Category Amazing Places

          Monument Valley is a wide expanse that is marked by enormous rock features, including mesas, cliffs, and buttes. Part of the Colorado Plateau, it lies between the borders of Arizona and Utah in the US. It is estimated that the valley covers an area of over 36826 hectares.

          The biggest attraction of Monument Valley is the buttes, or isolated hills that are steep on sides and flat on top.

          Yet another much visited site on the valley is the Mittens, which are a pair of thumb-like outcrops. In addition, there is the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park that makes it a must-see place for travellers across the world.

          One of the features that contribute to the attractiveness of the valley is its vivid red colour. This coloration happens due to the presence of iron oxide. There are also blue-gray rocks here, making it a rare combination of beauty. 

               The Grand Canyon is one of the most celebrated sites in the world, noted for its impressive shapes and colours.

               As the name suggests, it is an extensive canyon that was cut by the Colorado River in the plateau region of Arizona. It runs almost 446 kilometres through the north-western part of Arizona and ranges from 0.2 to 29 kilometres in width. Believe it or not, there are places where the canyon is more than a kilometre deep!

               Historians note that many of the rocks in the canyon are at least 4 billion years old. Some of them even resemble temples or castles, making it a beautiful spectacle from a distance. As mentioned earlier, there is a wide range of colours one can see here. The canyon is said to be mostly red, but there are layers of rocks that appear buff, gray, green, pink, and violet.

              Below the Grand Canyon lie magnificent forests of pine, fir, spruce, and aspen. There are also a large number of wildlife in the region, including coyotes, foxes, deer, badgers, pumas, bobcats, rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks.

            Lake Tahoe is a famous freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of the United States. It is said to be the largest alpine lake in North America.

            There are many reasons why Lake Tahoe is important. One of them is that the water from the lake is supplied for the Newlands Irrigation Project in Nevada.

            Another reason is its attractiveness. For its clear water and the panorama of surrounding mountains, the lake has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country.

            In addition to such scenery, Tahoe is a famous spot for winter sports and summer outdoor recreation. Thousands of people visit the place in winter to enjoy activities like down-hill skiing, snow tubing, cross-country skiing, snowmobile riding and snowshoeing.

            History goes that Lake Tahoe was once the centre of the Washoe Indian territory, and the area was inhabited by the Washoe tribe of Native Americans.

            In fact, the very name of the lake comes from the Washoe Indian word meaning ‘big water’. 

          The Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a gigantic sculpture built in the Black Hills of South Dakota in the United States of America.

          It is a huge representation of the heads of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, the former presidents of the country.

          Each of the carving is about 18.2 metres tall, and is made out of granite. The work is seen on the southeast side of Mount Rushmore, hence the name of the memorial.

          The idea of a monumental sculpture was put forward by a historian named Doane Robinson in 1923. In 1927, the work began under the sculptor Gutzon Borglum.

          He proposed that the four heads in the sculpture symbolize the first 150 years of the United States. The work was completed in 1941.

          Today, the Mount Rushmore sculpture is one of the greatest iconic images in the US. 

           Since time immemorial, valleys and mountains have remained among the most cherished places in the world. One may not be able to climb them, but the very sight of a valley itself fills our minds with joy and creates everlasting memories.

           One such is the Yosemite Valley, located in the western Sierra Nevada mountain of Northern California. Adding to the attractions is the Yosemite Falls, the highest in North America.

           The Sierra Nevada salamander, the rattlesnake, Gilbert’s skink, American black bear, chickaree are some of the wildlife here. There are birds as well, like the American dipper, dark-eyed junco and the white headed woodpecker seen. The presence of trees like sugar pines, white fir, and ponderosa pines make the region all the more lush.

          The Yosemite Valley is also known to be a dream place for hikers, with different trails around. The Yosemite Falls Trail that leads to the top of the waterfalls and the Four Mile Trail leading to the glacier point are two of them.

          The Antelope Canyon is a world famous slot canyon located in Arizona. A slot canyon is one which is formed by the wear of water rushing through rock. Normally, the depths of such canyons are larger than their width.

          There are two separate sections on the Antelope Canyon, namely the Upper Antelope and the Lower Antelope. They are both located in the LeChee Chapter of Navajo.

          As per historical records, the canyon was formed after an erosion of Navajo Sandstone, caused mainly by flash flooding. As some of you might know, a flashflood is the occurrence of sudden, unexpected local flood.

          However, the Antelope Canyon is presently the most important point of tourism in the Navajo Nation, contributing to its economy. It is also a popular destination among photographers, because of the spectacle it offers.