2021-03-29
The basalt rock formations of Reynisdrangar on Reynisfjara Beach, Iceland (© Cavan Images/Getty Images)
黑沙滩上Reynisdrangar的玄武岩，冰岛 (© Cavan Images/Getty Images)
Any visitor to Iceland knows that driving the Ring Road rewards one with incredible changing landscapes. Today, we're taking a quick detour to visit this chiseled stretch of Iceland's southern coast, where black sand beaches meet spiky basalt sea stacks. This is Reynisfjara Beach, widely considered the most beautiful example of Iceland's black sand beaches. The sea stacks fronting the beach are known as Reynisdrangar and were formed when a volcano erupted, spewing flowing lava that cooled into these formations. Ask the locals how they formed, however, and you may get a different story, one involving trolls and a battle with a three-masted ship.
The basalt rock formations of Reynisdrangar on Reynisfjara Beach, Iceland (© Cavan Images/Getty Images)
黑沙滩上Reynisdrangar的玄武岩，冰岛 (© Cavan Images/Getty Images)
Any visitor to Iceland knows that driving the Ring Road rewards one with incredible changing landscapes. Today, we're taking a quick detour to visit this chiseled stretch of Iceland's southern coast, where black sand beaches meet spiky basalt sea stacks. This is Reynisfjara Beach, widely considered the most beautiful example of Iceland's black sand beaches. The sea stacks fronting the beach are known as Reynisdrangar and were formed when a volcano erupted, spewing flowing lava that cooled into these formations. Ask the locals how they formed, however, and you may get a different story, one involving trolls and a battle with a three-masted ship.
2021-03-30
Detail of an ostrich fern in spring, Washington state (© Stephen Matera/Tandem Stills + Motion)
春日里的荚果蕨细节图，华盛顿州 (© Stephen Matera/Tandem Stills + Motion)
Each of these tiny fern appendages, known as fronds, is made up of even tinier leaves—but they won't be tiny for long. Ostrich ferns like this one, named for their tapering fronds that resemble feathery ostrich plumes, can be almost 6 feet tall once mature.
Detail of an ostrich fern in spring, Washington state (© Stephen Matera/Tandem Stills + Motion)
春日里的荚果蕨细节图，华盛顿州 (© Stephen Matera/Tandem Stills + Motion)
Each of these tiny fern appendages, known as fronds, is made up of even tinier leaves—but they won't be tiny for long. Ostrich ferns like this one, named for their tapering fronds that resemble feathery ostrich plumes, can be almost 6 feet tall once mature.
2021-03-31
Wayag Island at Raja Ampat, Indonesia (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)
拉贾安帕特群岛中的瓦亚格岛，印度尼西亚 (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)
If your dream is to experience a tropical paradise that's still largely untouched by people, you could do worse than a trip to Wayag Island, seen here. It's part of the Raja Ampat district in the province of West Papua, Indonesia. Most of the roughly 50,000 inhabitants of this district live on or around its four main islands, Batanta, Misool, Salawati and Waigeo. The remainder of Raja Ampat is made up of roughly 1,500 smaller islands, cays, and shoals–astonishingly, hundreds of these tiny islands have yet to be explored by humans.
Wayag Island at Raja Ampat, Indonesia (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)
拉贾安帕特群岛中的瓦亚格岛，印度尼西亚 (© Amazing Aerial Agency/Offset by Shutterstock)
If your dream is to experience a tropical paradise that's still largely untouched by people, you could do worse than a trip to Wayag Island, seen here. It's part of the Raja Ampat district in the province of West Papua, Indonesia. Most of the roughly 50,000 inhabitants of this district live on or around its four main islands, Batanta, Misool, Salawati and Waigeo. The remainder of Raja Ampat is made up of roughly 1,500 smaller islands, cays, and shoals–astonishingly, hundreds of these tiny islands have yet to be explored by humans.