Natural Wonders

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protonaut

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#1


The Cascade Mountain range (extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California) was a home to many indigenous groups over the ages. The Klamath were one of the early tribes inhabiting these mountains, most of their people settling in the land that would become the state of Oregon. Mount Mazama (located about 100 miles east of the Pacific Ocean) was believed to be a portal to Llao, their god of the underworld. Over 7,700 years ago the mountain exploded--the volcano is estimated to have been 42 times more powerful than Mount St. Helens' 1980 blast. The Klamaths recounted the events as a great battle between Llao and his rival Skell, their sky god. They abandoned this area and never returned, as it was considered holy land.

Long centuries passed as melting ice and snow filled in the depths of the caldera (volcanic basin) that remained after the mountain's collapse. A massive lake formed here, hidden inside the mountain wall and surrounded by a great expanse of forest. On June 12, 1853, John Wesley Hillman was reportedly the first European American to discover what he named "Deep Blue Lake" in Oregon. The lake was renamed at least three times, as Blue Lake, Lake Majesty, and finally Crater Lake. During his campaign, President Theodore Roosevelt agreed to help preserve the lake along with much of its surrounding land. On May 22, 1902, Crater Lake National Park was established as the sixth National Park in the United States.

Crater Lake
Mount Mazama
Crater Lake (photo)
Crater Lake National Park
 

protonaut

Well-Known Member
#6


The Chocolate Hills is a rolling terrain of haycock hills – mounds of general shape which are conical and almost symmetrical. Estimated to be at least 1,268 individual mounds to about 1,776, these cone-shaped or dome-shaped hills are actually made of grass-covered limestone. The domes vary in sizes from 30 to 50 metres (98 to 160 ft) high with the largest being 120 metres (390 ft) in height. They are scattered throughout the towns of Carmen, Batuan and Sagbayan in Bohol, Phillipines.

During the dry season, the precipitation is inadequate such that the grass-covered hills dry up and turn chocolate brown. This transforms the area into seemingly endless rows of "chocolate kisses". The branded confection is the inspiration behind the name, Chocolate Hills.

Some geologists think that the specific shape of the hills is caused by the influence of the weather over millions of years. The break down of the upper layers of the limestone formations, followed by the erosion processes, resulted in these cone-shaped remnants. It is likely that they were once limestone deposits beneath the sea, uplifted by the movement of plates and then smoothed by wind and rainwater erosion.

Bohol
Chocolate Hills
 

snowraven

Well-Known Member
#8
Many thanks for sharing this. Hope you make it there one day. I find that going to such beautiful places really helps me to keep things in perspective. They remind me that no matter how bad I may be feeling it is still a wonderful world.
 
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