Majestic mountains around the world 1

Majestic mountains around the world that are full of hidden secrets

Story by Karlina Valeiko

Standing tall©warasit phothisuk/Shutterstock

There are few things on Earth as intimidating and equally fascinating as mountains. From small, but perfectly formed peaks to grand monoliths rising tall into the sky, mountains come in all shapes and sizes. Here, we travel across the globe and discover some of the fascinating stories behind the world's most stunning mountains – click on 'full screen' to see these photos at their best.

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Three Sisters, Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia (3,024ft/922m)©Visual Collective/Shutterstock

Tangles of native bushland, waterfalls, forested valleys, cliffs and caves – the scenery in the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area is nothing short of spectacular. The area’s most famous landmark is the Three Sisters. According to an Aboriginal legend, the towering rocks represent three sisters – Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo – who were turned to stone for protection.

 

El Capitan, California, USA (3,000ft/914m)©Lynn Yeh/Shutterstock

The grande dame of Yosemite National Park (along with Half Dome to the east), El Capitan rises proudly from the western side of the Yosemite Valley. Its granite face appears near vertical – a result of glacial action that shaped many of the mountains within the national park. El Capitan, meaning the captain, is indeed a fitting name for the monolith.

 

The Pitons, St Lucia (2,618ft/798m)©PlusONE/Shutterstock

An unmistakable sight in St Lucia, The Pitons are one of the island's best-known views. The two volcanic plugs are now covered in a dense green jungle and the Pitons – Gros Piton and Petit Piton – are home to no less than 245 different plant species, including eight rare tree species, and 27 bird species, five of them endemic.

 

Kirkjufell, Iceland (1,519ft/463m)©Thampitakkull Jakkree/Shutterstock

We've all heard of Everest and Fuji, and while these peaks are mesmerizing in their own ways, Kirkjufell in Iceland is altogether more ethereal. The gorgeous mountain can be found on the island's western coastline, an area defined by crystalline fjords, geothermal pools and dynamic waterfalls. And while it might be the smallest on our list, it's the most photographed peak in all of Iceland due to its incredible beauty and the Northern Lights that often dance in the night sky above.best.

 

Buachaille Etive Beag, Scottish Highlands, Scotland, UK (3,143ft/958m)©orxy/Shutterstock

It's not Scotland's highest or most famous mountain so it often gets overlooked in favor of others, however, the spectacular mountain and its landscape has to be seen to be believed. Surrounded by the peaks of Glencoe and offering incredible views over the Loch Etive, Buachaille Etive Beag is one of the Scottish Highland's most perfectly formed mountains. The name, pronounced booachil etiv bek, means small herdsman of Etive.

 

Table Mountain, South Africa (3,558ft/1,084m)©Werner Lehmann/Shutterstock

Watching over the South African city of Cape Town, there's no doubt Table Mountain is one of the most famous in the world. Known for its distinctive shape, as the name suggests, it's actually one of the planet's oldest peaks at more than 200 million years old. The first recorded ascent also happened a while back – Portuguese explorer António de Saldanha conquered it in the early 16th century.

 

Snowdon, Wales, UK (3,559ft/1,085m)©Hartmut Albert/Shutterstock

No visit to Snowdonia in Wales is complete without seeing the awe-inspiring Snowdon – the highest summit in England and Wales. Almost as famous as the mountain itself, the Snowdon Mountain Railway is a masterful feat of engineering that was constructed over 14 months in 1894 and has been running ever since. Impressively, three of the five Swiss-manufactured steam locomotives bought in 1895 are still in service today too.

 

Thor Peak, Baffin Mountains, Nunavut, Canada (5,495ft/1,675m)©Ed Dods/Shutterstock

Located within the remote Auyuittuq National Park, Mount Thor (officially known as Thor Peak) is named after the Norse god of thunder and for very good reason as it's so intimidating. Featuring the world's longest vertical drop at a hair-raising 4,101 feet (1,250m), the slope isn't easily ascended either. In fact, it's so difficult, the mountain wasn't conquered until as recently as 1985, when a four-man American team completed it in 33 grueling days.

 

Huangshan Mountain, Anhui, China (6,115ft/1,863m)©aphotostory/Shutterstock

Although Huangshan Mountains, or the Yellow Mountains, are not among China's tallest, they definitely are among the most spectacular. Nicknamed the loveliest mountain in China, Huangshan and its otherworldly pine-clad rock formations have captured people's imagination for centuries. The misty mountains have inspired many Chinese forms of art, especially the shan shui style of landscape painting.

 

Mount Hua, Qin Mountains, China (7,086ft/2,160m)©clkraus/Shutterstock

Also known as Huashan, Mount Hua is one of the five sacred Taoist mountains in China. It's long been a place of pilgrimage, however, it's also known for offering one of the world's deadliest hikes. A network of trails snake around the mountain, including steep stone steps. But it's the infamous Plank Path – narrow and rickety planks bolted onto the sheer mountainside around 5,000 feet (1,524m) in the sky – that is the most treacherous stretch.

 

Mount Sinai, Egypt (7,496ft/2,285m)©badahos/Shutterstock

Traditionally known as Jabal Musa, Mount Sinai is one of the Earth's most mysterious mountains. An otherworldly Mars-like landscape, the mountain is located in the Sinai Peninsula and is thought to be the biblical Mount Sinai. One of the most sacred locations in the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions, this is the place where Moses received the Ten Commandments in the Bible.

 

Mount Roraima, Venezuela (9,220ft/2,810m)©Curioso.Photography/Shutterstock

Towering above the clouds, the majestic Mount Roraima is a natural border between Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana in South America. Around two billion years old, the flat-top mountain is considered to be among the oldest in the world. It's also the highest tepui (South American table-top mountain) on the continent. The otherworldly looking natural wonder is said to be the inspiration behind the plateau with dinosaurs and ape-men in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel The Lost World.

 

Cuernos del Paine, Cordillera Paine, Chile (9,462ft/2,884m)©emperorcosar/Shutterstock

A rugged landscape of jagged peaks, shimmering lakes, ancient forests and vast glaciers, Patagonia is a region that captures the imagination. The sharp granite towers that rise over the landscape are one of the vast Torres del Paine National Park's most striking landmarks. The individual spikes are also very fittingly named after sharp things, including Shark's Fin, The Sword and The Blade.

 

Zugspitze, Wetterstein, Germany (9,717ft/2,962m)©Yannik Photography/Shutterstock

Germany's highest peak, Zugspitze is often called the top of Germany. Part of the Wetterstein mountain range of the Alps, the Austria–Germany border goes right over the mountain and before both countries joined the Schengen zone, there was a manned border checkpoint at the summit. Today, there are three cable cars ascending to the top where over 400 peaks in four different countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy) can be seen from the viewing platforms.

 

Three Peaks, Dolomites, Italy (9,839ft/2,999m)©canadastock/Shutterstock

These three distinctive peaks are an unmissable sight in the Dolomites mountain range in northeastern Italy. Called Tre Cime di Lavaredo in Italian, the Three Peaks formed the border between Italy and Austria until 1919 and now they separate the Italian provinces of South Tyrol and Belluno. The peaks have also had several silver screen appearances in films like The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones and most recently they featured in the Han Solo spin-off within the Star Wars universe Solo.