Mountains and Rocky Terrain
Mountains are not just rocky terrain, but tall and majestic, or even an incredible jumble of rock. If they are fairly steep and have a height of at least 1000 feet (304m) above the surroundings, that is. Some major ranges are the Himalayas, Rockies, Andes, Alps and Urals. But that list is too short. Every continent has impressive summits, as does the area called Oceania. I will show some of them, or we’d be here forever.
From Canada:
Canada #1960a-h – The peaks shown here are located on the world map in the centre.They are famous.
Starting at the 12 o'clock position, and going clockwise: - Mount Logan in Canada
- Mt. Elbrus in Russia
- Puncak Jaya in Indonesia
- Mt. Everest in Nepal/China
- Kilimanjaro in Tanzania
- Vinson Massif in Antarctica
- Aconcagua in Argentina
- Mt. McKinley in the USA
Below has one of this circle, one from Iceland, and some American stamps:
In the first row:- Canada #1960a (the first of the circle of stamps above) Mount Logan, the highest point in Canada. Note how the top edge of the stamp reflects the shape of the peak, as each one does for the rest.
- Iceland #678 – Mt. Skeggi
In the second row:- US #800 Mt McKinley (also called Denali), in Alaska, is the highest mountain peak in N. America
- US #1084 Devil’s Tower, Wyoming. This is a volcanic neck; after the magma in the neck solidified, the rest of the volcano weathered away. It stands 1267 ft (386 m) above the surrounding area.
- #1454 Mt McKinley again
From New Zealand we have
Top group:- #189 Mt Cook - Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand, reaching a height of 3,754 metres (12,316 ft). It lies in the Southern Alps of the South Island
- #1345 Mt Cook
- #1358 Mount Egmont / Taranaki, a large volcano in the southwest corner of the North Island.
The bottom group:- #191 Mitre Peak resembles a bishop’s hat, called a mitre; the mountain is found on the South Island.
- #528 Mitre Peak again
- #529 Mt Ngauruhoe, a volcano in the North Island
Another pair from New Zealand, and then from Bolivia:
The pair from New Zealand:- #530 Mt. Sefton in the Southern Alps
- #531 Burnett Range in the South Island
The pair from Bolivia:- #112 El Potosi in south central Bolivia has rich veins of silver, first worked in 1546.
- #114 El Illimani has 3 peaks, and overlooks the city of La Paz. It is always snow-covered.
Here are stamps from various countries:
The first group:- Japan #364 Mount Fuji, shown on a non-perforated stamp.
- Russia #2278 Belukha Mtn, Altai Range (tallest mountain in Siberia). Altai Range is located in Central Asia where Russia, Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan come together.
- Bulgaria #1230 Rila Mountains, a massif in south west Bulgaria.
The next group:- Ceylon #265 - Adam’s Peak is a conical shaped mountain in the centre of Sri Lanka (previously Ceylon). King George VI is in the cameo.
- India #1221 Broad Peak, first named K3, is in the border region of the Himalayas between Pakistan & China
- Switzerland #?? Mountain and Lake Tanay
Above:- Aus #1844 - The Flinders Ranges are a set of discontinuous mountain ranges north of Adelaide.
- Pakistan #683d – the image is of Khunjerab peak near the Khunjerab Pass, where the Karakoram Hwy connects Pakistan to China. The highway is the highest paved international road in the world.
Rock formations-
Sometime rocks have a particular shape that makes them interesting. They may be balanced rocks, arches, caves, weathered landscapes or river gorges. See for yourself.
This set from New Zealand in 1991 shows 6 different areas.
Top set:- #1038 Punakaili Rocks
- #1039 Moeraki boulders
- #1040 Organ Pipes
Bottom set:- #1041 Castle Hill
- #1042 Te Kaukau Point
- #1043 Ahuriri River Clay cliffs
The following are from 3 different countries:
The three:- New Zealand #1353 Waitomo Limestone Cave in New Zealand
- Romania #2235 Bicazului Gorge
- Australia #2791 Grose River Gorge
The two:- Romania #2236 Babele Rock formation
- Australia #1846 Devil’s Marbles area is also known as Karlu Karlu to the land's Aboriginals; it is in the middle of the Northern Territory
Another group of 3 countries:
- Australia #1843 The Pinnacles - are limestone formations contained within Nambung National Park in Western Australia
- Iceland #713 “Hvitserkur” – quite the rock formation!
- Canada #1481 The Rocks Provincial Park in New Brunswick, near Moncton. The rocks here are small islands that can be viewed from ground level at low tide, as depicted on the stamp. They have been called Flower Pot Rocks.
The stamps below are all American:
- #1068 Old Man of the Mountain, in New Hampshire.
- #3024 Rock Arch, Utah Anniversary. The ‘Delicate Arch’ is shown
- #2902 Non Profit coil definitive shows a few buttes in Monument Valley, at the border of Utah & Arizona.
The first pair:- #C139 Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. It has carved rocks in red, orange & white shades.
- #1191 New Mexico Statehood1912-1962; a rocky butte represents them
The next pair:- #2512 Grand Canyon from 1990. The canyon was carved by the Colorado River. See #741 in the
National Parks
section.
- #C135 Grand Canyon – an Air Mail stamp from 2000
Return from Mountains to Mother Nature
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