In splendid isolation, the village of Gásadalur in the Faroe Islands. Separated from the rest of the world by sea and mountains, until 2004 the only way in or out was via a strenuous hike over 400 metre high mountains. In 2004, a tunnel was blasted through one of the mountains, creating a road. A boon for the village's 11 residents...
It took me a moment to realise what this was - Toledo Station on the Naples Metro. Unreal really... please log in to view this image
A gaucho surveying his land in the Patagonian province of Chubut. Perhaps surprisingly, one of the official languages of Chubut is Welsh - the result of the Argentinian government encouraging settlement there by Europeans in 1865. A group of Welsh settlers took up the offer and established the now 70k strong community known as Y Wladfa.
The Crowley Lake columns in California. Crowley Lake is a reservoir created in 1941. Shortly after completion these strange columns appeared on the eastern shore - approximately 5000 in number, they are apparently made from erosion-proof minerals.
A volcanologist making his way through steam on Mutnovsky Volcano on the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia - not a job I would fancy. With 29 active volcanoes, the peninsula is one of the most volcanically active regions in the world.
To celebrate Colombia reaching the Copa America final last night - Caño Cristales, a river in the Serrania de la Macarena, an isolated mountain range - so isolated that the river was apparently only discovered in 1969. The colours on the riverbed are caused by the plant Macarenia clavigera, which is only found in this particular river - it blooms during the rainy season from July to November, changing colour from green to yellow to various shades of red during that time.
Casa do Penedo, situated in northern Portugal between Fafe and Celorico de Basto. Built between 1972 - 1974, using four large boulders that serve as the foundation, walls and ceiling of the house, it was originally used as a holiday home but is now a museum.
Gangkhar Puensum on the border between Bhutan and Tibet - at 24,836 ft. the highest unclimbed mountain in the world. Since Bhutan was opened for mountaineering in 1983, there have been five attempts to climb it. The first four, in 1985/86, failed due to adverse weather and cold. The last attempt in 1999 managed to get 1.2 miles from the summit but had to turn back as their permit ran out. In 2003, all mountaineering was banned in Bhutan - presumably so that their mountain can keep its record....
The Red Beach, Panjin in China. Not really a beach, it's one of the world's largest wetlands - the colouring comes from the seepweed plant - one of the few that can thrive in alkaline soil and absorb high levels of saline. It starts out life green but from Spring to Autumn it gradually changes to deep red.
Agreed. From what I've read, climbers have a habit of not bringing down stuff that they take up -sometimes not even themselves. Am not too sure what the Sherpas would say though - it must be a lucrative source of money for them.
The Resilience of Trees. It takes me back to images of post-bushfire trees in Australia - only days after fires had been contained, the apparently burnt-out stumps were showing regrowth. Nature really is wonderful.
There is a huge Oak tree (I think) at Kew. It was slowly dieing due to the compaction of the soil from so many people walking under it. During the big storm a few years back which knocked over many trees the Oak got lifted out of the ground but due to it's weight fell back into place. It then took on a new lease of life because the soil it's roots were in could breath again. Tree specialists realised that they could rescue other trees that were toiling by literally disturbing the soil around their roots in a drastic manner. Nature doing it's thing again and showing us what to do!
The Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar. What might be considered a bland and unusual structure considering what likely lies within - the brightly coloured, geometric and abstract floral patterned mosaics typical of the genre.
Danny MacAskill, Scottish professional street trials and mountain bike rider on top of the peak of Sgurr Dearg - known as the Inaccessible Pinnacle - a famous feature of the Cuillin Ridge on the Isle of Skye. How he got up there on a bike is anyone’s guess - as is how he is going to get down again.
Having been on top of the In Pin, it does not look like what is shown in the photo. Shape is all wrong and you can get several people on top, it's quite flat. Getting up is reasonably easy, if very exposed, getting down requires an abseil. Maybe the photo has been shopped.
All is revealed in this video - apart from how he got back down again. He actually climbed up, unroped, carrying his bike, and it looks like he may have got a bit higher than you did.
Yes that's in InnPin, don't recall the lump he is standing on. I climbed up unroped (without bike) and told my future wife to follow me, which she did, in fact she may have gone up first just in case I had to catch her. I was mighty impressed, it was one of her first Munros! Fortunately there was a bloke at the top who made sure we absieled off safely as I was not 100% sure of what I was doing
