Onion valley California

Onion Valley is located in the eastern Sierra, thirteen miles west of the town of Independence, California, near Kearsarge Pass, Robinson Lake, and Golden Trout Lakes Trailheads.   Grays Meadow is located six miles west of Independence hear the Shepherd Pass Trailhead.  Elevation is 9,200 feet.

Restrooms are provided. Firewood is for sale on-site. Trailers are not recommended. Tent Trailers are OK. Reservations are accepted though some sites are available only on a first come, first serve basis for customers without a reservations.  Night time security patrols are provided during periods of high bear activity.

Grays Meadow Campground is located next to a stream that is stocked weekly. Early trout fishing season starts first weekend in March.

Read More

Valley of lavender Isparta

Lavandula (common name lavender) is a genus of 39 known species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to theOld World and is found from Cape Verde and the Canary Islands, Europe across to northern and eastern Africa, the Mediterranean, southwest Asia to southeast India. 

Many members of the genus are cultivated extensively in temperate climates as ornamental plants for garden and landscape use, for use as culinary herbs, and also commercially for the extraction of essential oils. The most widely cultivated species, Lavandula angustifolia, is often referred to as lavender, and there is a colour named for the shade of the flowers of this species.

Read More

Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea

Changdeokgung Palace is also known as Donggwol, the Eastern Palace, because of its location to the east of Gyeongbokgung Palace. For 270 years, the palace was home to the Joseon government and was also the favored residence of many Joseon Dynasty kings. This makes Changdeokgung Palace the longest-serving royal residential palace. Compared to other palaces, Changdeokgung Palace is well-preserved and still has many of its original features. A particular virtue of Changdeokgung Palace is the way its buildings blend into the surrounding landscape. The palace's rear garden, Huwon, is considered an excellent example of Korean garden design and is the only rear garden of any Korean palace. In 1997, Changdeokgung Palace was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Visitors to Changdeokgung Palace might also like to see the nearby Changgyeonggung Palace as well as the recently restored Naeuiwon (Royal infirmary) at the entrance to Changdeokgung Palace.

Changdeokgung Palace was built in 1405 by King Taejong (the third king of the Joseon Dynasty). In 1592 the main palace, Gyeongbokgung Palace, was completely destroyed by fire during the Japanese invasion of Korea and Changdeokgung became the home of the Joseon court. For this reason Changdeokgung Palace is the place which most represents the Joseon Dynasty in the popular imagination. Its status as a national symbol meant that it suffered deliberate damage by the Japanese during their occupation of Korea. For many years afterwards it was neglected until it was reconstructed and restored to its original state in 1991.

Read More

Sparring red foxes at Alaska peninsula

The red fox, (Vulpes vulpes), is the largest of the true foxes and the most abundant wild member of the Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to North Africa, North America and Eurasia. It is listed as least concern by the IUCN. Its range has increased alongside human expansion, having been introduced to Australia, where it is considered harmful to native mammals and bird populations. Due to its presence in Australia, it is included among the list of the "world's 100 worst invasive species".

The red fox originated from smaller-sized ancestors from Eurasia during the Middle Villafranchian period, and colonised North America shortly after the Wisconsin glaciation. Among the true foxes, the red fox represents a more progressive form in the direction of carnivory. Apart from its large size, the red fox is distinguished from other fox species by its ability to adapt quickly to new environments. Despite its name, the species often produces individuals with other colourings, including albinos and melanists.Forty-five subspecies are currently recognised, which are divided into two categories: the large northern foxes, and the small, basal southern foxes of Asia and the Middle East.

Red foxes are usually together in pairs or small groups consisting of families, such as a mated pair and their young, or a male with several females having kinship ties. The young of the mated pair remain with their parents to assist in caring for new kits.The species primarily feeds on small rodents, though it may also target rabbits, game birds, reptiles, invertebrates and young ungulates. Fruit and vegetable matter is also eaten sometimes. Although the red fox tends to kill smaller predators, including other fox species, it is vulnerable to attack from larger predators, such as wolves, coyotes, golden jackals and medium- and large-sized felines.

The species has a long history of association with humans, having been extensively hunted as a pest and furbearer for many centuries, as well as being represented in human folklore and mythology. Because of its widespread distribution and large population, the red fox is one of the most important furbearing animals harvested for the fur trade. Too small to pose a threat to humans, it has successfully colonised many suburban areas. It is the only fox native to Western Europe, and so is simply called "the fox" in colloquial British English.

Read More

Moeraki Boulders New Zealand

 The Moeraki Boulders are unusually large and spherical boulders lying along a stretch of Koekohe Beach on the wave-cut Otagocoast of New Zealand between Moeraki and Hampden. They occur scattered either as isolated or clusters of boulders within a stretch of beach where they have been protected in a scientific reserve. The erosion by wave action of mudstone, comprising local bedrock and landslides, frequently exposes embedded isolated boulders. These boulders are grey-colored septarian concretions, which have been exhumed from the mudstone enclosing them and concentrated on the beach by coastal erosion.

Read More

Sandpiper

 The common sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos) is a small Palearctic wader. This bird and its American sister species, the spotted sandpiper (A. macularia), make up the genus Actitis. They are parapatric and replace each other geographically; stray birds of either species may settle down with breeders of the other and hybridize. Hybridization has also been reported between the common sandpiper and the green sandpiper, a basal species of the closely related shank genus Tringa.

Read More

Cuenca Ecuador

Cuenca, Ecuador’s third-largest city and the economic center of the southern sierra, has long been known for a rich intellectual, artistic, and philosophical tradition that matches its colonial architecture. The city is famous for its colorful festivals, distinct food and breathtaking scenery. Because of its history and state of preservation, Cuenca is one of Ecuador’s three UNESCO World Heritage Trust sites (the others are Quito and the Galapagos Islands).

Read More

Kaszubski Poland

The Kaszuby Province lies in the northern edge of Poland. It spreads over south and west from the sea port of Gdanski on the Baltic Sea and covers an extensive area of varying landscapes - from sand dunes to forests and hills. The most important feature of the Kaszuby region is the thousands of lakes that abound the area. It is because of these lakes it is also called the Kashubian Lakeland. The region promises an exciting holiday in the sun and the sea combined with heritage sites and folk culture.

Read More

Bangkok Thailand

 Bangkok  is the capital and most populous city of Thailand.The city occupies 1,568.7 square kilometres (605.7 sq mi) in the Chao Phraya River delta in Central Thailand, and has a population of over 8 million, or 12.6 percent of the country's population. Over 14 million people (22.2 percent) live within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region , making Bangkok an extreme primate city, dwarfing Thailand's other urban centres in terms of importance.

Read More

West Sweden

 It is located in the south-west of the country, centered on Västra Götaland County and the city of Gothenburg. After Stockholm it is the second most populated region. It borders with Norway and the riksområden of North Middle Sweden, East Middle Sweden,Småland and the islands and South Sweden.

Read More

Lake National Park, Queen Elizabeth, Uganda

Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda’s most popular game reserve for Uganda safaris and certainly one most scenic. It stretches from the crater-dotted foothills of the Rwenzori range in the north, along the shores of Lake Edward to the remote Ishasha River in the south, incorporating a wide variety of habitats that range from savanna and wetlands to gallery and lowland forest. This remarkable diversity is reflected in its bird list of over 550 species, the largest of any protected area in Africa.

Read More

Trees put on their white dresses

Read More

Valley of the Gods, Utah

Valley of the Gods is a scenic backcountry area is southeastern Utah, near Mexican Hat. It is a hidden gem with scenery similar to that of nearby Monument Valley. Valley of the Gods offers isolated buttes, towering pinnacles and wide open spaces that seem to go on forever.

The Valley of the Gods area may be toured via a 17-mile (27 km) gravel road (FR 242) that winds around the formations. The road is rather steep and bumpy in parts but is passable by non-four-wheel drive vehicles in dry weather. The western end joins UT 261 shortly before its 1,200-foot (370 m) ascent up Cedar Mesa at Moki Dugway, while the eastern end starts 9 miles (14 km) from the town of Mexican Hat along US 163 and heads north, initially crossing flat, open land and following the course of Lime Creek, a seasonal wash, before turning west towards the buttes and pinnacles. In addition to the gravel road, the area is also crisscrossed by off-road dirt trails.


The valley is public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management. There are no entrance fees and no services of any kind in the valley though a bed-and-breakfast is located near the western end of FR 242.

Read More

Ninh Binh river on a raining day

Located in North Vietnam - around 56 miles from Hanoi - is the province of Ninh Binh, a popular destination with breathtaking views of the limestone mountains.

Read More

Uddevalla bridge Sweden

The Uddevalla Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge crossing Sunninge sound near Uddevalla in the province of Bohuslän on the west coast of Sweden. The bridge was constructed as part of the rerouting of the European route E06 outside Uddevalla, which reduced traffic congestion in the city and shortened traveling distance by 12 kilometers.

The total length is 1,712 m (5,617 ft), with a main span of 414 m (1,358 ft), there are a number of small approach spans at each end, and the two cable stayed side spans are 179 m (587 ft) each. It is 23.3 m (76 ft) wide, the clearance below the bridge is 51 m (167 ft), and the two pylons are 149 m (489 ft) high. The cables are organised in a semi-fan arrangement.


The bridge was constructed in 1996–2000 and was opened for traffic on 20 May 2000.

Read More

Cape Reinga Lighthouse , New Zealand

Cape Reinga Lighthouse is a lighthouse at Cape Reinga in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand.[2] It is owned and operated by Maritime New Zealand. The lighthouse is a common New Zealand icon and a popular tourist destination although the lighthouse itself is not open to the public.

The lighthouse was built in 1941 and first lit during May of that year. It was the last manned light to be built in New Zealand and replaced the Cape Maria Van Diemen Lighthouse, located on nearby Motuopao Island, which had been built in 1879. Accessing that lighthouse was difficult due to the rough seas in the area, so in 1938, it was decided to move the lighthouse to Cape Reinga for safety reasons. The complete lantern fittings from Motuopao Island were reused at Cape Reinga, though the new lighthouse was fitted with a 1000 watt electrical lamp instead that could be seen for 26 nautical miles (48 km). The lamp was powered by a diesel generator.

In 1987, the lighthouse was fully automated and the lighthouse keepers were withdrawn. The lighthouse is now monitored remotely from Wellington. In May 2000 the original lens and lamp were replaced by a 50 watt beacon. The beacon is powered by batteries that are recharged by solar cells. The beacon flashes every 12 seconds and can be seen for 19 nautical miles (35 km).

Read More

Spring coming Alaska

Read More

Sunset Wadi Rum Jordan

Wadi Rum is a protected area covering 720 square kilometers of dramatic desert wilderness in the south of Jordan. Huge mountains of sandstone and granite emerge, sheer-sided, from wide sandy valleys to reach heights of 1700 meters and more. Narrow canyons and fissures cut deep into the mountains and many conceal ancient rock drawings etched by the peoples of the desert over millennia. Bedouin tribes still live among the mountains of Rum and their large goat-hair tents are a special feature of the landscape.

There are many ways to enjoy the attractions of Rum, including jeep, camel and hiking tours and you can stay overnight in a Bedouin tent and gaze at the amazing panoply of stars.

To safeguard its unique desert landscape, Wadi Rum was declared a protected area in1998 and an intensive conservation programme is now underway.

Read More

Pond of Gököz Bursa

Gököz Pond is  in  Keles, Bursa Province, Turkey. It is located northwest of the city of Bursa and south of Mount Uludağ.

Read More

Heestrand Sweden

Heestrand in Västra Götaland (region) is a town located in Sweden - about 248 mi (or 399 km) West of Stockholm, the country's capital town.

Read More

Wulong National Park, Chongqing, China

Located in the Wulong National Geology Park, the Wu Long karsts form a range of stone bridges and deep mountain valleys in Wulong county of Chongqing municipality.

The Wulong karsts, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are also home to the Three Natural Bridges (天生三桥 – Tiānshēng Sān Qiáo). The trip can be done in one day, but I would recommend two days so you are not rushed.

You can get there with a tour group, but we opted for public transport. We took the subway to Sigongli 四公里 stop and then we walked to the adjacent bus station and bought a RMB60 ticket for Wulong (武隆). The bus ride took 2.5 hrs and dropped us off in downtown Wulong. From there we took a minibus to Shān nǚ zhèn (山女镇) for RMB7, which dropped us off at the Wulong tourist center 20 min later. From the tourist center we bought the entrance ticket and a 40RMB bus ticket to the actual site of the Three Natural Bridges.

Once at the karst site, the walk on a paved path is downhill and takes about 90 minutes at a leisurely pace. During the walk, you'll see three massive stone archways and an almost mystical building under the Tianlong Bridge. This ancient outpost was featured in Zhang Yimou’s Curse of the Golden Flower (a fact proudly inscribed in a rock next to the building). It’s easy to see why Zhang Yimou picked this spot as the only outside scene in the whole movie: the environment truly makes you feel like you’re in a classic Chinese period movie.

Read More

Twin towers Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

The Petronas Towers, also known as the Petronas Twin Towers (Malay: Menara Petronas, or Menara Berkembar Petronas), are twin skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. According to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)'s official definition and ranking, they were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and remain the tallest twin towers in the world. The buildings are a landmark of Kuala Lumpur, along with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower.

Read More

Norway

Norway (Listeni/ˈnɔːrweɪ/ nawr-way; Norwegian: About this sound Norge (Bokmål) or About this sound Noreg (Nynorsk)), officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a sovereign and unitary monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula plus the island Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard.[note 1] The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the Kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land. Until 1814, the Kingdom included the Faroe Islands (since 1035), Greenland (1261), and Iceland (1262). It also included Shetland and Orkney until 1468.

Norway has a total area of 385,252 square kilometres (148,747 sq mi) and a population of 5,109,059 people (2014).The country shares a long eastern border with Sweden (1,619 km or 1,006 mi long). Norway is bordered by Finland and Russia to the north-east, and the Skagerrak Strait to the south, with Denmark on the other side. Norway has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea.

King Harald V of the German House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg is the current monarch of Norway. Erna Solberg became Prime Minister in 2013, replacing Jens Stoltenberg. A constitutional monarchy, Norway divides state power between the Parliament, the King, and the Supreme Court, as determined by the 1814 Constitution. The Kingdom is established as a merger of several petty kingdoms. By the traditional count from the year 872 the Kingdom has existed continuously for 1,144 years, and the list of Norwegian monarchs includes over sixty kings and earls.

Norway has both administrative and political subdivisions on two levels: counties and municipalities. The Sámi people have a certain amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament and the Finnmark Act. Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States. Norway is a founding member of the United Nations, NATO, the Council of Europe, the Antarctic Treaty and the Nordic Council; a member of the European Economic Area, the WTO and the OECD; and is also a part of the Schengen Area.

The country maintains a combination of market economy and a Nordic welfare model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system. Norway has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, fresh water, and hydropower. The petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the country's gross domestic product.The country has the fourth-highest per capita income in the world on the World Bank and IMF lists, as well as ninth-highest on a more comprehensive CIA list. On a per-capita basis, it is the world's largest producer of oil and natural gas outside the Middle East. From 2001 to 2006,and then again from 2009 to 2014, Norway had the highest Human Development Index ranking in the world.Norway has also topped the Legatum Prosperity Index for the last five years.

Read More

Pszczyna Poland

Pszczyna  is a town in southern Poland with 25,415 inhabitants (2010) within the immediate gmina. There are 33,654 inhabitants within the area of the town itself and 50,121 in Pszczyna County of which Pszczyna is the capital. The town is located in the Silesian Voivodeship. It was a part of Katowice Voivodeship from 1975 until administrative reform in 1998.


 Pszczyna is situated on sandy plains ascending into the east. The land is slightly hilly, but with no large relative elevations. The highest points are less than 260 metres (850 feet)above sea level.

Read More

lake ulugol

Gölköy is a town and district of Ordu Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The town is located 60 km (37 mi) inland from the city of Ordu on the road to Sivas. According to the 2000 census, population of the district is 66,491 of which 24,162 live in the town of Gölköy.[3][4] The district covers an area of 415 km2 (160 sq mi),[5] and the town lies at an elevation of 1,054 m (3,458 ft).
Places of interest include the Byzantine castle of Habsamana, and a number of places of natural beauty for walking and climbing including the village of Cihadiye and Ulugöl.

Read More

the picture of life

Read More

welcome to my blog

Read More