Trona Pinnacles, Most Unusual Geologic Wonders in the California Desert

The most fantastic, eerie and unique geological landscape worldly shapes are the Trona Pinnacles in the California desert. This is also known as Tufa pinnacles, formed a peculiar shapes due to long ago glacial lake underwater 10,000 to 100,000 years ago. More than 500 pinnacles are composed with calcium carbonate with mix of blue green algae thrown in. The city of Trona is ten miles to the north of Argus Range and 18 miles from Death Valley National Park. The elevation of pinnacles is more than 1800 feet above sea level.  

The first question comes into mind how these formations are made? So, during the Pleistocene Ice Ages, huge runoff spilled from the Sierra Nevada into a chain of inland seas and get interconnected lakes stretched from Mono Lake to Death Valley and included Searles Lake. The massive amount of alkaline lake water and calcium-rich groundwater combined to create Tufa formations. If you’re fit enough then you can walk in between 140 feet tall and 40 feet wide pinnacles.  The Trona Pinnacles formed during three ice ages, divided by age and elevation. However, on the northern group side the best known as Tufa towers, and most shapes are tombstones, ridge, and cones. The Trona Pinnacles are favorite film location in more than a dozen hit movies. More than 30 film projects a year are shot among the tufa pinnacles. 

The different peoples historically associated different names to strange forms, like ancient spires were once called “Cathedral City”. Geologically the pinnacles are classified into four general shapes, towers are taller 30 to 40 feet, tombstones are rise 20 to 30 feet, dumpy and mounded cones are 10 feet tall and ridge is 800 feet long and 500 feet wide and 140 feet tall. In 1968, Trona Pinnacles were designated as a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior. The large ancient spear points and atlatls pointed, that humans have been lived here somewhere 10,000 years ago. Camel and wooly mammoth bones have been discovered near Searles Lake. Desert life is never easy in any era, to endure the scorching temperatures above 115F and rainfall is just three inches a year. Desert Holly, Salt Bush is main plants creeping along some of the pinnacles. So, Trona Pinnacles will be a life time journey into one of most strange geological wonders in California.

The Trona Pinnacles is an ideal place to explore in the fall, winter, and spring months.  Visiting the site in the early morning and evening is especially dramatic as are nights with a full moon. The dirt roads network wind throughout and offer plentiful vantage points from which to view and photograph the Pinnacles.  For hiking lovers, you should wear sturdy shoes to enjoy the best view of Trona Pinnacles. Camping is also allowed at Trona Pinnacles, and encouraged to use existing campsites and fire rings. 

Red Lake Sinkhole Croatia

Red Lake is a sinkhole containing a karst lake near the city of Imotski, Croatia is third largest sinkholes in the world. Sinkhole cliff faces that soar nearly 800 feet above sea level, and offers humanity a chance to drop into the earth and explore its numerous submerged waterways. The Red lake sinkhole is nearby Blue Lake is a hallowed space for more than just people, too; at this time, Red Lake is one of the last known habitats for a threatened species of river fish. The area is also famous due to various caves and high cliffs reaching more than 241 meters above water level.

The sinkhole depth is approximately 530 meters with a water volume is 25 to 30 million cubic meters. So, water drains out of the basin through underground waterways that descend below the level of the lake floor. This sinkhole is named after the reddish-brown color of the surrounding cliffs, colored by iron oxides. Moreover, it is presumed that the lake emerged when the ceiling of a large cave hall collapsed. The lake is home of fish Delminichthys adspersus, a small sardine looking fish of 9 to 12 cm, often seen here in dry and spring seasons. Furthermore, lakes and rivers hints, underground connection between Red lake and other water bodies.

The formation of sinkholes involves natural processes of erosion, gradual removal of slightly soluble bedrock by percolating water, the collapse of a cave roof, or a lowering of the water table often form through the process of suffosion. The Red Lake is a protected monument of nature and a veritable phenomenon of the karst known throughout the world for its size and specific features. This lake is elliptical in shape actually, 250 to almost 300 metres deep which depends on the season of the year and the water level, however bottom of lake is below the sea level. The lake’s rocks are vertical and red-colored owing to the bauxite ore and also a large water reservoir with drinking and clear water.  On account of its beauty, mystic features and inaccessibility, the Red Lake is the subject of many stories and legends. 

As the Red Lake is a geological monument of high significance to natural environment and its morphology is a proof that such status is well deserved, as a worldwide phenomenon so that it now figures on all lists of the world's deepest speleodiving structures. Moreover the accurate figures will be obtained in the course of future explorations to be undertaken by a special kind of bathyscaph. The Red Lake is the world's largest documented and surveyed ground water storage in karst, and deserves to be appreciated as such.

Namak Lake of Iran

Namak Lake also called Salt Lake is located about 100 km east of the City of Qom in Iran at an elevation of 2,590 feet above sea level. The Namak Lake has a dry surface only water covers out of about 1800 km² area. The lake depth is only between 45 centimeters to 1 meter and major source of water supply is river Qom. The Namak Lake is actually a remainder of the Paratethys Sea, which underway to dry from the Pleistocene epoch, leaving Lake Urmia and the Caspian Sea and other bodies of water. The climate condition is semi-arid and arid, and more moderate in nearby mountains. Therefore, the mean annual temperature is 13.5 ºC, with mean minima averaging -6 ºC and mean maxima averaging 35 ºC.

Moreover Namak Lake holds 240 million metric tons of minerals and it is believed, that Iran’s Namak Lake contains rich lithium deposit, extracting 40 grams of lithium per ton is considered as economically justified worldwide. Moreover, massive volume of sodium sulfate deposit, 144 million tons has discovered in the lake. Therefore, three minerals, namely Magnesia, Halite, and Sylvite have been identified so far in the lake, with estimated reserves of 32 million tons, 200 million tons, and 4.5 million tons, respectively these minerals are used in the agriculture, steel, and aluminum industries.

Namak Lake is accessible by sandy road and bit far from civilization and city. This place is specific for its minimal light smog and it is grotesque to watch stars here and even perspective photographs or skateboarding on silk salty surface is possible. The surrounding area of Lake is semi desert mainly rock with sand. Moreover vegetation cover is sparse, and foothills and wide valleys are characterized by forest steppe. Hence, higher areas well covered with snow in winter along with some permanent ice fields and alpine vegetation. The main fishes comprise of three families Balitoridae, Cyprinidae, and Salmonidae. Thus, native populations of trout (Salmo trutta) occur in the basin and some basins and other water bodies have been stocked with exotics, or exotic species have been acquainting with fortuitously. This ecoregion contains a high degree of endemism in a species-poor endorheic basin.

The Fossil Falls, California U.S.

The Fossil Falls is a marvelous geological formation, located in the Coso Range of California U.S. The actual truth is that, Fossil Falls is a bit of misleading place, because neither fossils nor a waterfall here. This is an amazing place developed with rocks made out of lava, because volcanic activity in the mountain ranges, along with meltwater of glaciers in the nearby Sierra Nevada. The glaciers melting cause the creation of fall in summer.  This is a fantastic place for hiking and crazing rocks activities. Therefore a natural walk through polished lava formations consists of 36 miles formed by the interaction of rushing water from the Owens River. The Fossil Fall flowed at a much higher rate in prehistoric times, when lave poured from adjacent volcanoes somewhere 20,000 years ago. Therefore result in surreal, convoluted gorge of shiny, sculpted black lava and a little trail leads to the falls, which you can witness from above or, for a nearer look; follow a trail to prudently descend the falls (hold onto children’s hands as footing can be very tricky.

The Sierra Nevada glaciers melted during last ice age, created large lakes, including Owen Lake & River, which travelled to Indian Wells Valley. However, volcanic activity diverted several times and falls were formed upon river forced to divert its course over a basalt flow, reshaping and furnishing the rock into a unique shapes. Moreover, the entire lava flows at Fossil Falls are basaltic occurred between 4,000 to 10,000 years ago. The erosional features generally called potholes and it is speculated that Red Hill cast out granitic detritus, fell into Fossil Falls and water accelerates as it moves past the rocks. The high velocity was enough to catch the granitic rocks from Red Hill and spiral them downwards in multiple vortices, drilling them into the basalt and sediments would get trapped and continue to circularly erode the holes.

Therefore, Fossil falls actually being downstream from where it position today, and moved upstream as waterfalls classically do. Native American lived in the camping along the dry river, and their harvested resources and hunted large animals forced to leave with arid conditions. But as the time passes, the conditions comes back to normal climate, they started to return back to area. Flakes of obsidian can be found in the area, for the Native Americans would camp near Fossil Falls and chip obsidian from the Coso Mountains to form their tools. The Fossil Falls archeological District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Fossil Falls is protected as an area of Critical Environmental Concern by the Bureau of Land Management. Native American artifacts may not be removed from the area.

Badab-e Surt Iran

Badab-e Surt (translated gassed water) is located in Mazandaran Province in northern Iran, is considered one of the most incredible sights of its region approximately 95 KM’s south of the city of Sari and 7 KM’s west of Orost village. Badab-e-Surt comprises a range of stepped travertine terrace & rock formations that have been generated more than thousands of years as flowing water from two mineral hot springs cooled and deposited carbonate minerals on the mountainside. The red color of travertine terraces are due to iron carbonate minerals dissolved in water flowing from mineral hot springs. It is thought that the spring pool was created during the Paleocene Era and at the same time as the latest folds in the Alborz mountain range. Badab-e-Surt terraces are natural wonder made with two distinct mineral springs with different natural characteristics.

Badab-e-Surt is located 1,840 meters above sea level just west of the village or Orost. The first spring contains very salty water that gathers in a small natural pool; its water is considered to have medicinal properties, especially as a cure for rheumatism and some types of skin diseases and skin conditions. The second spring has a sour taste and is predominately orange mainly due to the large iron oxide sediments at its outlet. In one part of a floor of the pond, there is a deep hole is called the Bermuda Erost.

Moreover, stepped travertine terraces are so popular on planet earth. Such famous examples includes Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone National Park, The White Water Terraces and Huanglong Scenic in China, Italy’s Bagni San Filippo, Mexico’s Hierve el Agua and most famous of them all Pamukkale in Turkey. The travertine terraces of Badab-e-Surt are bright orange, yellow and red as compare to others shades of white and blue, due to large amount of iron oxide sediments. Therefore, the water from two springs emanating from the mountain range have combined and resulted pools shaped as a naturally formed staircase. However, the surrounding vegetation to the north contains of pine forests while to the east it mainly comprises of short trees and shrubs; and rock quarries can be seen to the west of the site. Indeed, Badab-e-Surt is fantastic place to see, widespread due to usage of water treatment for many disease.

The site has been registered as 2^nd natural heritage of Iran in UNESCO’s list. Therefore, the Orost village and Badab-e-Surt Spring are easily accessible via Semnan as most of way is being paved and vehicles are leaving dirt in the air leading up to the spring. It is suggested to visit the place during either sunrise or sunset when the sun’s light offers the orange reflection blends in perfectly colored spring. Although Badab-e-Surt is beautiful in all seasons, But the best time to visit is early April. The Badab-e-Surt is in danger of gradul erosion and eventual demise same like other natural landmarks in Iran however, the environmentalists and nature lovers have repeatedly expressed concern regarding protection of this natural wonder, citing that despite being registered as a natural site. So, it’s a must visit destination for all natural lovers.