Belmore Falls New South Wales Australia

If you are looking for a little adventure off the beaten track, then a trip to Belmore Falls is worth including in your itinerary. Belmore Falls are one of three waterfalls descending into the northern end of Kangaroo Valley and part of the Morton National Park in south eastern New South Wales, Australia. Belmore Falls is situated in Morton National Park between Fitzroy Falls and Carrington Falls. The Belmore Falls area, 8 KM south of Robertson, offers outstanding vistas of Kangaroo Valley and two waterfalls which drop a total of 100 metres into the Barren-Garry Creek Valley; the main fall drops a spectacular 78 metres. A short walk leads through relatively undisturbed Eucalypt forest to several lookouts from which the falls and magnificent rainforest in the valley below can be seen. 

Belmore Falls Walk is 1 ½ KM an easy 45 minute walk. Typical sandstone flora is a special feature of this walk, including flowers such as honey flower, banksia, wattle and tea-tree. Plant communities on this walk include Eucalypt forests, Woodlands, Rainforests and Heathlands. A track leads off to four lookouts located along the eastern edge of the escarpment. There are excellent views of the valley and across to the falls. The natural significance of the site was recognized in 1883 by the decision to reserve it for 'Public Recreation and Preservation of Timber' with the official dedication of Barren-Garry Park at Belmore Falls taking place in April 1887. The site being 550 metres above sea level, several lookouts were established. One is Hindmarsh's Lookout that provides views over Kangaroo Valley and township. 

It was great to be able to photograph the falls from several different angle you just need to follow the signs around the escarpment to several lookouts, the last of which provides views of the waterfall. Typical sandstone flora is a special feature of this walk, including flowers such as honey flower, banksia, wattle and tea-tree. There are also rainforest, bush land and wildflowers to see. It’s a good idea to put sunscreen on before you set out and remember to take a hat and plenteously of drinking water, and for safety reasons, you must avoid trying to view the falls at Barren-Garry Creek crossing. To return, go back the way you came, or make a shortcut across the car park and reaching the falls from Robertson involves a thin winding dirt road; drive with care. There are picnic tables nearby if you have time to stop for a bite to eat.

Guelta d’Archei Chad

The Guelta d’Archei is a hidden treasure in the Sahara due to its scenic beauty and function. Actually Guelta d’Archei is an oasis, or rather a guelta, typical of desert region in the heart of the Sahara desert.  Guelta d'Archei is located in the Ennedi Plateau, in north-eastern Chad, hidden behind a canyon. A guelta is a strange type of wetland, formed when underground water in lowland depressions spills to the surface and creates permanent pools and reservoirs. Its waters sheltered by the towering sandstone cliffs typical of this region. Every day, thousands of camels are herded into the knee deep water of the guelta by passing caravans for them to drink and rest. Dung from thousands of camels excreted over hundreds of years has turned the water black. Prowling in the black waters is a lesser group of surviving Nile crocodiles, a vestige of a wetter time when this species once thrived across most of today's Sahara desert and in swamps and rivers along South Mediterranean shores.

Guelta d’Archei signifies one of the last remaining colonies of the Nile crocodile famous in the Sahara today. The crocodiles mainly feed on fish that endure on the algae that flourish on the waters fertilized by camel droppings. Guelta d’Archei is actually a zoological marvel because of up on the cliffs are rock paintings, dating back to middle Holocene, that stand testament to the guelta’s long age. Guelta d'Archei is a barren place, away from beaten paths. If you want to visit the place then you require a 4x4 and at least four days' travel from n'Djamena, the capital of Chad and add some hours of trekking to reach the place depicted in these pictures. You will see that thousands of camels marching in and out, moaning or passing through the shallow water. You can too, walk through the dark water but be watchful not to step in the territory of Nile Crocodiles. Moreover; don’t forget to see its cave art before heading back to your Sahara exploration.

Jägala Waterfall Estonia

Jägala Waterfall is a widest natural waterfall in the lower course of the Jägala River Estonia, approximately 4 km before the river flows into the Gulf of Finland. The waterfall is approx. 8 metres in height and more than 50 metres in width. Jägala Falls is located near a small village Jägala Joa, 30 kilometers east of Tallinn, Estonian capital city. There is a car park just next to the waterfall, so access is extremely simple. To visiting the remarkable Jägala Waterfall in winter is a truly amazing nature experience. Frozen from January to March, it is definitely a peculiar sight to be seen. 

You can walk under the waterfall, in an ice palace. When the mass water is frozen in cold weather becomes a glistening ice wall with large icicles. A tunnel surrounded in both sides by ice may be formed in between the ice hanging down from the edge of the waterfall and the wall of waterfall. It’d be interesting to know that in terms of fishery the lower course of the Jägala River from the waterfall to the river mouth is one of the most valuable ones in Estonia and large trout and salmon resources can be found here. In spring and summer (if it is not too dry summer) people go canoeing there. With low water lever you can walk on the top of the waterfall. And due to smaller waters, there is no opportunity to swim in the river, stand under the waterfall and let water massage your shoulders. The best time for visit could be a spring, when river is full of water. But in dry season it does not look impressive. Source: Charismatic Planet

The Volcano of Kawah Ijen in Indonesia That Spews Blue Lava

At first look you might consider the otherworldly light in these pictures comes from a nebula or another planet deep in outer space or probably you have heard of "red hot lava" or "white hot" to describe searing temperatures, so but what about "blue hot lava"? Kawah Ijen is one of several volcanoes located within the 20 kilometers wide Ijen Caldera in East Java, Indonesia. The caldera of Kawah Ijen harbors a kilometer-wide, turquoise colored, acidic crater lake that leaks sulphurous gases constantly. That's the surreal hue of Indonesia's Kawah Ijen Volcano, which glows with an otherworldly "blue lava".

Normally at night the hot gases burn to emit an eerie blue glow that is distinctive to Kawah Ijen. These gases emerge from the cracks in the volcano at high pressure and temperature, up to 600°C, and when they come in contact with the air, they ignite, sending flames up to 16 feet high. Specific gases condense into liquid sulfur, and continues to burn as it flows down the slopes giving the feeling of blue lava flowing. Kawah Ijen’s sulphuric gases are also mined for sulphur. The volcanic gases are trapped by the native miners and channeled through a network of ceramic pipes, which in result of condensation of molten sulfur.

The sulfur, normally red in color when molten, pours gradually from the ends of these pipes and pools on the ground, turning bright yellow as it cools.

The expert miners break the cooled material into big pieces and carry it away in baskets to an adjacent refinery. In this way an expert worker can earn up to $13 dollars a day. Therefore you can’t imagine the intense heat and extremely hazardous condition with insufficient protection. Many workers suffer various respiratory problems due to breathing toxic fumes day in and out. So they’d prefer to work at night to escape the heat of the sun, and to earn extra income as well. These astonishing images are captured by photographer Olivier Grunewald, who lost two lenses and a camera to sulphuric corrosion while trying to capture the mysterious pictures.