MIND-BLOWINGLY BEAUTIFUL BLACK PLACES TO VISIT NOW

If you’ve never experienced the amazing beauty of predominantly black landscapes, check out 10 of the most incredible, mind-blowing basalt formations in the world in today’s Daily Fix.  

Most of these beautiful black basalt columns are polygonally jointed. They were created by a Paleocene lava flow. As it solidified, the upper and lower surfaces cooled, resulting in contraction, which caused fracturing.

The fractures started in a tetragonal pattern, then most have transitioned into a hexagonal fracture pattern. Further cooling caused the cracks to extend to the middle of the flow, forminglong hexagonal columns.

1. FINGAL’S CAVE -- STAFFA, SCOTLAND

The uninhabited island of Staffa is home to Fingal’s Cave, made of black columnar basalt. This sea cave is renowned for its natural acoustics. Its Gaelic name, An Uaimh Bhinn, means "the melodious cave." One of our favorite symphonies, “The Scottish Symphony,” by Felix Mendelssohn, begins with the “Overture of Fingal’s Cave.”

Fingal Cave’s sheer size, natural arch of its roof, and echoing waves make it feel like a natural cathedral. 

2. TAKACHIHO GORGE -- TAKACHIHO, JAPAN

Row the Gokase River or walk along the paved path atop the black columnar basalt cliffs to enjoy the spectacular views of Takachiho Gorge, in Japan. The columns are said to resemble the scales of a dragon, as the stone twisted when it formed.

The 17-meter high Minainotaki waterfall adds a splash of beauty to this site, as does the green foliage behind it.

3. DEVILS POSTPILE -- MADERA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

The black beauty of Devils Postpile, an 18-meter high columnar basalt formation, is one of the finest of its kind in the world. It’s hard to believe that this monument was carved by natural forces.

It is located in the Devils Postpile National Monument, in the Ansel Adams Wilderness, in California. Here, the John Muir Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail merge into one. While you are there, check out the 100-foot high Rainbow Falls, an incredible waterfall on the San Joaquin River.

4. JUSANGJEOLLI -- JEJUDO ISLAND, SOUTH KOREA

Appearing almost as if it was carved by a sculptor, the Jusangjeolli is a spectacular volcanic basalt rock formation off the coast of Jejudo Island, South Korea. Its pillars are perfectly shaped into cubes and hexagons of different sizes.

You’ll be humbled by the power of nature as you watch the waves of the Korea Strait crash against the black shoreline.

5. CAPE STOLBCHATY -- KUNASHIR ISLAND, RUSSIA

Head to Cape Stolbchaty and you’ll be struck speechless by the imposing wall of beautiful black basalt composed of 5 and 6-sided columns that stand as tall as 60 meters high.

Look down and you’ll see that waves from the Sea of Okhotsk have polished the platform’s surface to a shiny, floor-like finish. 

This gorgeous monument is located on the east shore of Kunashir Island, Russia, and is listed as a UNESCO natural World Heritage Site.

6. GANH DA DIA -- PHU YEN PROVINCE, VIETNAM

Ganh Da Dia means “The Sea Cliff of Stone Plates,” in Vietnamese. This vast seashore area in Phu Yen Province, Vietnam, is made up of an estimated 35,000 uniformly interlocking black basalt rock columns, clustered around a small freshwater pond that is fed by underground rivers. The columns range in shape from round, to pentagonal, to hexagonal, to polygonal.

Ganh Da Dia is listed as a National Heritage Site.

7. FINGAL HEAD -- FINGAL HEAD, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA

The outcrop of black hexagonal columns at Fingal Head, near Cook Island, off the coast of New South Wales, Australia, was formed by a lava flow from the now-extinct Tweed Volcano. Made up of both black basalt and andesite, another black volcanic rock, it was first sighted by James Cook in 1770.

The stretch of water between Fingal Head and Cook Island is called “Giant’s Causeway,” named after the more famous Giant’s Causeway that separates Northern Ireland fromWestern Scotland.

8. SVARTIFOSS -- ICELAND

Svartifoss, which means “Black Fall,” is full of dark, dangerous beauty. This famous Icelandic waterfall, in Skaftafell, in Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland, is surrounded by black hexagonal basalt columns. These columns continually break off faster than the rushing water can wear them down, rendering hazardous sharp edges.

These beautiful natural columns have inspired many Icelandic architects. You can see their influence in the Hallgrímskirkja church in Reykjavík and at the National Theatre.

9. AKUN ISLAND -- ALASKA

Akun Island is one of the Krenitzin Islands, part of the Aleutian Island chain. It is mostly composed of black columnar basalt, and includes several sea caves. The island is home to about 1,200 feral cows, originally brought here by Russian prospectors.

10. GIANT’S CAUSEWAY -- IRELAND, UK

Perhaps the world’s most iconic basalt formation, the Giant’s Causeway, in Ireland, is made up of 40,000 interlocking black basalt columns. The tops of the columns form stepping stones, as they lead visitors all the way down to the foot of the cliff, where they disappear into the sea. These gorgeous 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8-sided columns stand at up to 39 feet high.

This natural wonder is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Read more about Beautiful Black, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact including Cut to Beautiful Black Now, Black is More Beautiful Than You Think Now,  Black is Beautiful & Delectable Now and The Art of Beautiful Black Now.

Want more stories like this? Sign up for our weekly BN Newsletter, Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr. Join our BeautifulNow Community and connect with the most beautiful things happening in the world right now!

Do you have amazing photos? Enter them in this week’s BN Photo Competition. We run new creative competitions every week! Now, it’s even easier to enter with the new BeautifulNow App!

Plus check out the rest of our App’s beautiful features. It’s free to download here.

IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by dun_deagh. Fingal's Cave Staffa. Staffa, Scotland.
2. Image: by Gary Craig. Fingal's Cave - Staffa. Staffa, Scotland.
3. Image: by Magnus Hagdorn. Fingal's Cave. Staffa, Scotland.
4. Image: by AJ Alfieri-Crispin. Staffa. Staffa, Scotland.
5. Image: by TANAKA Juuyoh (田中十洋). River / 川(かわ). Takachiho-kyo Gorge. Takachiho, Japan.
6. Image: by Eric T Gunther. Columnar Basalt at the Devil's Postpile. Madera County, California, USA.
7. Image: by Thrina Tham. Jusangjeolli Cliff. Jejudo Island, South Korea.
8. Image: Eugene Kaspersky. Kuril Islands - Kunashir, Cape Stolbchaty. Kunashir Island, Russia.
9. Image: by Binh Huynh. The Cliff of Stone Plates. Phú Yên Province, Vietnam.
10. Image: by Brent Pearson. Garry at Sunrise. Fingal Head. New South Wales, Australia.
11. Image: by Ron Kroetz. Svartifoss - Iceland.
12. Image: by Steve Hillebrand. Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Akun Island Columnar Basalt. Akun Island, Alaska.
13. Image: by Cord Cardinal. Steps to the Giant's Causeway. Giant’s Causeway. Ireland, UK.
14. Image: by Chris Lofqvist. Giant's Causeway. Ireland, UK.
15. Image: by Binh Huynh. The Cliff of Stone Plates. Phú Yên Province, Vietnam.
16. Image: by BN App - Download now!
17. Image: by Binh Huynh. The Cliff of Stone Plates. Phú Yên Province, Vietnam.