Landscapes in Europe

With a hole right through the middle, Torghatten is probably one of the most iconic mountains in Norway. The giant natural hole measures 30 meters in height and 20 meters in width, and you can hike through the 160 meters long hole. There are three hiking routes at Torghatten. The circuit hike at the base of the granite mountain (6.5 km), the summit hike (4 km return) and the hike to the hole (1.4 km return).

Vøringsfossen is perhaps the best known waterfall in Norway. Here the water plunges 182 down from the Hardangervidda plateau to the Måbødalen Valley below. There is a network of platforms at the top with the most hair-raising views. The network includes a bridge which crosses Bjoreio River right before the drop.
You can also hike to the base at the waterfall from either Fossatromma (3.7 km one way) or Storegjel (1.7 km one way) along the old road.

Norway is in general very beautiful and their tourist slogan "powered by nature" is spot on. But the West Fjords are so dramatic and spectacular that they have become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The World Heritage Area comprises two areas; Geirangerfjord (pictured) and Nærøyfjord (which includes Aurlandsfjord). They are some of the longest, deepest, and most narrow fjords in the world. Flanked by mountains towering to 1760 m, Nærøyfjord is 17 km long and only 250 m wide at its narrowest point. The Nærøyfjord area has a great variety of landscape, ranging from naked peaks around the Fresvik glacier to sheltered bays with woodland. Geirangerfjord is by far the most popular, but do yourself a favor and visit both fjords.

Słowiński National Park is known for its huge, shifting sand dunes. At the highest the dunes are up till 40 meters above sea level. The stretch is the longest in Europe and every year the wind moves the dunes about 10 metres further east. The national park is not just sand, but also includes saltwater lakes and is home to many bird species. There are parking lots, trails and observation towers throughout the park.

Cabo da Roca is mainland-Europe's most western point (Europe's most western point is on the Azores). If you set sails from here and go straight west, you will end up in Delaware, USA. However, that never happened during the famous sea exploration era in the 15th and 16th centuries. Instead, the Portuguese discovered Brazil, several Atlantic archipelagos like the Azores, Madeira and Cape Verde, explored parts of the African coast and established trading routes to India, southern Asia, and even got as far as China and Japan.
Cabo da Roca is a popular stop for sightseeing tours, so if you want to escape the crowds, head south of the monument. A trail continues along the cliff edge with amazing views of the coastline - just watch where you are going, it's a long way down.

The Curonian Spit (Kurshskaya Kosa in Russian) is a nearly 100 km long, narrow, sand dune spit that separates the Baltic Sea from the Curonian Lagoon. The southern section lies within Kaliningrad Oblast (Russia) and the northern within Lithuania. At its narrowest, the width is merely 400 m, making it possible to look across when standing on a high sand dune. The uniqueness of this fragile landscape of drifting sand dunes has made it an UNESCO World Heritage Site, the only one in Kaliningrad Oblast. The National Park Kurshskaya Kosa makes up most of the spit, but there are several villages along the single road that goes the full length of the spit. The two main sights are The Dancing Forest, a collection of twisted trees, and the giant sand dunes at Efa. Not every local has been to these semi-famous spots, so beware when asking for direction or taking transport. The rest of the spit is mainly pine forest and long sandy beaches favoured by picknicking families during summer.

Lake Baikal is so large that it is hard to fully grasp its immensity: 636 km long, about 60 km wide and up to 1637 m deep, making it the deepest lake in the world. Any view from the shore makes it look more like sea than a confined body of water. The crystal clear fresh water is drinkable at most places and is home to some very yummy fish, like the omul. The railway from Irkutsk to Ulan-Ude runs parallel to the shore for a while but to really experience the lake, go to Olkhon island or at least Listvyanka, a village on the shore 70 km from Irkutsk.

The Baltic coastline and the lagoon side of the Curonian Spit are both long sandy beaches with tall sand dunes. Some of the largest dunes are located on the lagoon side and called Efa after forester Franz Efa, who researched drifting sand. They raise up to a height of 60 metres above the sea, which is just a stone's throw away. As strangely as it might sound, it's not allowed to walk in the sand dunes, but a trail runs along the edge where the sand meets the forest, up to the top of the dunes. From here, the splendid views stretch across the Curonian Spit and what best can be described as a mini Sahara - well, at least in summer when the sun is shining and there is no snow.

A twenty-minute bus ride from the centre of Krasnoyarsk brings you to the Stolby National park. The park is famous for the 60-90 metre-high karst peaks (stolby) scattered throughout the area that the locals say ressemble "a land of forest giants". The bulbous formations were created by pulses of magma squeezed out of the pores of the earth's crust. A little like squeezing Vegemite between crackers! If you come in the colder months, hiking can be challenging to say the least but if you manage to climb to the top of a stolby and look out away from the rocks into the taiga forest, the view is incredible.

Lake Bled is tourist destination number one in Slovenia - not that it means much in little-visited Slovenia. On a backdrop of snow tipped mountains, lies the deep blue lake and right in the middle of it rises a tiny island topped with a white church. It is so postcard-perfect that you find yourself snapping pictures at every bend. The grassy shore can get crowded in summertime when locals (and the few tourists) cluster for sunbathing, swimming and chilling out. High above the northeastern shore sits the equally impressive Bled castle, perched on a clifftop with tiny Bled town below. You can either stay in town while exploring the area or even make it as a day trip from Ljubljana.