Rock Archives - Ten Random Facts

Do not tumble down the walls at Verdon Gorge.

Verdon Gorge is a canyon with a river running through it, that is located in Europe’s France, in the south-east of the country.
Verdon Gorge is approximately 25 kilometres (15.5 miles) in length and, at its deepest depth, 0.7 kilometres (0.4 miles).
Verdon Gorge has stunning, turquoise coloured water, and some say this is due to tiny particles of rock (most likely limestone), known as ‘rock flour’ or ‘glacial flour’, in the water, and others say it is because the water contains microscopic algae.
Verdon Gorge is a popular tourist destination, with more than a million visitors a year, and it is especially popular for rock climbing, as there are approximately 1500 courses to choose from, while other sports enjoyed include rafting, hiking, canoeing, fishing and paragliding.
‘Verdon Gorge’ is also known in French as ‘Gorges du Verdon’ and ‘Grand Canyon du Verdon’, and it is named so, due to the colour of the water of the Verdon River, that flows through the gorge.

Out of all the gorges and canyons in Europe, the Verdon Gorge is the largest, and it is part of the Regional Natural Park of Verdon (Parc Naturel Regional du Verdon).
Verdon Gorge was formed from erosion caused by the Verdon River, and the gorge ends with a man-made lake called ‘lac de Sainte-Croix’ (Lake of Sainte-Croix).
Verdon Gorge runs through five different hydro-electric dams, constructed during the years of 1929 and 1975.
Verdon Gorge was the subject of an expedition in 1905, by Frenchman Édouard-Alfred Martel, a speleologist, a scientist that study caves, who completed a geological survey of the area.
Much of Verdon Gorge is made of limestone, with the highest, vertical wall reaching 300 metres (1000 feet).

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Do not get lost in the Jeita Grotto!

The Jeita Grotto is two different but connected caverns of limestone, known as the ‘Lower Grotto’ and the ‘Upper Grotto’.
The Jeita Grotto complex is 9 kilometres (5.6 miles) in length.
The Jeita Grotto is located in the mountainous area of Lebanon, just north of Beirut, where it is the longest cave in the Middle East, and a popular tourist attraction.
The UpperCave of the Jeita Grotto contains many amazing formations, including the longest stalactite known to humans, with a length of 8.2 metres (27 feet).
The Jeita Grotto was first discovered by the modern world in 1836, by William Thomson, a missionary from America.

During 1873 and 1874, two expeditions were carried out by engineers, W Maxwell and H Huxley who worked for a local water company, and friend Daniel Bliss, who placed a ‘time capsule’ (a bottle with a written note) in one of the caves, which has since been welded into a stalagmite.
During the Lebanese civil war in 1978, the Jeita Grotto was publicly closed and used mainly as storage facility for equipment needed for the war, and it was reopened in 1995.
The Lower Grotto of the Jeita Grotto contains an important water source with rapids, and quiet, peaceful areas, and during winter, the lower sections is sometimes closed due to high water levels.
The Jeita Grotto was one of the finalists in the bid to be one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature in 2011.
During its history, the Jeita Grotto has been known as ‘Grottoes of Nahr-al-Kalb’, ‘Djaita Grottoes’ and ‘Jehita Grottoes’.

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