People have a perception of how the world looks, and how it should be. However, there are places in the world that throw all their perceptions right out the window. Learn more about the strangest places on earth to see what places might challenge your perception of the world you live in.
1. Naica’s Crystal Cave
Niaca’s Crystal Cave is also known as the Giant Crystal Cave and Cave of the Crystals.
©Alexander Van Driessche, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons - License
As the name suggests, this a cave that’s managed to grow crazy large due to perfect conditions, including 90 to 99 percent humidity and temperatures up to 136 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Giant’s Causeway
The Giant’s Causeway doesn’t look natural, but it comes from volcanic eruptions.
©iStock.com/romrodinka
The Giant’s Causeway is in Northern Ireland. In the native language, it’s known as Clochan an Aifir.
3. Danakil Depression
The tectonic plates moving ended up causing a surge of volcanic acid.
©Evgenii Mitroshin/iStock via Getty Images
The Danakil Depression came about from a shifting of tectonic plates. It sits between three different tectonic plates: the Arabian, Somali, and Nubian plates.
4. Cataumbo River
It’s common to see over 40 lightning flashes per minute here.
©Christian Pinillo Salas/ via Getty Images
Cataumbo River is where storm clouds and lightning storms occur for somewhere between 140 and 160 nights every year. The storms last about 9 hours a day.
5. Dead Vlei
Walking through this area feels like walking through a different land.
©evenfh/iStock via Getty Images
Dead Vlei is not only home to the highest dunes in the world, but there are skeletal trees around the area from a dried-up oasis.
6. Big Thicket
Big Thicket is supposedly home to a Bigfoot.
©Imogen Warren/Shutterstock.com
You might not think that there are any rainforests in North America, especially not in the United States, but you’d be wrong. Big Thicket is one such place.
7. Chocolate Hills
There are somewhere between 1,260 and 1,776 hills in the area.
©Ershov_Maks/iStock via Getty Images
The hills are known as Chocolate Hills because, in the dry months, they turn brown like chocolate.
8. Socotra
Up to 37 percent of the plants on Socotra are only found on the island.
©Oleg Znamenskiy/Shutterstock.com
Many plants and animals on this island are endemic, making the area look like an alien planet.
9. Christ of the Abyss
The statue serves as a memorial for those who lost their lives at sea.
©Sebastian Carlosena, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons - License
This is a man-made structure. Still, it’s strange to find a statue of Christ underneath the waters when diving off the coast of Florida.
10. Spotted Lake
The little pools left behind can all be different colors.
©Matt_Collingwood/iStock via Getty Images
Evaporated water leaves behind colorful pools of salt water in the summer. For the rest of the year, though, Spotted Lake looks rather normal.
11. Tsingy de Bemaraha
This is a difficult place to hike, and no one wants to walk without shoes on.
©mirecca/iStock via Getty Images
Giant needles of limestone make up Tsingy de Bemaraha.
12. Gravity Hill
An obstructed horizon and leaning trees create the illusion.
©Ajsinh/Shutterstock.com
This hill will make you feel like you’re going up, when you’re actually going down, due to the optical illusions in the area.
13. Goblin Valley State Park
Goblin Valley State Park is also one of the best places to stargaze, with the nearest light source over 10 miles away.
©marcsanchez/Shutterstock.com
Once a muddy tidal flat, erosion created the goblins made from stone found throughout the park.
14. Lencois Maranhenses National Park
Regular rain and impenetrable rock under the sand hold the water in place.
©Anderson Spinelli/iStock via Getty Images
When you hear about 383 thousand acres of white sand, you naturally think about a desert. But these dunes are actually home to pools of water.
15. The Great Rann of Kutch
The Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary is part of the Great Rann of Kutch.
©Manav Chavda/Shutterstock.com
Though it might not look like much, the Great Rann used to be part of the Arabian Sea. Now, it’s a salt marsh that takes up over 7,000 square miles.
16. North Sentinel Island
Due to their hostility, there’s next to nothing known about the islanders.
©vivaswa/Shutterstock.com
North Sentinel Island is inhabited by a group of people who have had next to no contact with modern society.
17. The Catacombs
The Catacombs underneath Paris have more than six million bodies.
©Jorge Láscar / CC BY 2.0, Flickr - License
This is another man-made place on the planet that’s incredibly strange. The Catacombs are underground and are incredibly hard to navigate.
18. Manpupuner
The Manupupuner rock formations look like seven giants standing in the open space.
©danilsnegmb/iStock via Getty Images
These seven stone pillars are also known as the Seven Strong Men Rock Formations or the Poles of the Komi Republic.
19. Zhangye Danxia
These beautiful hills in China are full of color.
©Photons_in_action/iStock via Getty Images
The Zhangye Danxia is considered one of the six most beautiful landforms in China. There are boardwalks all around to help visitors explore all the different colors.
20. Isla Madre de Dios
This island looks beautiful, but looks can be deceiving.
©CherylRamalho/Shutterstock.com
Many people don’t visit Madre de Dios. Though it’s a beautiful place, the harsh winds and rain make it a difficult place to visit.
21. Plain of Jars
There is a lot of mystery behind these jars, though it’s thought that they are somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 years old.
©Thidavanh PHETDOUANGCHANHLAO/iStock via Getty Images
Part of the reason that the jars are still unknown is that the area is still full of unexploded bombs that pose a danger to anyone visiting the area.
22. Jervis Bay
The white sandy beaches in Jervis Bay are spectacular, but it’s what you see at night that makes this beach so strange.
©lovleah/iStock via Getty Images
Jervis Bay is one of the few places where there are bioluminescent plankton that glow in the dark. They are most common during the warm months.
23. Rakotzbrucke
The bridge in the background isn’t fake. It’s a real bridge in Germany.
©Chalabala/iStock via Getty Images
Though people made this arch, it’s so delicate and impressive that it’s often called the Devil’s Bridge as it’s thought that only Satan could have had a hand in it.
Summary of the Strangest Places on Earth
| List Number | Strange Place | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Giant Crystal Cave | Niaca, Chihuahua, Mexico |
| 2 | Giant’s Causeway | County Antrim, Northern Ireland |
| 3 | Danakil Depression | Afar Triangle, Ethiopia |
| 4 | Cataumbo River | South America |
| 5 | Dead Vlei | Sossusvlei, Namibia |
| 6 | Big Thicket | Texas, United States |
| 7 | Chocolate Hills | Bohol, Philippines |
| 8 | Socotra | Yemen |
| 9 | Christ of the Abyss | Florida, United States |
| 10 | Spotted Lake | British Columbia, Canada |
| 11 | Tsingy de Bemaraha | Melaky Region, Madagascar |
| 12 | Gravity Hill | Moncton, Canada |
| 13 | Goblin Valley State Park | Utah, United States |
| 14 | Lencois Maranhenses National Park | Maranhao, Brazil |
| 15 | The Great Rann of Kutch | Gujarat, India |
| 16 | North Sentinel Island | Andaman Islands, India |
| 17 | The Catacombs | Paris, France |
| 18 | Manpupuner | Komi Republic, Russia |
| 19 | Zhangye Danxia | Gansu Province, China |
| 20 | Isla Madre de Dios | Chile |
| 21 | Plain of Jars | Xieng Khouang, Laos |
| 22 | Jervis Bay | Melaky Region, Madagascar |
| 23 | Rakotzbruke | Saxony, Germany |
The photo featured at the top of this post is © Vladimir Melnik/Shutterstock.com
How to Add Us to Google News
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us? Contact the AZ Animals editorial team.
