided, the alga begins to accumulate the red pigment beta carotene.

1. The Faroe Islands, Denmark
   

Sørvágsvatn (or Leitisvatn) is the biggest lake of the Faroe Islands, situated on the island of Vágar. It covers an area of 3.4 square km, more than three times the size of the second biggest lake Fjallavatn, which also lies on the island of Vágar. This picture you see is actually an optical illusion. It appears as if the lake is significantly higher than the ocean. In real, the lake is only 30 meter above the sea level, but the cliff facing the camera is 100 meters high. The position of the camera and the angle of the shot makes it seem like the lake is about the same level as the cliff.

1. Sutherland Falls in New Zealand
   

Sutherland Falls is a waterfall near Milford Sound in the Fiordland National Park, New Zealand. Amongst the tallest waterfalls in the world, it has a steep slope. Sutherland Falls are fed by a small circular lake, named Lake Quill, which occupies a small rock basin that was formed by ice-action during the Ice Age, and spills almost directly down a near-vertical mountain-wall into a valley. Its most beautiful angle is taken from above on a helicopter flight, when you can see the lake behind the waterfall framed with snow-capped mountains in the cold seasons.

1. Tuscany, Italy
   

In the central Italy lies the beautiful region of Tuscany, a place that is home to cities such as Arezzo, Grosseto, Livorno, Lucca, Massa Carrara, Pisa, Pistoia, Prato, Siena, Chianti, Florence Casentino and its capital. The Tuscany region is crossed by mountain ranges, so there are few flat plains, but they are particularly fertile and extremely beautiful.

1. Trolltunga Cliff, Norway
   

Trolltunga is one of the most spectactular scenic cliffs in Norway. Trolltunga is situated about 1100 meters above sea level, hovering 700 metres above lake Ringedalsvatnet in Skjeggedal. The view is breathtaking. The hike goes through high mountains, takes 8-10 hours in total (to Trolltunga and return) and the ascent is about 900 meters.

1. Carrera Lake, Argentina And Chile
   

Marble Caves Chile Chico located on the border of Chile and Argentina is one of the most beautiful places of our planet. The primitive beauty of the marble rocks, combined with the crystal clear water of the Lago General Carrera mountain lake makes one believe, that heaven does exist, and it is somewhere in this place. Marble Caves are the most famous attraction of Patagonia (Chile). These caves attract a lot of tourists from the different corners of the globe.

1. Ice Towers on Mount Erebus, Antarctica
   

Hundreds of ice towers are located on Mount Erebus (height 3800 m above sea level) look like a one-day stubble on the face of the giant. A constantly active volcano, and probably the only place in Antarctica where fire and ice meet, interacting to and create something unique, encompassing both their natures. Towers can reach up to 20 meters in height and look almost alive as they produce jets of steam into the south polar sky. Part of the volcanic vapor freezes in the inner parts of the towers, increasing their breadth and height.

1. Fingal’s Cave, Scotland
   

Located on the island of Staffa, Scotland, Fingal’s Cave, also known as “Uamh-Binn” in Gaelic (meaning “cave of melody”), is well-known for its arching, cathedral-like geological features and emanating eerie sounds. The cave, along with the entire island of Staffa, is composed entirely of hexagonal basalt columns, which produces the naturally arched ceiling. The easiest way to see this awe-inspiring cave for yourself is to take a sightseeing cruise from the town of Mull. The cruises land close to the cave, and the hexagonal basalt columns serve as perfect stepping stones to walk along the shore and enter the cave.

1. Great Blue Hole, Belize
   

The Great Blue hole, located just 100 kilometers (60 miles) off the coast of Belize, is an underwater sinkhole that researchers believe is the largest of its kind. Circular in shape and characterized by its rich, blue color, it is over 300 meters (984 ft) across and 125 meters (410 ft) deep. It lies in the center of an atoll called Lighthouse Reef, where an island of coral encircles the shallow, light turquoise-colored waters of a lagoon. Water levels there are so shallow that parts of the ring surrounding the dark blue sinkhole are even known to crest the surface at low tide.

1. Pamukkale, Turkey
   

Pamukkale, 19 km (12 miles) north of Denizli (map), is Turkey’s foremost mineral-bath spa because of its natural beauty: hot calcium-laden waters spring from the earth and cascade over a cliff. As they cool they form dramatic travertines of hard, brilliantly white calcium that form pools. Pamukkale (“cotton fortress”) has been a spa since the Romans built the spa city of Hierapolis around a sacred warm-water spring. The Sacred Pool is still there, littered with marble columns from the Roman Temple of Apollo. You can swim in it for a fee.

1. Fraser Island Dune, Australia
   

Fraser Island lies just off the east coast of Australia. At 122 km long, it is the largest sand island in the world. Majestic remnants of tall rainforest growing on sand and half the world’s perched freshwater dune lakes are found inland from the beach. The combination of shifting sand-dunes, tropical rainforests and lakes makes it an exceptional site.

1. Plitvice Lakes, Croatia
   

The waters flowing over the limestone and chalk have, over thousands of years, deposited travertine barriers, creating natural dams which in turn have created a series of beautiful lakes, caves and waterfalls. These geological processes continue today. The forests in the park are home to bears, wolves and many rare bird species.

1. Baatara Gorge Waterfall, Lebanon
   

The Baatara Gorge Waterfall is located in the village of Balaa, between the cities of Laqlouq and Tannourine, Lebanon. The location is also known as the “Three Bridges Chasm”. This unexpected waterfall drops 255 metres (837 ft.) into a cave and falls behind three natural bridges, which raise one above the other and overhang the chasm descending into Mount Lebanon. It can only be seen during the months of March and April, when the snows are melting.

1. Seven Sisters Waterfall, Norway
   

The Seven Sisters are definitely the most famous waterfalls in the Geiranger Fjord. It consists of several columns of water and that’s how this waterfall got its name. While all seven of them can’t be seen all th time and perhaps it all depends on the amount of snowmelt or rain. The Seven Sisters are actually directly across from another waterfall called Friaren. Naturally with this waterfall being one of the highlights of a Geiranger Fjord Tourist Cruise, you’re practically guaranteed to see it once you crowd into such a tour.

1. Nubra Valley, Ladakh, India
   

From Leh, a rough road runs north over the awesome Khardung La, the highest motorable pass in the world. Even in summer, the crossing is crusted in permafrost. Beyond the pass is the wide, flat Nubra Valley, crisscrossed by the winding channels of the Shyok and Nubra Rivers.

1. Waitomo Glowworm Caves, New Zealand
   

The Waitomo Glowworm Caves attraction is a cave at Waitomo on the North Island of New Zealand, known for its population of glowworms, Arachnocampa luminosa. This species is found exclusively in New Zealand. They are around the size of an average mosquito. Geological and volcanic activity has created around 300 known limestone caves in the Waitomo region over the last 30 million years.

1. Glass Beach, Mendocino, California
   

Glass Beach is a unique beach, not because nature made it that way, but because time and the pounding surf have corrected one of man’s mistakes. In the early 20th century, Fort Bragg residents threw their household garbage over the cliffs above what is now Glass Beach. It is hard to imagine this happening today, but back then people dumped all kinds of refuse straight into the ocean, including old cars, and their household garbage, which of course included lots of glass. Beginning in 1949, the area around Glass Beach became a public dump, and locals referred to it as “The Dumps.” Sometimes fires were lit to reduce the size of the trash pile, however in 1967, the city leaders closed the area. Over the next several decades the pounding waves cleansed the beach, wearing down the discarded glass into the small, smooth, colored trinkets that cover the beach today.

1. Rio Secreto underground river in Riviera Maya, Mexico
   

Rio Secreto is a new tourist attraction in the Riviera Maya that thrills visitors with a visit to a natural underground river and the limestone cavern system it winds through. Discovered in 2007, the cave is part of a 7.5-mile long network that is still being explored and mapped. Most underground river networks such as these are limited to trained spelunkers, since there are sections completely underwater that require diving equipment.

1. Multicolored Lakes of Mount Kelimutu, Indonesia
   

Long considered a sacred spot and final resting place for departed souls, the multicolored lakes of the Kelimutu volcano are among the most incredible wonders of the world. Though the three lakes are all on the crest of the same volcano, and two even share a crater wall, they are all different colors. A quick peek at Wikipedia entry on Kelimutu will tell you that “…the colour changes as a result of chemical reactions resulting from the minerals contained in the lake perhaps triggered by volcano gas activity.”

1. Berry Head Arch, Canada
   

This magnificent sea arch is located on the Spurwink Trail, along the East Coast Trail. To get to the arch, find the East Coast Trail trailhead at Port Kirwan. From here, it is about a 4.75-mile one way hike to the arch. The hike is moderate but extreme caution is required at points where the trail skirts the edge of some rather high cliffs.

1. Yingxi corridor of stone peaks of Qingyuan, China
   

The YingXi Corridor in China is just one more of the fascinating locations that tourists are now enjoying after the many years of Chinese isolation. The corridor is filled with limestone peaks that tower above the waterways and fields of the region. Some of the massive limestone peaks appear to be shoved out of the ground by tremendous forces from below.