Showing posts with label Natural. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Natural. Show all posts

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Unique Flowers


1. Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum)
Unique Flowers

Unique Flowers: Titan Arum

Titan Arum is one of the most unique flowers of the world. The inflorescence of Titan Arum can reach up to 3 meters and emits bad odor, which is why, it is also called carrion flower or corpse flower. The plant can be found in certain regions of Sumatra and Indonesia. The largest known plant of Titan Arum weighed 91 Kilograms.
2. Butterwort (Pinguicula)
Butterwort
Unique Flowers: Butterwort

As innocuous looking as it sounds, the butterwort hides a slippery secret in plain view. Lip-like flowers with a spur end (that probably inspired “Little Shop of Horrors” screenplay writer Charles B. Griffith) rise on simple stems several inches (centimeters) into the air. But this small plant’s deadly secret isn’t its hungry-looking bloom. The real danger lies in the slick, tongue-shaped leaves that nestle close to the ground.
3. Flame Lily (Gloriosa Superba)
Flame Lily
Unique Flowers: Flame Lily

This unusual flowering plant is native of tropical regions of Asia and Africa and belongs to Colchicaceae family. Flame Lily usually grows as tuberous climbing plant and produces unusual red or yellow flowers with wavy edges. It can be grown easily from seeds though germination takes a little long time. It is also the national flower of Zimbabwe.
4. American Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia)
Pitcher Plant
Unique Flowers: Pitcher Plant

When the soil is too poor to provide enough nutrients to sustain the plant, what’s a poor flower to do? Turn carnivore, of course.
The first published documentation of the American Pitcher Plant, came from Florida in 1576. Much later, in 1793, noted American botanist William Bartram took the time to notice that vast numbers of insects got trapped in the little “pitchers” of the plant. It wasn’t until 1887 that South Carolina physician and amateur botanist Dr. Joseph H. Mellichamp proved the carnivorous nature of Sarracenia through a series of experiments that conclusively showed that insects caught in the plant were digested and reabsorbed by the plant. Studies on this wondrous herb continue today.
5. Rafflesia arnoldii (Corpse Lily)
Rafflesia arnoldii
Unique Flowers: Rafflesia arnoldii

Another remarkably different and Unique Flower, Rafflesia Arnoldii is also the largest flower of the world. This unusual flowering plant is rare and hard to find in its habitat (rainforests of Bengkulu, Sumatra Island and Indonesia). Flowers emit bad smell and can be as wide as 1 meter wide and weigh up to 11 kilogram.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

10 Top Rock Climbing sites of the World


Rock climbing has its perils but it can be endlessly thrilling at the same time as it takes you to the most awesome natural spots of the world. However, you normally do not undertake this adventure activity without taking some self-protective measures. If you aspire to test your fortitude and reach somewhere near that mark, you must start by knowing the most desirable rock climbing mountains of the world more closely.
So I have compiled some of the best rock climbing sites of the world. I hope you will like it.
Meteora, Greece
The name of this elevated region sums up to “suspended rock”. Located between the Peneios River and Pindus Mountains, these monasteries have a spectacular series of natural sandstone rock pillars in their background.
Dead Horse Point
You must have seen this magnificent rocky peak in the opening scene of the movie Mission Impossible where Tom Cruise is shown climbing it. Situated next to the Colorado River this mountain has some of the most interesting topographical features.
Spider Rock
This is an amazing tall red sandstone monolith found in the National Park of Arizona. It derives its name from the Navajo legend of the Spider Woman who supposedly made it her home. She is given the position of a savior and revered by the Dine as a deity.
Shiprock, New Mexico
Shiprock was formed by a volcanic eruption that dates back to 30 million years and now remains as a matchless basalt exhibit of the central feeder pipe of a volcano. Rock climbers making it to the top can see a series of volcanic vents and small pinnacles specking the main peak.
Las Torres de Vajolet, Italian Alps
It is best not to judge this peak by its gross photographs but to see it yourself to dispel all doubts about its beauty. The Delago arĂȘte route remains the most convenient climbing route to score this mountain.
El Capitan, Yosemite National Park, California
Situated in the northern side of Yosemite National Park, this 900 m granite monolith
has baffled cliff climbers of the world. Its altitude is not as challenging as is its vertical ascent. It is said that the constituting granite of this cliff is over 100 million years old and has almost no joints.
Mount Roraima
It is situated in the Canaima National Park of Venezuela and is one of the most ancient geological formations you will find. Sir Everard im Thurn was the first to climb this steep plateau in 1884.
Bugaboo Spire, Columbia-Kootenay, Canada
This is one of the famous Alpine rock climbing spots of Canada. The word Bugaboo means ‘an object of obsessive, usually exaggerated fear or anxiety.
Las Torres, Patagonia
You will find the Torres del Paine National Park of Chile full of the natural wonders like mountains, glaciers, rivers and lakes that makes it a spot of tourist interest. The climbers certainly enjoy the sight of the myriad interlacing valleys that separate the various granite spires and mountains of the massif.
Nameless Tower
This is the other name of the majestic Trango Towers located on the Baltoro Glacier in Baltistan, Northern Pakistan. Its large size and vast ridgeline expanding up to 1000 m has fascinated rock climbers over years. You will find 8 separate climb routes to its peak, among which the Eternal Flame remains a favorite daring one’s.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

10 Most Beautiful Mountains of the World


Perhaps Sir Edmund Hillary the New Zealand mountaineer and explorer said it best when he remarked, “It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.” No matter how daunting the task, pure human ambition has overcome unconquerable odds to subdue the tallest peaks in the world. If mountains are the “stairway to god’s heart”, we have no doubt stood beside him as equals.
Here I have compiled some of the most beautiful mountain peaks of the world. I hope you will like it.
Ama Dablam, Eastern Nepal
Ama Dablam is a mountain in the Himalaya range of eastern Nepal. Literally meaning ‘Mother and Pearl Necklace’.
Shivling, Uttarakhand, India
The Shivling Mountain is considered one of the most stunning peaks of the Garhwal region, the mountain soars 21,329 feet high. 
Machapuchare, North-Central Nepal
Machapuchare, or ‘fish tail’, is revered by locals as sacred to the god Shiva and therefore has been declared off limits to climbing. 
K-2 Godwin Austin, Pakistan

K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth.  K2 is known as the Savage Mountain due to the difficulty of ascent and the 2nd highest fatality rate among the ‘eight thousanders’ for those who climb it.
Matterhorn, Italy/Switzerland
Matterhorn has the distinction of being an iconic emblem of the Swiss Alps even though it isn’t the tallest peak in the region. It is a huge tourist attraction and one of the best known mountains in the world.
Fitz Roy, Argentina/Chile

Named Fitz Roy by Francisco Moreno after the Beagle’s captain Robert FitzRoy, the mountain is isn’t the tallest peak in the region and is less than half the size of some of the Himalayan peaks but the scenery it provides makes it unique.
Sajama, Bolivia
Sajama is better known as a volcano but is technically a mountain of volcanic ash. The highest peak in Bolivia, it is 21,463 feet high and is known for some of the tallest trees in the world, at 5200m.
The Rockies, Canada/US
I opted to profile the Canadian Rockies because they’re older, heavily glaciated, and have a very distinct appearance sharp peaks separated by deep valleys.
Pumori, Nepal
Lining the Nepal-Tibet border, Pumori or ‘Unmarried Daughter’ and is a popular climbing route in spite of avalanche danger. The view of Everest from here is considered to be one of the best, given clear weather conditions.
Nanga Parbat, Pakistan

Nanga Parbat is the ninth highest mountain on Earth. Known as the “Killer Mountain,” Nanga Parbat was one of the deadliest of the eight-thousanders for climbers. It is also an immense, dramatic peak that rises far above its surrounding terrain.

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