Natural features near you

[Comshaw]

Not far from me is a lake that is deep clear and cold. At its deepest it's 596' deep. For a lake that's only 9 miles long, that's pretty deep. But at one point it's less than 2000' across, less than 3/8ths of a mile. But in the middle of that short span, it is 400' deep.

As to the clear part, I used to fish it quite often with a friend. His boat had down riggers we would use those. We got out one day and I decided to see how far down into the water I could see the downrigger weight before it went out of sight. It disappeared from sight at 70'.

Cold: average temperature is 42-to 50°. sometimes in the summer the surface temperature will get up to 60°. But that is deceptive. The thermoclines in the lake can take you by surprise.

The Natives called in a spirit lake and refused to go there by themselves. Over the years the lake has swallowed cars, logging trucks and a few bodies. Some were found later. In 1927 a couple came into town to buy a washing machine. They disappeared on their way home. Their car, with the washing machine tied into the trunk was found in 2004 200' down in the lake.

In 1937 a lady's body was found floating in the lake wrapped in sheets. She had disappeared 3 years earlier. Her body was described as having the consistency of Ivory soap. The experts speculate that was for the minerals and temperature at the bottom of the lake. Her husband was later convicted of her murder. The screwy part is that he was pardoned 9 years later!

That's one of the natural but freaky features where I live. Later I'll tell you about Chinaman's cave. Another screwy local story.

So what about ya'll? Any really great, screwy or freaky features around where you live?


Comshaw

 

[gunhilltrain]

The Bronx River. It is thirty-nine miles long and starts at a reservoir in Westchester County, It then flows south into the city before it empties into the East River. Over the years parkland was developed around it to cover its flood plain. Much of it is a narrow stream, but during a big storm it overflows its banks quite a lot.

The Bronx River Parkway is an adjacent highway. I've never seen a car crash into the river, but I've seen a couple that went down the embankment and almost did.

It widens at the southern end:

https://www.riverkeeper.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/BronxRiverAllianceFlotilla.jpg

A map of it within the city:

https://bronxriver.org/wp-content/u...1-05-04-Phasing_Map_12-30-09-pdf-1024x650.png

The original greenway:

https://www.loc.gov/resource/hhh.ny2000.sheet/?sp=1

 

[Tio_Narratore]

In 1937 a lady's body was found floating in the lake wrapped in sheets. She had disappeared 3 years earlier. Her body was described as having the consistency of Ivory soap. The experts speculate that was for the minerals and temperature at the bottom of the lake. Her husband was later convicted of her murder. The screwy part is that he was pardoned 9 years later!

I expect the lady was a bit on the heavy side. When a body decomposes in fresh cold water, the fat turns into a white soap-like substance called adipocere. (Soap is mostly fats anyway). Nothing to do with the minerals in the lake sediments.

 

[RetroFan]

There's much natural beauty in and around Melbourne Australia, but one of the most amazing is a few hours out of town, The Twelve Apostles rock formations off the coast in the Port Campbell National Park. To reach them one has to go along the Great Ocean Road, a stunning but not particularly easy drive (narrow twisting roads through the bush) that starts near Geelong west of Melbourne.

 

[Comshaw]

In 1937 a lady's body was found floating in the lake wrapped in sheets. She had disappeared 3 years earlier. Her body was described as having the consistency of Ivory soap. The experts speculate that was for the minerals and temperature at the bottom of the lake. Her husband was later convicted of her murder. The screwy part is that he was pardoned 9 years later!

I expect the lady was a bit on the heavy side. When a body decomposes in fresh cold water, the fat turns into a white soap-like substance called adipocere. (Soap is mostly fats anyway). Nothing to do with the minerals in the lake sediments.

No she wasn't heavy even slightly. But I understand and agree with what you said. Actually, her skin was more rubbery than soap-like. There was very little decay of the body with exception of her facial features and finger prints. Most likely from the temperature of the lake.

An interesting part is how they caught her killer. Here's an excerpt from an online article about that:

Even though there could be no facial recognition or finger prints, police made a positive identification of the body as Hallie Illingworth because of the physical match, hair color, and dental records.

The police also had a clue to the killer – the rope. This rope, it seems, was peculiar to Sears and Roebuck. Through receipts, it was tracked to the tavern owner who had bought it to tie up boats. The tavern owner remembered that a beer salesman borrowed 100-feet of rope to pull his truck out of the mud. He had never returned the rope. And… the beer salesman was Monty. (her husband)

Comshaw

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

I have a Quarry nearby that according to G Earth is several times as deep as your lake.

 

[AllenWoody]

I have a Quarry nearby that according to G Earth is several times as deep as your lake.

Bodies. Galore.

 

[SimonDoom]

Within 250 miles of me, as the crow flies, are:

The world's tallest tree.

The world's biggest tree.

The world's oldest tree.

I think that's cool.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

I live about three kilometers from the confluence of the Ottawa and St. Lawrence Rivers, central to the history of northern North America

 

[Comshaw]

I have a Quarry nearby that according to G Earth is several times as deep as your lake.

several times as deep? So it's close to 1800' deep? That be a deeeeep body of water!


Comshaw

 

[Codoc24]

I live just outside the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, USA. A 14er is a term for any mountain that reaches over 14,000 feet. There are 58 in Colorado. My wife and I have hiked two 14ers, including the tallest mountain, Mt. Elbert, in Colorado, 14,440 feet. (picture below is taken from Mt. Elbert) It usually takes several hours to hike one round-trip. Around 12-13,000 feet the air gets pretty thin and makes breathing hard, depending on how good of shape you are in. The trees disappear around 11,000. Some are too steep and can't be hiked, they have to be climbed. That type is not for us, we're not mountain climbers. Way too scary. LOL The first time you top one is so amazing! It's incredible. It's kind of overwhelming when it is a clear day and you can see for miles and miles.

 

[MyBareTorso]

Sydney has several popular beaches that have the extraordinary power to send me into paroxysms of lust, and then inspire me to write over a hundred hobbyist, unpaid erotic stories of varying levels of Literotica unpopularity!

 

[Rustyoznail]

There's a series of limestone caves near here, most of which are closed to the general public. I had the opportunity to crawl through them when I was much thinner. It was extraordinary, and a little unnerving.

 

[THBGato]

I don't want to give my location. We live on the side of a mountain that is higher than any in the UK (admittedly, that's not hard); the view from our bedroom includes two more mountain ranges and the sea. It is spectacular.

 

[StillStunned]

I live in a highly urbanised area, but my neighbour has a pair of lovely natural features.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

From what I was told; one of the islands here on the Ohio is made from several barges. There's a large cave system, and it's apart of the Mammoth Cave system, a few counties over. I live in the biggest city in the state, so there's not a lot of natural beauty. I think Red River Gorge is about the closest... ain't been there.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

The River Thames is the local defining feature. Father Thames isn't respected as much as he should be: about a body a week is retrieved from the river. The currents are such that it's a lot colder than people expect, and the current and tide can sweep bodies for miles very quickly. The river is tidal all through London; the rise is about 25 feet in the middle of London, round Westminster.

They've just issued new mudlarking licences, allowing people to go down onto the foreshore at low tide and dig for treasure. Coins going all the way back to Roman times show up regularly.

Blackfriars station, where the platforms span the river, giving amazing views of St Paul's and Tower Bridge in one direction, and Parliament in the other, is a wonder of the modern world.

 

[StillStunned]

The River Thames is the local defining feature. Father Thames isn't respected as much as he should be: about a body a week is retrieved from the river. The currents are such that it's a lot colder than people expect, and the current and tide can sweep bodies for miles very quickly. The river is tidal all through London; the rise is about 25 feet in the middle of London, round Westminster.

According to The Rivers of London, the tidal part of the Thames is ruled by Mama Thames. Father Thames is in charge of the rural section upstream.

 

[XerXesXu]

The River Thames is the local defining feature. Father Thames isn't respected as much as he should be: about a body a week is retrieved from the river. The currents are such that it's a lot colder than people expect, and the current and tide can sweep bodies for miles very quickly. The river is tidal all through London; the rise is about 25 feet in the middle of London, round Westminster.

They've just issued new mudlarking licences, allowing people to go down onto the foreshore at low tide and dig for treasure. Coins going all the way back to Roman times show up regularly.

Blackfriars station, where the platforms span the river, giving amazing views of St Paul's and Tower Bridge in one direction, and Parliament in the other, is a wonder of the modern world.

The Fleet ran through a culvert under my parents' basement. I now live midway between two volcanos. These facts are unrelated.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

I'm not shy about living in Austin, nor about the vast expanse of Texas Hill Country to the north and west. If you read my stories, you'll find references to all kinds of places, some real, some imaginary, I love to visit. My Harley, Cherry Bomb(*) and I can be found out among those hills on a not regular enough basis.

(*) The guy I bought her from told me the original owner was the lead singer of the Runaways, Cherie Currie. Their big hit was Cherry Bomb. It's a lie or he misspoke, but it makes a good story and he's my most reliable source, so i go with it.

 

[Sappho_CGN]

River Rhine about 10 km to the west
Eifel region with its forrests and Vulcano lakes called "Maar" in German
The "Siebengebirge" ("Seven Mountains") with cstle and abbey ruins as well as the famous Dragon Rock ("Drachenfels")
The hilly Bergisches Land
The Lower Rhine region with its meadows ..

 

[intim8]

Sand. I have sand near me. That's about it. Though there is an iconic plant that pretty much everybody in the world knows the basic shape of and that kids draw pictures of that only grows in this region. They're everywhere around here, even in the city.

 

[MrPixel]

We're about an hour-and-a-half's drive from a huge river that basically cuts the continental US in half. First two guesses don't count.

 

[NotWise]

I live about 40 miles south of the center of an active super-volcano. It's far from the most active super-volcano in the contiguous states (that would be Yellowstone), and there would be a lot of changes before it ever erupted again.

There are fourteen National Parks, Monuments, and assorted other designations in the state, many within an easy drive from here. About half of those are for natural features and the rest are for historical features.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

We're about an hour-and-a-half's drive from a huge river that basically cuts the continental US in half. First two guesses don't count.

Living within ~100 miles of the Big Muddy is like saying you live down the street from Dollar General.