The Grand Canyon of Verdon

The Verdon Gorge in south-eastern France has been dubbed the Grand Canyon of Verdon because of its topological similarities with the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, United States. The Grand Canyon of Verdon is about 25 kilometers long and up to 500 meters deep and measures 200 to 1500 meters from one side of the Gorge to the other. It is formed the Verdon River, which is named after its startling turquoise-green colour, one of the canyon's most distinguishing characteristics. The most impressive part lies between the towns of Castellane and Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, where the river has cut a ravine up to 500 metres down through the limestone mass. At the end of the canyon, the Verdon river flows into the artificial lake of Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon.
 
Because of its proximity to the French Riviera, the canyon is very popular with tourists, who can drive around its rim, rent kayaks or hike. The limestone walls, which are several hundreds of meters high, attract many rock climbers. It is considered an outstanding destination for multi-pitch climbing. There are routes encompassing cracks, pillars and seemingly endless walls. The climbing is generally of a technical nature, and there are over 1,500 routes, ranging from 20m to over 400m.














Pictures: http://iluton.livejournal.com/

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The deadly trail to Mt. Huashan

Mt. Huashan is located in the south of Huayin city, China, 120 kilometers east of Xi'an, with an elevation of 2200 meters above sea level. The Huashan Mountain is surrounded by five peaks that looks live five petals of a flower. The Huashan Mountain, hence, takes its name after its shape - a lotus flower with five petals.
Mt. Huashan is famous for its breath-taking cliffs and the dangerous 12-kilometer-long winding path up to the top. Mt Huashan has only one path leading to the top, and it doesn’t help when the path looks like this.

The path doesn't become precipitous until Qing Ke Ping, where there is a huge rock engraved with Chinese characters meaning “the point where the horses turn back”. It warns that the challenges ahead and those who are not well prepared both mentally and physically should retreat.



One wrong step here is instant death. But the view is awe-inspiring.




Brave grandma!

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Zhangjiajie National Forest Park – Pandora on Earth

The floating ‘Hallelujah Mountains’ you saw on the movie Avatar has been inspired by a real place on Earth – China.

The Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in the Chinese province of Hunan features gigantic pillar like rocks, the kind you see throughout the movie. Only difference is they aren’t floating. They are the result of many years of erosion. The weather is moist year round, and as a result, the foliage is very dense. Much of the erosion which forms these pillars are the result of expanding ice in the winter and the plants which grow on them. These formations are a distinct hallmark of Chinese landscape, and can be found in many ancient Chinese paintings.
The film's director and production designers said that they drew inspiration for the floating rocks from mountains from around the world, including those in the Hunan province.

One of the park's quartz-sandstone pillars, the 3,544-foot Southern Sky Column, had been officially renamed "Avatar Hallelujah Mountain" in honor of the eponymous film in January 2010.

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The Hill of Crosses

Hill of Crosses

The Hill of Crosses is a site of pilgrimage in northern Lithuania. The first crosses were placed on the former hill fort in the 14th century. Over the centuries, not only crosses, but giant crucifixes, carvings of Lithuanian patriots, statues of the Virgin Mary and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims.

The real reason for the Hill's existence lies buried in Lithuania's history. Over the centuries, the place has come to signify the peaceful endurance of Lithuanian Catholicism despite the threats it has faced throughout history. Invaded by Russia during the 1795 partition of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth Lithuania disappeared altogether from the map of Europe. When the old political structure of Eastern Europe fell apart in 1918, Lithuania once again declared its independence. Throughout this time, the Hill of Crosses was used as a place for Lithuanians to pray for peace, for their country, and for the loved ones they had lost.

Most recently, the site took on a special significance during the years 1944-1990, when Lithuania was occupied by the USSR. Continuing to travel to the Hill and leave their tributes, Lithuanians used it to demonstrate their allegiance to their original identity, religion and heritage. Although the Soviets worked hard to remove new crosses, and bulldozed the site at least three times, the new crossess continued to appear and by 1985 the authorities had given up.

On September 7, 1993, Pope John Paul II visited the Hill of Crosses, declaring it a place for hope, peace, love and sacrifice.

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