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REFORD GARDENS | LES JARDINS DE METIS

 

Spectacular view associated with wind gusts.

  

Beautiful flowers at Reford Gardens.

 

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

  

VERTICAL LINE GARDEN 2017

Julia Jamrozik, Coryn Kempster

Buffalo, United States.

 

Visit: www.ck-jj.com

 

From the plaque:

 

Drawing on the formal language of historical garden design, and the contemporary means of mass-produced safety and construction material, the project is a strong graphic intervention that aims to produce an abstract field.

 

Defining a geometric zone out of tightly spaced parallel lines of stretched commercial barrier tape , the installation introduces ordered man-made elements into the cultivated natural environment of the Reford Gardens. Through this juxtaposition, a dialogue between the two spheres is created based on the shared theme of protection and necessary safe-guarding while questioning the definition of what is truly natural.

 

As one approaches and then walks around and through the installation the changing viewpoint will allow the shifting of the tape lines in space and thus varied views of the overall composition. Further the movement of the lines with the changing of the climate, the wind and the sun will ensure a dynamic optical and auditory engagement for the audience. As visitors enter and inhabit the space by occupying the provided loungers, the fluctuating appearance of the installation is further enhanced.

 

In the 2015 version of the garden, we have decided to alter the colours of the field and provide and to provide canpy elements which will not only provide shade but also give a different experiential perspective of the banner tape.

 

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Texte de la plaque:

 

S'appuyant sur le langage formel de la conception du jardin historique, sur des moyens modernes de sécutité et sur des matériaux de construction produits en massa, le projet se veut une intervention graphique cherchant à créer un champs abstrait.

 

Des lignes parallèles de rubans de sécurité étroitement espacés définissent une zone géométrique. Cette installation d’éléments ordonnés prend place dans un milieu d’aspect naturel. Par cette juxtaposition, un dialogue entre les deux se crée basé sur le thème commun de la protection et de la sauvegarde , tout en s’interrogeant sur la définition de ce qui est vraiment naturel.

 

En s’approchant, en marchant autour et au travers le jardin, le point de vue change, ce qui permet le déplacement des lignes dans l’espace pour offrir de nouvelles perspectives sur la composition globale. Outre le mouvement des lignes, les changements de climat, le vent et le soleil procurent aux visiteurs des expériences visuelles et auditives dynamiques. Lorsque les visiteurs entrent et habitent l’espace en s’assoyant sur les chaises, l’aspect fluctuant de l’installation est renforcé.

 

Dans la version 2015 du jardin, les couleurs des rubans sont différentes et trois canopées ont été ajoutés. Ce qui va non seulement fournir de l’ombre mais aussi offrir une perspective expérientielle différente sur les rubans de sécurité.

  

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Visit : www.refordgardens.com

  

From Wikipedia:

 

Elsie Stephen Meighen - born January 22, 1872, Perth, Ontario - and Robert Wilson Reford - born in 1867, Montreal - got married on June 12, 1894.

 

Elsie Reford was a pioneer of Canadian horticulture, creating one of the largest private gardens in Canada on her estate, Estevan Lodge in eastern Québec. Located in Grand-Métis on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, her gardens have been open to the public since 1962 and operate under the name Les Jardins de Métis and Reford Gardens.

  

Born January 22, 1872 at Perth, Ontario, Elsie Reford was the eldest of three children born to Robert Meighen and Elsie Stephen. Coming from modest backgrounds themselves, Elsie’s parents ensured that their children received a good education. After being educated in Montreal, she was sent to finishing school in Dresden and Paris, returning to Montreal fluent in both German and French, and ready to take her place in society.

 

She married Robert Wilson Reford on June 12, 1894. She gave birth to two sons, Bruce in 1895 and Eric in 1900. Robert and Elsie Reford were, by many accounts, an ideal couple. In 1902, they built a house on Drummond Street in Montreal. They both loved the outdoors and they spend several weeks a year in a log cabin they built at Lac Caribou, south of Rimouski. In the autumn they hunted for caribou, deer, and ducks. They returned in winter to ski and snowshoe. Elsie Reford also liked to ride. She had learned as a girl and spent many hours riding on the slopes of Mount Royal. And of course, there was salmon-fishing – a sport at which she excelled.

 

In her day, she was known for her civic, social, and political activism. She was engaged in philanthropic activities, particularly for the Montreal Maternity Hospital and she was also the moving force behind the creation of the Women’s Canadian Club of Montreal, the first women club in Canada. She believed it important that the women become involved in debates over the great issues of the day, « something beyond the local gossip of the hour ». Her acquaintance with Lord Grey, the Governor-General of Canada from 1904 to 1911, led to her involvement in organizing, in 1908, Québec City’s tercentennial celebrations. The event was one of many to which she devoted herself in building bridges with French-Canadian community.

 

During the First World War, she joined her two sons in England and did volunteer work at the War Office, translating documents from German into English. After the war, she was active in the Victorian Order of Nurses, the Montreal Council of Social Agencies, and the National Association of Conservative Women.

 

In 1925 at the age of 53 years, Elsie Reford was operated for appendicitis and during her convalescence, her doctor counselled against fishing, fearing that she did not have the strength to return to the river.”Why not take up gardening?” he said, thinking this a more suitable pastime for a convalescent woman of a certain age. That is why she began laying out the gardens and supervising their construction. The gardens would take ten years to build, and would extend over more than twenty acres.

 

Elsie Reford had to overcome many difficulties in bringing her garden to life. First among them were the allergies that sometimes left her bedridden for days on end. The second obstacle was the property itself. Estevan was first and foremost a fishing lodge. The site was chosen because of its proximity to a salmon river and its dramatic views – not for the quality of the soil.

 

To counter-act nature’s deficiencies, she created soil for each of the plants she had selected, bringing peat and sand from nearby farms. This exchange was fortuitous to the local farmers, suffering through the Great Depression. Then, as now, the gardens provided much-needed work to an area with high unemployment. Elsie Reford’s genius as a gardener was born of the knowledge she developed of the needs of plants. Over the course of her long life, she became an expert plantsman. By the end of her life, Elsie Reford was able to counsel other gardeners, writing in the journals of the Royal Horticultural Society and the North American Lily Society. Elsie Reford was not a landscape architect and had no training of any kind as a garden designer. While she collected and appreciated art, she claimed no talents as an artist.

 

Elsie Stephen Reford died at her Drummond Street home on November 8, 1967 in her ninety-sixth year.

 

In 1995, the Reford Gardens ("Jardins de Métis") in Grand-Métis were designated a National Historic Site of Canada, as being an excellent Canadian example of the English-inspired garden.(Wikipedia)

 

Visit : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsie_Reford

 

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/english/

 

LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS

 

Créés par Elsie Reford de 1926 à 1958, ces jardins témoignent de façon remarquable de l’art paysager à l’anglaise. Disposés dans un cadre naturel, un ensemble de jardins exhibent fleurs vivaces, arbres et arbustes. Le jardin des pommetiers, les rocailles et l’Allée royale évoquent l’œuvre de cette dame passionnée d’horticulture. Agrémenté d’un ruisseau et de sentiers sinueux, ce site jouit d’un microclimat favorable à la croissance d’espèces uniques au Canada. Les pavots bleus et les lis, privilégiés par Mme Reford, y fleurissent toujours et contribuent , avec d’autres plantes exotiques et indigènes, à l’harmonie de ces lieux.

 

Created by Elsie Reford between 1926 and 1958, these gardens are an inspired example of the English art of the garden. Woven into a natural setting, a series of gardens display perennials, trees and shrubs. A crab-apple orchard, a rock garden, and the Long Walk are also the legacy of this dedicated horticulturist. A microclimate favours the growth of species found nowhere else in Canada, while the stream and winding paths add to the charm. Elsie Reford’s beloved blue poppies and lilies still bloom and contribute, with other exotic and indigenous plants, to the harmony of the site.

 

Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Gouvernement du Canada – Government of Canada

 

:copyright: Copyright

This photo and all those in my Photostream are protected by copyright. No one may reproduce, copy, transmit or manipulate them without my written permission.

The horizontal lines in the radiator are great for showing line and its dramatic effect.

Our aesthetically astute clients bought a 1980’s Bud Oglesby designed townhouse with the intention of renovating it for themselves and their growing art collection while staying true to the original design. The project had a sophisticated section so our goal was to modernize the spaces in both use and technology while also rectifying awkward and outdated spatial relationships.

In the original layout the utilitarian spaces were on full view from the front door. Our intent was to create a more formal entry sequence and conceal the laundry, garage, and utility rooms. To do so, we opened up the enclosed kitchen and reorganized the support spaces behind a complementary curved wall that ties back into Oglesby’s original sculptural stair and landing.

The original master bathroom layout was undeserving of its dramatic, skylit ceiling. We reconfigured the components of the bath to be more in harmony with the natural lighting conditions and vaults. We moved the shower from a dark corner and merged it with the tub room, in doing so created a spa-like experience for everyday use.

Smoothing the existing walls amplified the natural light cascading through the house and further celebrated the formal geometry of the original design. Warmth was incorporated by way of American walnut and white oak cabinetry contrasting the white and grey surfaces. Fireplace surrounds were refined to minimalist powder-coated steel enclosures. The built-in console in the living room and window seat in the master adds order and organization. The overall resulting space is likened to a small art gallery.

 

homedecoration.cf/throckmorton-renovation/

Smailholm Tower is a peel tower at Smailholm, around five miles west of Kelso in the Scottish Borders. Its dramatic situation, atop a crag of Lady Hill, commands wide views over the surrounding countryside

Okay, I cannot tell a lie. I shot this scene in the parking lot of our local Publix Supermarket (Delk & Powers Ferry) and worked in Snapseed to make it dramatic. It was lovely to begin with, but lacked depth. About twenty minutes on my iPad and it could be the South Pacific. Enjoy!

Dramatic Seascape of Straddie 1

Dramatic Seascape of Straddie 2

Dramatic Seascape of Straddie 3

Dramatic Seascape of Straddie 4

 

An awesome view from lower elevation of Point Lookout, highlighting the rugged coastline of Point Lookout and across to the North Headland, with clear turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean.

 

North Stradbroke Island (Straddie) is the second largest sand island in the world. Located off the coast of Queensland near to Brisbane, Australia, Straddie is known for its dramatic seascape and shoreline, the bounty sea produce from Moreton Bay, and wildlife both on land and sea.

 

Queensland also has the largest and third largest sand islands in the world, namely Fraser Island and Moreton Island respectively.

Having a little fun today in the Cima lava tube, East Mojave, known for its dramatic skylights. The red light was painted on, but the rest is natural light.

Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah is known for its dramatic desert landscape carved by the Colorado River. Island in the Sky is a huge, flat-topped mesa with panoramic overlooks. Other notable areas include the towering rock pinnacles known as the Needles, the remote canyons of the Maze and the Native American rock paintings in Horseshoe Canyon. Whitewater rapids flow through Cataract Canyon.

Built in 1948, the Castlewood Canyon Bridge spans 232 feet across Cherry Creek near Franktown, Colorado. It features two 46-foot-deep concrete arches that span between concrete column piers and support a 35-foot-wide deck. It was once called the “bridge to nowhere” because, for nearly twenty years after it was built, the south end of the bridge was also the end of State Highway 83. Today, the bridge is considered a historic structure because of its distinctive arch design and its dramatic setting within Castlewood Canyon State Park.

"The first step in the evolution of ethics is a sense of solidarity with other human beings."

 

Albert Schweitzer

 

“The purpose of human life is to serve and to show compassion and the will to help others.”

 

Albert Schweitzer

  

Mizen Head

 

Mizen Head (Irish: Carn Uí Néid), is located at the extremity of a peninsula in the district of Carbery in County Cork, Ireland. It is one of the extreme points of the island of Ireland and is a major tourist attraction, noted for its dramatic cliff scenery. One of the main transatlantic shipping routes passes close by to the south, and Mizen Head was, for many seafarers, the first (or last) sight of Europe. The tip of the peninsula is almost an island, cut off by a deep chasm, now spanned by a bridge; this gives access to an old signal station, a weather station, and a lighthouse. The signal station, once permanently manned, is now a museum housing displays relating to the site's strategic significance for transatlantic shipping and communications, including the pioneering efforts of Guglielmo Marconi. The "99 steps" which formed part of the original access route have been supplemented by a series of paths and viewing platforms, and a full range of visitor facilities is available at the entrance to the site. The villages of Ballydehob, Crookhaven, Goleen, and Schull are located on the peninsula to the east.

 

Contrary to popular belief, Mizen Head is not the most southerly point on the mainland of Ireland; nearby Brow Head holds that title. Nevertheless, geography books have long measured the length of Ireland "from Fair Head to Mizen Head" or "from Malin Head to Mizen Head.

 

Source: Wikipedia

Greetings, wishing every one a happy St David's day and a great week ahead. Have fun.

 

Saint David (Welsh: Dewi Sant) was born towards the end of the 5th century. He was a scion of the royal house of Ceredigion, and founded a Celtic monastic community at Glyn Rhosyn (The Vale of Roses) on the western headland of Pembrokeshire (Sir Benfro), at the spot where St David's Cathedral stands today. The date of Saint David's death is recorded as 1 March, but the year is uncertain – possibly 588. As his tearful monks prepared for his death Saint David uttered these words: "Brothers be ye constant. The yoke which with single mind ye have taken, bear ye to the end; and whatsoever ye have seen with me and heard, keep and fulfil."

 

For centuries, 1 March has been a national festival. Saint David was recognised as a national patron saint at the height of Welsh resistance to the Normans. Saint David's Day was celebrated by Welsh peoples from the late Middle Ages.

Saint David's Day is not a national holiday in the United Kingdom. It is invariably celebrated by Welsh societies throughout the world with dinners, parties, and eisteddfodau (recitals and concerts).

 

St Davids is the smallest City in Wales and the United Kingdom, having a population of over 1500 on the last electoral roll

 

The exposed peninsula is famous for its dramatic coastal scenery and its wildlife that appeals to those who enjoy natural history and outdoor pursuits.

 

The City status of St Davids, while having ecclesiastical roots going back for centuries, was granted to all of St Davids by HM the Queen by Royal Charter on 1st June 1995.

  

The beautiful and now tranquil setting of Augustinian Lanercost Priory belies an often troubled history. Standing close to Hadrian's Wall, it suffered frequent attacks during the long Anglo-Scottish wars, once by Robert Bruce in person. The mortally sick King Edward I rested here for five months in 1306-7, shortly before his death on his final campaign. Yet there is still much to see in this best-preserved of Cumbrian monasteries. The east end of the noble 13th century church survives to its full height, housing within its dramatic triple tier of arches some fine monuments.

My tribute to my love of rocks....playing around while waiting for the magical hour.

  

SUNSET in SABANG

 

In my journey around pagsanjan and its neighboring towns, never ive seen a sunset more dramatic than sabang. Located in magdalena, sabang is also known as a quarry site. Rich in rivers rock filled...I tried capturing its dramatic sunset at a location i just discovered.

 

I would like to share...the drama in the sunset of Sabang.

 

Lake Como, in Northern Italy’s Lombardy region, is an upscale resort area known for its dramatic scenery, set against the foothills of the Alps. The lake is shaped like an upside-down Y, with three slender branches that meet at the resort town of Bellagio. At the bottom of the southwest branch lies the city of Como, home to Renaissance architecture and a funicular that travels up to the mountain town of Brunate.

The building in red is the most famous building in Miami. it is known for its elaborate night-time illuminations and its dramatic three glass tiers. Usually this building changes illumination to symbolize some major event. It was called bank of America tower until recently when it was bought by (me in my dreams) some other rich guy and now its called Miami Tower.but who cares as long as it is still changing colors :)

my photos are available at

www.icampix.net

 

NOTE: All images are Copyrighted by Asad Gilani. No rights to use are given or implied to the viewer. All rights of ownership and use remain with the copyright own.

“Located 50 km from Damascus is the magnificent village of Maalula, Syria. Maalula is the only place in the world that still speaks Aramaic, the language of Jesus.

Maalula is a predominantly Christian village. It is the home of two ancient Christian monasteries: Mar Sarkis and Mar Taqla. Both Christians and Muslim pilgrims come to Maalula seeking blessings.

Maalula means "the entrance" in Aramaic, referring to its dramatic location at the entrance to a rocky gorge. In addition to its important monasteries, the village is an attraction in itself: visitors invariably remark on the unique feeling of living history and the suspension of time in Maalula.” www.sacred-destinations.com

 

Explore 13-2-2015

REFORD GARDENS | LES JARDINS DE METIS

 

Beautiful flowers at Reford Gardens.

 

Himalayan flower imported by Elsie Reford in the early 1930s that has since become the floral emblem of the Gardens.

  

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

 

From Wikipedia:

 

Elsie Stephen Meighen - born January 22, 1872, Perth, Ontario - and Robert Wilson Reford - born in 1867, Montreal - got married on June 12, 1894.

 

Elsie Reford was a pioneer of Canadian horticulture, creating one of the largest private gardens in Canada on her estate, Estevan Lodge in eastern Québec. Located in Grand-Métis on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, her gardens have been open to the public since 1962 and operate under the name Les Jardins de Métis and Reford Gardens.

  

Born January 22, 1872 at Perth, Ontario, Elsie Reford was the eldest of three children born to Robert Meighen and Elsie Stephen. Coming from modest backgrounds themselves, Elsie’s parents ensured that their children received a good education. After being educated in Montreal, she was sent to finishing school in Dresden and Paris, returning to Montreal fluent in both German and French, and ready to take her place in society.

 

She married Robert Wilson Reford on June 12, 1894. She gave birth to two sons, Bruce in 1895 and Eric in 1900. Robert and Elsie Reford were, by many accounts, an ideal couple. In 1902, they built a house on Drummond Street in Montreal. They both loved the outdoors and they spend several weeks a year in a log cabin they built at Lac Caribou, south of Rimouski. In the autumn they hunted for caribou, deer, and ducks. They returned in winter to ski and snowshoe. Elsie Reford also liked to ride. She had learned as a girl and spent many hours riding on the slopes of Mount Royal. And of course, there was salmon-fishing – a sport at which she excelled.

 

In her day, she was known for her civic, social, and political activism. She was engaged in philanthropic activities, particularly for the Montreal Maternity Hospital and she was also the moving force behind the creation of the Women’s Canadian Club of Montreal, the first women club in Canada. She believed it important that the women become involved in debates over the great issues of the day, « something beyond the local gossip of the hour ». Her acquaintance with Lord Grey, the Governor-General of Canada from 1904 to 1911, led to her involvement in organizing, in 1908, Québec City’s tercentennial celebrations. The event was one of many to which she devoted herself in building bridges with French-Canadian community.

 

During the First World War, she joined her two sons in England and did volunteer work at the War Office, translating documents from German into English. After the war, she was active in the Victorian Order of Nurses, the Montreal Council of Social Agencies, and the National Association of Conservative Women.

 

In 1925 at the age of 53 years, Elsie Reford was operated for appendicitis and during her convalescence, her doctor counselled against fishing, fearing that she did not have the strength to return to the river.”Why not take up gardening?” he said, thinking this a more suitable pastime for a convalescent woman of a certain age. That is why she began laying out the gardens and supervising their construction. The gardens would take ten years to build, and would extend over more than twenty acres.

 

Elsie Reford had to overcome many difficulties in bringing her garden to life. First among them were the allergies that sometimes left her bedridden for days on end. The second obstacle was the property itself. Estevan was first and foremost a fishing lodge. The site was chosen because of its proximity to a salmon river and its dramatic views – not for the quality of the soil.

 

To counter-act nature’s deficiencies, she created soil for each of the plants she had selected, bringing peat and sand from nearby farms. This exchange was fortuitous to the local farmers, suffering through the Great Depression. Then, as now, the gardens provided much-needed work to an area with high unemployment. Elsie Reford’s genius as a gardener was born of the knowledge she developed of the needs of plants. Over the course of her long life, she became an expert plantsman. By the end of her life, Elsie Reford was able to counsel other gardeners, writing in the journals of the Royal Horticultural Society and the North American Lily Society. Elsie Reford was not a landscape architect and had no training of any kind as a garden designer. While she collected and appreciated art, she claimed no talents as an artist.

 

Elsie Stephen Reford died at her Drummond Street home on November 8, 1967 in her ninety-sixth year.

 

In 1995, the Reford Gardens ("Jardins de Métis") in Grand-Métis were designated a National Historic Site of Canada, as being an excellent Canadian example of the English-inspired garden.(Wikipedia)

 

Visit : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsie_Reford

  

LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS

 

Créés par Elsie Reford de 1926 à 1958, ces jardins témoignent de façon remarquable de l’art paysager à l’anglaise. Disposés dans un cadre naturel, un ensemble de jardins exhibent fleurs vivaces, arbres et arbustes. Le jardin des pommetiers, les rocailles et l’Allée royale évoquent l’œuvre de cette dame passionnée d’horticulture. Agrémenté d’un ruisseau et de sentiers sinueux, ce site jouit d’un microclimat favorable à la croissance d’espèces uniques au Canada. Les pavots bleus et les lis, privilégiés par Mme Reford, y fleurissent toujours et contribuent , avec d’autres plantes exotiques et indigènes, à l’harmonie de ces lieux.

 

Created by Elsie Reford between 1926 and 1958, these gardens are an inspired example of the English art of the garden. Woven into a natural setting, a series of gardens display perennials, trees and shrubs. A crab-apple orchard, a rock garden, and the Long Walk are also the legacy of this dedicated horticulturist. A microclimate favours the growth of species found nowhere else in Canada, while the stream and winding paths add to the charm. Elsie Reford’s beloved blue poppies and lilies still bloom and contribute, with other exotic and indigenous plants, to the harmony of the site.

 

Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Gouvernement du Canada – Government of Canada

 

:copyright: Copyright

This photo and all those in my Photostream are protected by copyright. No one may reproduce, copy, transmit or manipulate them without my written permission.

White Sands National Monument & Missile Range is in the northern Chihuahuan Desert in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It's known for its dramatic landscape of rare white gypsum sand dunes.

 

White Sands is located west of Alamogordo & is a vast area of desert and mountain ranges 100 by 40 miles in extent. It is closed to public access and used by the military for various kinds of weapons testing; this includes the Trinity Site where the first atomic bomb was detonated, in July 1945.

 

From time to time the missile range that surrounds the monument performs missile testing that may require the closure of the park & Highway 70.

  

Moraine Lake isn't often seen without its signature brilliantly blue waters, but this scene -- with its dramatic clouds welling up over the top of the mountains -- begged for black & white.

This was my favourite day overlooking the Firth of Clyde and Isle of Arron in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is run by the Scottish Natioal Trust.

   

With its dramatic clifftop setting, Robert Adam architecture, fascinating history and beautiful surroundings, it's easy to see why Culzean Castle is one of Scotland’s most popular visitor attractions.

 

Surrounded by Culzean Country Park, an extensive estate encompassing lush woodland, landscaped gardens and rugged coastline, this 18th-century Scottish castle couldn’t be better placed for a family day out.

 

You could easily spend an entire day exploring the country park alone, but with so many treasure-filled rooms to see inside the castle, it’s well worth making time to enjoy both elements of this magnificent historic attraction.

 

www.nts.org.uk/Property/Culzean-Castle-and-Country-Park/

Each morning we were in South Dakota everything was covered in frost. It did look pretty so I thought I would capture a few frost covered trees before the sun melted away the beauty.

 

The Badlands is a very interesting place. Its dramatic landscapes span layered rock formations, steep canyons and towering spires. Bison, bighorn sheep and prairie dogs inhabit its sprawling grasslands. The Badlands Loop Road (Highway 240) winds past scenic lookouts.

 

Google Earth... earth.google.com/web/@43.84258494,-102.18957189,860.25152...

Comprising 88 refrigerator-sized 7,000-watt xenon searchlights positioned in two 48-foot squares that echo the shape and orientation of the twin towers.

 

Please note, that the Tribute in Light which is produced by the Municipal Art Society of New York (MASNYC) is seeking funding since it's that very exact funding which allows them to shine these magnificent lights into the sky each year.

 

As part of this campaign, the organization has invited everyone who values “Tribute in Light” and counts on its dramatic presence every September 11 to help guarantee its future by giving small donations. Through Text2Give, an innovative fundraising tool, anyone with a cell phone can donate $10 by texting the word TRIBUTE to 20222 (message and data rates may apply).

Alternatively, donations of any denomination can be made via MAS.org, or by calling (212) 935-2075.

 

Website - Instagram - 500px - Twitter - NatGeo

 

Another composition from Cockshaw Hill from last night's sunset.

 

This photo highlights how quarrying for iron ore and stone has shaped the landscape of the area. From a standing point of the quarry cliff at Cockshaw Hill, the three hills of Cliffe Rigg quarry on the left, Roseberry Topping with its dramatic cliff face shaped by a mining collapse in the early 20th Century and Little Roseberry on the right form the horizon.

 

The land in the distance between the hills is Aireyholme Farm, birthplace of the famous explorer Captain James Cook who it has been said did more to fill in the map of the world than any other single person.

 

A beautiful place steeped in history, perhaps Cook took the inspiration to explore from this landscape.

 

Cockshaw Hill Blog Post

Having got the glitz and glamour of the NYC lights out of my system I'm now starting to look if my aimless snapping while in the big apple recorded anything of note. This was taken on a cruise around Manhattan (very highly recommended) of Bjarke Ingels’s so-called "courtscraper", catching the sunlight and thus enabling its dramatic form to stand out clearly from the more mundane structures behind.

This Passion Vine (Passiflora vitifolia) grows along fences, over shrubs and garages here in South Florida. The leaves are glossy green and grape-leaf like. But what will simply knock your socks off are its dramatic, outrageous flowers! Surely they come from another planet! But no, they come from South America.

 

Legend and romance surround the passion flower... legend because of historical associations with Christianity. And romance because of its suggestion of romantic passion. Early explorers and missionaries to the Southern hemisphere named these dramatic vines Passiflora or Passion Flower to help in their conversion of native Americans to Christianity. They used the beautiful intricate flower parts to tell the story of the death of Jesus, making the story more memorable to listeners. The family name, Passifloraceae, means "Flower of the Passion" or "Flower of the Cross."

 

The color symbolized the blood shed on the cross; the 10 petals and sepals represented the 10 apostles present of the crucifixion; the 5 stamens, the 5 wounds, the 3 styles, the 3 nails ( or, in some versions, Christ and the 2 thieves crucified with him); the vine tendrils, the ropes and scourges; the 3 secondary leaf bracts, the holy trinity. The flower is usually open 3 days representing the 3 years of Christ's ministry on Earth. Source: Florida's Fabulous Flowers, Their Stories by Winston Williams.

 

See my sets Tantalizing Flowers and Blossoms and Passionate Passion Vines for more images of this exotic, erotic flower!

Passiflora coccinea

Biscayne Park FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

Staldzene – an old fishing village with some homesteads surviving from the 19th century, lies to the North of Ventspils on the way to the Kolka point.

 

Here fishermen can still be seen going out to sea, and on calm evenings the scent of dry-cured Baltic plaice wafts through the air. Staldzene is popular with both townsfolk and tourists alike for its walking paths, swimming beach and its dramatic steep coastline. In 2001 after the storm at Staldzene steep coast, the bijouterie and the artefacts of the Bronze Age (7th century B.C.) have been exposed being the biggest such type deposit in the Baltic States, presently exhibited in the Ventspils Museum of the Livonian Order castle.

Aguas arriba de la presa Valle Grande uno se interna en el Cañón del Atuel, presencia viva de los orígenes del mundo, que el viento y la lluvia, cual cincel y martillo en su continua batalla con la roca, le descubrieron sus entrañas conformando las más variadas esculturas naturales como: Museo de Cera, Sillón de Rivadavia, El Lagarto, Los Viejos, Los Monstruos, La Ciudad Encantada, El Mendigo, Los Jardines Colgantes, por mencionar sólo algunos. El río en su vertiginosa caída encierra una inmensa potencia que genera la energía que se necesita en la región.

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Upstream of the dam Valle Grande one is internal in the Canon of the Atuel River, the living presence of the origins of the world, that the wind and rain, which chisel and hammer in its ongoing battle with the rock, he found out his entrails shaping the most varied natural sculptures such as: Wax Museum, Rivadavia armchair, The Lizard, The Old, The Monsters, The Enchanted City, The Beggar, The Hanging Gardens, to mention only some. The river in its dramatic fall holds a vast power that generates the energy needed in the region.

 

Cuckmere Haven lies on the coast at the point where the South Downs meet the sea. Its dramatic chalk landscape with a characteristic cliffy coastline is constantly changing. The cliffs are being eroded at a rate of 30-40 cms every year.

Madeira’s central mountain range, seen from Bica da Cana - Madeira Island - Portugal

 

At the eastern tip of Paul da Serra, Bica da Cana offers one of the island’s best outlooks over its dramatic mountain shapes and the valley of São Vicente. Worth the short walk and not to be missed if you are in the neighbourhood and the place is not hidden under the clouds.

This picture was taken at Mizen Head, Ireland.

 

Mizen Head, is located at the extremity of the Kilmore Peninsula in the district of Carbery in County Cork, Ireland. It is one of the extreme points of the island of Ireland and is a major tourist attraction, noted for its dramatic cliff scenery.

 

One of the main transatlantic shipping routes passes close by to the south, and Mizen Head was, for many seafarers, the first (or last) sight of Europe. The tip of the peninsula is almost an island, cut off by a deep chasm, now spanned by a bridge; this gives access to an old signal station, a weather station, and a lighthouse. (excerpt from wikipedia)

 

www.robertocornacchia.com

Iceland, a Nordic island nation, is defined by its dramatic landscape with volcanoes, geysers, hot springs and lava fields. Massive glaciers are protected in Vatnajökull and Snæfellsjökull national parks. Most of the population lives in the capital, Reykjavik, which runs on geothermal power and is home to the National and Saga museums, tracing Iceland’s Viking history. Iceland is it the most sparsely populated country in Europe.

Monument Basin viewed from the Grand View Point Overlook at Island in the Sky in the Canyonlands National Park, Utah. Island in the Sky is a huge, flat-topped mesa with panoramic overlooks. Canyonlands located in southeastern Utah is known for its dramatic desert landscape of canyons, mesas, and buttes carved by the Colorado River and its tributaries. Print Size 13x19 inches.

Happy Texture Tuesday

Look for it and you'll see it. Dramatic storm over Virginia farm. HDR.

Centaurus A, also known as NGC 5128, is well known for its dramatic dusty lanes of dark material. Hubble’s new observations, using its most advanced instrument, the Wide Field Camera 3, are the most detailed ever made of this galaxy. They have been combined here in a multi-wavelength image which reveals never-before-seen detail in the dusty portion of the galaxy. As well as features in the visible spectrum, this composite shows ultraviolet light, which comes from young stars, and near-infrared light, which lets us glimpse some of the detail otherwise obscured by the dust.

REFORD GARDENS | LES JARDINS DE METIS

  

Beautiful flowers at Reford Gardens.

  

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

 

Photo of that painting taken at ESTEVAN LODGE in August 2012.

 

Info from Wikipedia:

 

Elsie Stephen Meighen - born January 22, 1872, Perth, Ontario - and Robert Wilson Reford - born in 1867, Montreal - got married on June 12, 1894.

 

Elsie Reford was a pioneer of Canadian horticulture, creating one of the largest private gardens in Canada on her estate, Estevan Lodge in eastern Québec. Located in Grand-Métis on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, her gardens have been open to the public since 1962 and operate under the name Les Jardins de Métis and Reford Gardens.

  

Born January 22, 1872 at Perth, Ontario, Elsie Reford was the eldest of three children born to Robert Meighen and Elsie Stephen. Coming from modest backgrounds themselves, Elsie’s parents ensured that their children received a good education. After being educated in Montreal, she was sent to finishing school in Dresden and Paris, returning to Montreal fluent in both German and French, and ready to take her place in society.

 

She married Robert Wilson Reford on June 12, 1894. She gave birth to two sons, Bruce in 1895 and Eric in 1900. Robert and Elsie Reford were, by many accounts, an ideal couple. In 1902, they built a house on Drummond Street in Montreal. They both loved the outdoors and they spend several weeks a year in a log cabin they built at Lac Caribou, south of Rimouski. In the autumn they hunted for caribou, deer, and ducks. They returned in winter to ski and snowshoe. Elsie Reford also liked to ride. She had learned as a girl and spent many hours riding on the slopes of Mount Royal. And of course, there was salmon-fishing – a sport at which she excelled.

 

In her day, she was known for her civic, social, and political activism. She was engaged in philanthropic activities, particularly for the Montreal Maternity Hospital and she was also the moving force behind the creation of the Women’s Canadian Club of Montreal, the first women club in Canada. She believed it important that the women become involved in debates over the great issues of the day, « something beyond the local gossip of the hour ». Her acquaintance with Lord Grey, the Governor-General of Canada from 1904 to 1911, led to her involvement in organizing, in 1908, Québec City’s tercentennial celebrations. The event was one of many to which she devoted herself in building bridges with French-Canadian community.

 

During the First World War, she joined her two sons in England and did volunteer work at the War Office, translating documents from German into English. After the war, she was active in the Victorian Order of Nurses, the Montreal Council of Social Agencies, and the National Association of Conservative Women.

 

In 1925 at the age of 53 years, Elsie Reford was operated for appendicitis and during her convalescence, her doctor counselled against fishing, fearing that she did not have the strength to return to the river.”Why not take up gardening?” he said, thinking this a more suitable pastime for a convalescent woman of a certain age. That is why she began laying out the gardens and supervising their construction. The gardens would take ten years to build, and would extend over more than twenty acres.

 

Elsie Reford had to overcome many difficulties in bringing her garden to life. First among them were the allergies that sometimes left her bedridden for days on end. The second obstacle was the property itself. Estevan was first and foremost a fishing lodge. The site was chosen because of its proximity to a salmon river and its dramatic views – not for the quality of the soil.

 

To counter-act nature’s deficiencies, she created soil for each of the plants she had selected, bringing peat and sand from nearby farms. This exchange was fortuitous to the local farmers, suffering through the Great Depression. Then, as now, the gardens provided much-needed work to an area with high unemployment. Elsie Reford’s genius as a gardener was born of the knowledge she developed of the needs of plants. Over the course of her long life, she became an expert plantsman. By the end of her life, Elsie Reford was able to counsel other gardeners, writing in the journals of the Royal Horticultural Society and the North American Lily Society. Elsie Reford was not a landscape architect and had no training of any kind as a garden designer. While she collected and appreciated art, she claimed no talents as an artist.

 

Elsie Stephen Reford died at her Drummond Street home on November 8, 1967 in her ninety-sixth year.

 

In 1995, the Reford Gardens ("Jardins de Métis") in Grand-Métis were designated a National Historic Site of Canada, as being an excellent Canadian example of the English-inspired garden.(Wikipedia)

 

Visit : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsie_Reford

 

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

 

LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS

 

Créés par Elsie Reford de 1926 à 1958, ces jardins témoignent de façon remarquable de l’art paysager à l’anglaise. Disposés dans un cadre naturel, un ensemble de jardins exhibent fleurs vivaces, arbres et arbustes. Le jardin des pommetiers, les rocailles et l’Allée royale évoquent l’œuvre de cette dame passionnée d’horticulture. Agrémenté d’un ruisseau et de sentiers sinueux, ce site jouit d’un microclimat favorable à la croissance d’espèces uniques au Canada. Les pavots bleus et les lis, privilégiés par Mme Reford, y fleurissent toujours et contribuent , avec d’autres plantes exotiques et indigènes, à l’harmonie de ces lieux.

 

Created by Elsie Reford between 1926 and 1958, these gardens are an inspired example of the English art of the garden. Woven into a natural setting, a series of gardens display perennials, trees and shrubs. A crab-apple orchard, a rock garden, and the Long Walk are also the legacy of this dedicated horticulturist. A microclimate favours the growth of species found nowhere else in Canada, while the stream and winding paths add to the charm. Elsie Reford’s beloved blue poppies and lilies still bloom and contribute, with other exotic and indigenous plants, to the harmony of the site.

 

Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Gouvernement du Canada – Government of Canada

 

:copyright: Copyright

This photo and all those in my Photostream are protected by copyright. No one may reproduce, copy, transmit or manipulate them without my written permission.

 

The Great Blue Heron [a wading bird] is the largest North American heron, with a head-to-tail length of between three and five feet, a wingspan of between 6-1/2 and 7-1/2 feet, and a weight of five to eight pounds. This magnificent creature is notable not only for its size, but also for its dramatic appearance. The deep blue and blue-gray of its flight plumage contrasts with its white feathers, and orange bill and wing patches. Once you've seen one of these sizable avians, you won't soon forget the encounter!

 

Bluebird Estates

You can follow my next photos in Bruno Méndez Photography

 

Caminito - La Boca Neighborhood, Buenos Aires - Argentina

© All rights reserved - Bruno Méndez (2007)

 

HDR from a single RAW

 

Tango is a social dance originating in Buenos Aires Argentina, and Montevideo Uruguay. The musical styles that evolved together with the dance are also known as "tango".

 

Early tango was known as tango criollo, or simply tango. Today, there are many tango dance styles, including Argentine Tango, Uruguayan Tango, Ballroom tango (American and International styles), Finnish tango, Chinese tango, and vintage tangos. The Argentine tango is often regarded as the "authentic" tango since it is closest to that originally danced in Argentina and Uruguay, though other types of tango have developed into mature dances in their own right.

 

Music and dance elements of tango are popular in activities related to dancing, such as figure skating, synchronized swimming, etc., because of its dramatic feeling and its cultural associations with romance and love.

 

From Wikipedia

that's where the light gets in...

 

- Leonard Cohen

 

FILTHY LUCRE MASS MoCA North Adams, Massachusetts March 8, 2014 – February 1, 2015

 

Darren Waterston’s installation Filthy Lucre is the centerpiece of the exhibition Uncertain Beauty at MASS MoCA. It is a contemporary re-imagining of James McNeill Whistler’s 1876 decorative masterpiece Harmony in Blue and Gold: The Peacock Room. Waterston became fascinated with The Peacock Room both for its unrivaled union of painting and architecture and for its dramatic story of patronage and artistic ego.

Dolmen de Mas Bou-Serenys

Cristina d'Aro, Girona, Espagne

 

A naturally dolmenic area - proto dolmens and monolithic protrusions punctuate the hillsides that sit behind the coastline. A charming, large dolmen with a housing estate built up to one of its dramatic range of outreaching corridors. The cap stone is held high by menhir-esque orthostates, one of which certainly seems to have the signs of having been used as a polissoir or grindstone. A geofact? A grindstone lifted up from the ground and employed as part of a megalith? The only other possibility seems ridiculous but should at least be presented :

 

The repeated back and forth polishing gesture may have been accelerated by adding weight to the tool that is undergoing polishing. The added weight and force comes by attaching the tool to the end of a heavy log; suspending the log on ropes that have been tightened to a frame that is wedged into the unusually large dolmen interior. The end of the log would have to be a 'cup' that contained moist clay to attach the tool by suction coupled with a strap covering the end of the tool that is waiting to take its turn. I shall try and set up an example and will post only if the tool holds in place and polish angles seem to be valid.

 

AJ 23.09.17

   

article from net

 

The Residency is actually a group of buildings that were built in 1800 A.D by the then Nawab of Oudh, Nawab Saadat Ali Khan. It was constructed in order to serve as the residence for the British Resident General who was a representative in the court of Nawab. The palace was rather a sleepy residence for decades but then came an incident, which put it on the world map.

 

The year 1857 will always be mentioned in the chronicles of history because of its dramatic sequence of events. The year saw the Sepoy Mutiny, which is also sometimes referred as 'The First War of Indian Independence'. Lucknow also became one of the seats of that uprising. The Residency became one of the most talked about battlement during the siege of Lucknow. The mutineers laid the siege on The Residency in early June that year. Nearly all the Europeans who resided in the city of Awadh took shelter in Residency. It is said that as many as 3500 people sought shelter during the siege. The siege continued for more than 140 days.

 

The saga of the siege of 'The Residency' will go down in the history of India as a brave effort done by handful of Men, women and children to thaw the efforts of mutineers. The residence of the palace held together during the continuous shelling that lasted for a month. The canon balls withered the walls of residency but the palace held miraculously. Sir Henry Lawrence who bore the responsibility 3500 human lives undertook the defense and counter initiative. The brave-heart fall on the last days of siege. The reinforcement force rescued the palace after 5 months.

 

Even since Independence, little has changed. A brooding silence engulfs the ruins and one almost expects the ghosts of the dead to suddenly materialize and flit across the rooms. The cemetery at the nearby ruined church has the graves of 2000 men, women and children, including that of Sir Henry Lawrence who died defending the empire. There is a weathered epitaph near the grave of Sir Lawrence that reads " Here lays the son of Empire who tried to do his duty".

 

The British Residency of Lucknow is a famous historical landmark of this place. It is now in ruins and has been declared a protected monument by the Archaeological Survey of India. The people of Lucknow tell intriguing stories of British who fled from their homes to seek shelter in these red buildings. Only a 1000 inhabitant survived this tough ordeal. On November 17th, the British troops led by Sir Colin Campbell defeated the Indian forces.

 

Today, the British Residency of Lucknow serves as a government office. The Residency also has a museum that is well-maintained by the authorities.

 

The redbrick ruins are now surrounded by lawns and flowerbeds, the Residency has been maintained as it was at the time of the final relief and the shattered walls are still scarred by cannon shot. Besides the main Residency building, there was the Sheep house, Slaughter house, Sikh square, Dr. Fayrers house, Banqueting hall, the Treasury house, Begum Kothi, the church, mosque, Imambara and the native hospital etc. are still present and pull masses of visitors each year.

 

The Model Room, a part of the main Residency Building, which housed a model of Residency as it was before the 1857 War, has now been converted into a full-fledged Museum displaying the original model of Residency, old lithographs, photographs, paintings, documents and period-objects, besides a diorama of Residency siege, giving an accurate visual account of the freedom struggle of 1857 in a chronological and systematic way. Besides, a gallery showing the excavated objects has also been added. A building steeped in and a symbol of the tumultuous past of our country is a heritage sight and should feature on the top of your 'must-visit' travel list!

  

courtesy

 

www.buzzintown.com/article-review--the-residency-lucknow-...

Staldzene – an old fishing village with some homesteads surviving from the 19th century, lies to the North of Ventspils on the way to the Kolka point.

 

Here fishermen can still be seen going out to sea, and on calm evenings the scent of dry-cured Baltic plaice wafts through the air. Staldzene is popular with both townsfolk and tourists alike for its walking paths, swimming beach and its dramatic steep coastline. In 2001 after the storm at Staldzene steep coast, the bijouterie and the artefacts of the Bronze Age (7th century B.C.) have been exposed being the biggest such type deposit in the Baltic States, presently exhibited in the Ventspils Museum of the Livonian Order castle.

Colorado River at the Dead Horse Point State Park

 

The Colorado River is the principal river of the Southwestern United States and northwest Mexico. The 1,450-mile (2,330 km) river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. and two Mexican states. Rising in the central Rocky Mountains in the U.S., the river flows generally southwest across the Colorado Plateau and through the Grand Canyon before reaching Lake Mead on the ArizonaâNevada border, where it turns south toward the international border. After entering Mexico, the Colorado approaches the large Colorado River Delta at the tip of the Gulf of California between Baja California and Sonora.

 

Known for its dramatic canyons and whitewater rapids, the Colorado is a vital source of water for agricultural and urban areas in the southwestern desert lands of North America.[6] The river and its tributaries are controlled by an extensive system of dams, reservoirs, and aqueducts, which divert 90% of its water in the U.S. alone to furnish irrigation and municipal water supply for almost 40 million people both inside and outside the watershed.[7][8] The Colorado's large flow and steep gradient are used for generating hydroelectric power, and its major dams regulate peaking power demands in much of the Intermountain West. Intensive water consumption has dried the lower 100 miles (160 km) of the river such that it has not consistently reached the sea since the 1960s. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River

A typical view along the Grand View Overlook Rim Trail at Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah. The Grand View Overlook Rim Trail is a 1.8 mile hike that runs along the edge of the rim of the Island in the Sky, a peninsula 6,000" above Monument Valley. Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah is known for its dramatic desert landscape of canyons, mesas, and buttes carved by the Colorado River and its tributaries. Print Size 13x19 inches.

Some radical processing (by my standards) for an image made in radical conditions – I was wearing The North Face's 3-in-1 gloves (i.e., very warm) yet my fingers were frozen.

 

"Union Point United Church and its cemetery are significant as the last built features that remain on the original site of the former Union Point settlement. The cemetery’s earliest burial, from 1879, recalls the agricultural community’s pioneer origins. The landmark building, an enduringly simple Gothic Revival-style structure that succeeded an 1887 Presbyterian facility, likewise serves as a prominent and poignant memorial to Union Point because of its dramatic location between the lanes of one of the busiest divided highways in southern Manitoba."

 

(Quoted from the Manitoba Municipal Heritage Site designation: www.gov.mb.ca/chc/hrb/mun/m342.html.)

This photo was taken before. Liked its dramatic composition and posted on this occasion.

Iceland, a Nordic island nation, is defined by its dramatic landscape with volcanoes, geysers, hot springs and lava fields. Massive glaciers are protected in Vatnajökull and Snæfellsjökull national parks. Most of the population lives in the capital, Reykjavik, which runs on geothermal power and is home to the National and Saga museums, tracing Iceland’s Viking history. Iceland is it the most sparsely populated country in Europe.

With its dramatic skyline of tall chimneystacks and fanciful octagonal turrets, Melford Hall is one of the finest and most satisfying Elizabethan houses in the East of England.

 

It stands beside the River Chad, at the northern end of Long Melford, a village noted for its wide village green leading up to the great perpendicular church.

 

Melford Hall is a mellow red brick house largely of the 16th century. It incorporates part of a medieval building held by the Abbots of Bury St Edmunds. They had used it as a seat for pleasure and relaxation from before 1065 until 1539.

 

Melford Hall's subsequent owner, Sir William Cordell, was a 'new man' of his time, and one of the most hospitable country gentlemen in Suffolk. He entertained Queen Elizabeth I at Melford Hall in 1578.

 

The 1580 map of Melford appears to show a rectangular house of four ranges laid out around a central courtyard. After an unsettled period, which included its looting during the Civil War, Melford Hall changed shape under the supervision of Sir Cordell Firebrace.

 

Firebrace, a descendant of the Cordells, removed the gatehouse wing, which formed the fourth side of the house, in about 1740. Left standing was the U-shaped building we see today.

 

A naval dynasty

 

Since 1786, Melford Hall has been the home of the Hyde Parkers, one of Britain’s most distinguished naval families.

 

In the early 19th century, Sir William Parker, 7th Baronet, and Sir Hyde Parker, 8th Baronet, commissioned the architect Thomas Hopper to remodel a number of Melford Hall's interiors in an austere Grecian style.

 

In 1813, Sir William Parker focussed his attentions on the Hall, Staircase and Library. And, in the 1840s Sir Hyde Parker invited Hopper back to complete the Drawing Room and double-height Saloon in the North Wing.

 

In the 1860s Sir William Parker, 9th Baronet, decided to re-cast Melford Hall in antiquarian guise. He carried out a number of alterations intended to evoke its medieval atmosphere.

 

The fire

 

During the Second World War, Melford Hall was requisitioned by the army. In 1942, a disastrous fire broke out in the North Wing, gutting it and destroying the roofs of the central wing.

 

In a far sighted act of preservation, unusual for the time, Sir William Hyde Parker, 11th Baronet, restored the house with the help of the architect Professor Sir Albert Richardson.

 

The interiors of the North Wing, including the Hyde Parker (Dining) Room, were re-built in a pared-down classical style. This new departure in design owed much to the Scandinavian inspired taste of Lady Ulla Hyde Parker, wife of the 11th Baronet.

 

Melford Hall, along with its 130 acres of parkland, was transferred to the National Trust in 1960.

 

For further information, please visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/...

Bojohagur Duanasir II) is the southeasternmost major peak of the Batura Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram range. It lies about 10 km (6.2 mi) northeast of the Karimabad, a town on the Karakoram Highway in the Hunza Valley, part of the Gilgit District of Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan.

  

Notable features and climbing history[edit]

  

Ultar Sar (right), Bojohagur Duanasir (left of it); Hunza Peak and Bublimotin (far left)

While not one of the highest peaks of the Karakoram, Ultar Sar is notable for its dramatic rise above local terrain. Its south flank rises over 5,300 metres (17,388 feet) above the Hunza River near Karimabad, in only about 10 km (6.2 mi) of horizontal distance. Combined with its strategic position at the end of the Batura Muztagh, with the Hunza River bending around it, this makes Ultar a visually striking peak.

  

Ultar Sar also gained fame in the 1990s as supposedly the world's highest unclimbed independent peak. This was incorrect, as Gangkhar Puensum in Bhutan is higher, and remains unclimbed (and off-limits) in 2007. (Two other higher peaks are also reputedly unclimbed and of independent stature.) However that perception did add to the appeal of the peak, and a number of expeditions attempted to climb it. During the 1980s and 1990s over 15 expeditions made attempts, resulting in no success, but in a number of fatalities; the peak proved to be quite difficult.

  

The first two ascents were made in July 1996 by two separate Japanese expeditions, the first (from the Tokai section of the Japanese Alpine Club) led by Akito Yamazaki (who summitted, but died on the descent[2]) and the second led by Ken Takahashi. The first summit team comprised Yamazaki and Kiyoshi Matsuoka (who died one year later on the nearby peak Bublimotin). They climbed the peak from the southwest in alpine style, doing much of the climbing at night to avoid danger from falling rock and ice. After their successful summit, they faced strong storms and bivouaced several days without food before returning to basecamp. However, Akihito Yamazaki died at basecamp of an internal disease due to the severe stress of climbing.

  

The second summit team comprised Takahashi and four others: Masayuki Ando, Ryushi Hoshino, Wataru Saito, and Nobuo Tsutsumi. They climbed the south ridge. Since 1996, there have been no recorded ascents of the peak.

  

Nearby summits and glaciers[edit]

Ultar Sar is the east end of a short, somewhat level ridge, the west end of which is a peak called Bojahagur Duanasir (7,329 m/24,045 ft), climbed in 1984 by a Japanese party. To the northwest of both peaks is the huge pyramid of Shispare (7,611 m/24,970 ft). Along the southwest ridge of the massif are Hunza Peak and the striking rock spire of Bublimotin (Ladyfinger Peak). The glaciers draining the slopes of the massif are (clockwise from north): the Ghulkin Glacier, the Gulmit Glacier, the Ahmad Abad Glacier, the Ultar Glacier, and the Hasanabad Glacier. (Many of these have other names as well.)

  

See also

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