I wanted to start a new category on my blog that brings my love of Geography and Maps. I am that nerd that loves staring at geographical borders and knowing statistical facts about cities, countries, flags and what the national anthem sounds like. So today I want to share with you my love for geography through pictures of “Countries Highest Points.”
If this series continues I want to eventually list and have a picture of every countries “Highest Point.” What I mean by “Highest Points,” is highest points within a country. This is about showing a common thread that all countries share, and how different highest points can look. Every country has one and the curious side of me wants to discover and learn with information and a picture.
I’m going to be listing random countries, in no particular order, and if this series continues I hope to have every single country in the world. I will be listing 15 at a time. The first list includes, Canada, Brazil, Tonga, Andorra, Zimbabwe, Tajikistan, Bahrain, Comoros, Aruba, Vietnam, Argentina, Ethiopia, Seychelles, Australia, Antarctica.
Canada
Highest Point:
Mount Logan, Yukon – 19,551 ft (5,959 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
60°34′02″N 140°24′10″W
Facts:
- Located in Yukon, Canada, Mount Logan is the second highest mountain in North America
- Temperatures are cold near the peak with an average yearly temperature of -17 F
- Believed to have the largest base circumference of any non-volcanic mountain on Earth
Brazil
Highest Point:
Pico da Neblina – 9,823 ft (2,994 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
0°48′17″N 66°00′24″W
Facts:
- Called Pic0 da Neblina or Fog Peak because the mountain is usually covered in fog
- It lies just 2,000 feet from the Venezuela border, and is often confused as the defacto border between Brazil and Venezuela
- A four-day trek each way should be expected, three of which consisting of a jungle trek in the rain-forest that can be as hard and challenging as the climb itself
Tonga
Highest Point:
Kao Island – 3,380 ft (1,030 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
19°40′12″S 175°01′48″W
Facts:
- It is unknown how long the volcano has been around but it’s suggested that to not be very long
- It has a jungle at the bottom of the mountain and almost bare near the top
- The island it inhabits is uninhabited
Andorra
Highest Point:
Coma Pedrosa – 9,656 ft (2,943 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
42°35′26″N 1°26′41.21″E
Facts:
- Popular mountain to climb since it’s technically straight forward
- Historically, the mountain provided ample security from invasions into Andorra
- The climb takes around 4.5 hours to climb to the highest point
Zimbabwe
Highest Points:
Mount Nyangani – 8,504 ft (2,592 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
18°18′00″S 32°50′30″E
Facts:
- Due to its relatively low altitude and tropical location, snow falls very rarely, last recorded in August 1935
- A lot of rain falls on the mountain, around 2200 mm
- The peak can be reached within 1 – 3 hours by even an average hiker
Tajikistan
Highest Point:
Ismoil Somoni Peak – 24,590 ft (7,495 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
38°55′00″N 72°01′00″E
Facts:
- Named Communism Peak during the Soviet Era, still commonly called that today
- The first ascent was made 9 September 1933 by the Soviet mountaineer Yevgeniy Abalakov
- Now named after Ismail Samani, the greatest ruler of the Samanid dynasty
Bahrain
Highest Point:
Mountain of Smoke – 440 ft (134 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
26°2′20″N 50°32′35″E
Facts:
- The Mountain of Smoke is named as such because of the haze which often surrounds it on humid days
- Many caves are part of the mountain
- Just 45 minutes from the capital of Manama
Comoros
Highest Point:
Mount Karthala – 7,746 ft (2,361m)
Longitude and Latitude:
11°45′24″S 43°21′42″E
Facts:
- The Karthala volcano is very active, having erupted more than 20 times since the 19th century
- It is the southernmost and larger of the two shield volcanoes forming Grande Comore island
- The mountain is covered by moist evergreen forest up to about 1800 metres above sea-level
Aruba
Highest Point:
Mount Jamanota – 617 ft (188 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
12°29′15″N 69°56′26.5″W
Facts:
- Is visible from the entire island
- The panorama from its summit includes Frenchman’s Pass on the south coast, where Indians defended their island against the French
- Known to have wild parakeets
Vietnam
Highest Point:
Fansipan – 10,312 ft (3,143 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
22°18′12″N 103°46′30″E
Facts:
- Fansipan is dubbed “the Roof of Indochina”; it is to be approved as one of the very few ecotourist spots of Vietnam, with about 2,024 floral varieties and 327 fauna species
- It can be hiked with a tour in 2 or 3 days
- The area remains wet for most of the year and the hike can be very muddy
Argentina
Highest Point:
Aconcagua – 22,837 ft (6,960 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
32°39′12.35″S 70°00′39.9″W
Facts:
- It is the highest mountain in the Southern Hemisphere
- Technically a very easy mountain to climb if climbing from the north side
- One of the most climbed mountains in the world
Ethiopia
Highest Points:
Ras Dashen – 14,930 ft (4,550 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
13°14′09″N 38°22′15″E
Facts:
- The tenth highest mountain of Africa
- First recorded ascent was in 1841, but was probably conquered by locals before that
- It is of volcanic origins and has many craters
Seychelles
Highest Point:
Morne Seychellois – 2,969 ft (905 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
4°38′37.8″S 55°26′20.04″E
Australia
Highest Point:
Mawson Peak – 9,006 ft (2,745 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
53°6′00″S 73°31′00″E
Facts:
- Located on an island in the extreme southern Indian Ocean
- It is an active Big Ben Massif volcano
- Mawson Peak was first climbed in 1963
Antarctica
Highest Point:
Vinson Massif – 16,050 ft (4,892 m)
Longitude and Latitude:
78°31′31.74″S 85°37′1.73″W
Facts:
- The southern height peak in the world and on the “seven mountains” to climb list
- Vinson Massif was first seen in 1958 and first climbed in 1966
- The average warmest temperatures on the mountain only reach as high as -20 F
images by: ncdc, antoine, david, eldorado, twiga, wefoundyougo, natalie, cherl, tempoararytongan, joonas, twiga, wikipedia, david, nasa, torch
