Posts tagged ‘Rocks’

The Great Ocean Road

By on June 12, 2016

A few weeks ago we drove along the Great Ocean Road, where the limestone plateau of western Victoria falls into the sea, leaving behind remnant limestone stacks, arches and gorges. As we drove from the western end back towards Melbourne we didn’t quite make it as far as the famous 12 Apostles (or however many are left standing) but there were plenty of coastal features still to see.

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Loch Ard Gorge, named after a ship which was wrecked within the bay many years ago.

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At the far western end of the Great Ocean Road the limestone cliffs eventually become beaches with steep dunes.

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There used to be another limestone arch forming a natural bridge between the main cliff on the left and the island on the right but it fell into the sea and the sight is now known as London Bridge.

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Travelling the Great Ocean Road in the cooler months and on a grey overcast day meant there weren’t too many tourists to get in the way of your photos.

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Sunset at Spitzkoppe

By on February 26, 2015

Spitzkoppe (also known as the Matterhorn of Namibia) is a set of bald granite peaks that easily stand out in the landscape of the flat Namib Desert. The 700 million year old granites rise up to 700 metres above the surrounding desert plains and make a fantastic focal point in the landscape. We camped at the base of Spitzkoppe one night and witnessed a magnificent sunset disappearing behind the granite shapes.
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Rock Hydrax (or Rock Dassies) were the only animals we saw wandering amongst the rocks.

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Whilst the sun set over to the west, a storm rolled in from the east and we had a wet evening huddle in tents.

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Kuiseb River Canyon

By on February 17, 2015

The Kuiseb River runs through the south of Namibia. The western end of the river acts as a border for the sand dunes

of the Namib Desert, whilst the eastern end of the river has carved a canyon into the rocky landscape. The rivers water

is not always visible but the river bed can be identified by the presence of trees.

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Not only was the Kuiseb Canyon and River viewed from a scenic flight over the Namib Desert but we also

drove through the canyon and stopped for a quick look.

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Fish River Canyon

By on February 14, 2015

Hidden away in the desert lands of southern Namibia is the Fish River Canyon, Africa’s largest canyon

and second in size to the Grand Canyon. The canyon stretches approximately 160km along

the Fish River, spreads up to 27km in width and drops to 550m deep in some places.

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It was ~350 million years ago when the canyon began to form as the Fish River

started to erode through the quartzite layers of Nama group before eroding

its way through the convoluted gneisses of the Namaqualand Metamorphic Complex.

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We arrived in the late afternoon to avoid the summer heat and did a short rim walk along the edge of the

canyon (along the eastern edge in the northern section of the canyon) before watching the sunset over the canyon.

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Lulworth Cove

By on December 13, 2014

Continuing along the Jurassic Coast from Durdle Door and Man O’ War Bay is Lulworth Cove.

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It is composed of the same geological strata found around Durdle Door and the cove itself is carved

from the limestone that forms the cliffs neighbouring Durdle Door.

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The water turns a milky blue as the cliffs slowly erode away and form a beach full of white pebbles.

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In the next little cove is the Lulworth Crumple. A near vertical set of strata, resulting from

folding of the Purbeck Stone (a series of thin layers of Limestone and Clay).

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More information on the geology can be found here.

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