November 26, 2021

Venezuela’s Last Glacier Mérida, Venezuela, is known as the “city of eternal snows,” and is home to the vast Sierra Nevada de Mérida: a large, muscular, towering expanse three miles in the sky that was once blanketed by snow and broad sheets of glaciers. But the landscape has morphed, and now only one glacier remains. But rather than despair, scientists based in Venezuela are eyeing a rare opportunity to see how life emerges in essentially lifeless terrains.  READ MORE → GASTRO OBSCURA Inside a ‘Torture Orchard’ As weather patterns grow more extreme, severe water shortages—like the ones seen in California this year—are likely to keep happening, which means that fruit and nut trees need to be able to survive whatever conditions the climate crisis throws at them. Enter the “torture orchard,” the cheeky nickname for 80 acres of the Wolfskill Experimental Orchards where researchers see exactly how much abuse 20 varieties of trees can take. The hope is to develop a generation of pistachio, almond, walnut, pomegranate, and other fruit and nut trees that are able to withstand the inevitable droughts. READ MORE → EAST MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA The Dolphin Fountain Fitzroy Gardens has several quirky sights and attractions scattered across 64 acres of green space, but none have received as mixed a review than The Dolphin Fountain. Situated in the middle of the park at the edge of the Central Business District in East Melbourne, this fine monument consists of a pyramid of granite boulders, on top of which lie a variety of different sea creatures. Delightful, yes? Interestingly, the fountain split public opinion. READ MORE → FROM THE ARCHIVES Why You Gotta Be So Mean? Most of us love and adore the U.S. National Parks. We say “most of us”, because, well, if you trawl any review page for any national park, you’ll likely come across a few disgruntled reviews, such as this one that dismisses the Grand Canyon as “a very, very large hole.” But artist Amber Share lives for these comments, juxtaposing them against lush, loving illustrations of park landscapes for a project she calls Subpar Parks. READ MORE → FROM THE ARCHIVES Sad Pumpkins Are you still holding on to your pumpkins from Halloween? If you are, have you, uh, checked on them lately? We once asked Atlas Obscura readers to send us pictures of their slumping, aging Halloween pumpkins, and what we got was an array of slumped pumpkins (also referred to as “dumpkins” or “bumbos”), capturing a wide range of emotions. Allow yourself a chuckle at these delightful, yet haunting pumpkins today. READ MORE → GASTRO OBSCURA TRIPS Barnacles, Bluffs, and Brine in Galicia Come along for a delightful seafood pilgrimage through the rugged coastal region of northwestern Spain, and uncover the seafood bounty that has put Galicia on the culinary map. Meet local mariners and chefs who harness the incredible offerings of their coast and explore the facets of Galicia's unique identity and its unbreakable bond with the sea. VIEW FULL ITINERARY→ GASTRO OBSCURA A Golf Sandwich Scandal The Masters is one of the four major professional golf championships, where the world’s top golfers converge on Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, to compete for the coveted Green Jacket. What sets the Masters apart, however, is a behind-the-scenes devotion to aesthetic perfection that evokes from its regular patrons a near-religious fervor. It’s an event so wedded to perfection that it’s surely one of the last places you’d expect to find successive episodes of food-based spite politics. Yet here we are. The greatest event in sports history is missing a vital recipe: that of its original pimento cheese sandwich. READ MORE → LONDON, ENGLAND Tulip Stairs Technically speaking, the Tulip Stairs—built in 1635— were the first self-supporting spiral stairs in Britain, with the design of the stairs being inspired by a Venetian model. But in 1966, they earned an altogether different kind of fame, when a shrouded spectral figure was spotted on the stairs. READ MORE → SPONSORED BY LAND ROVER Download Our New App ICYMI: We launched our first ever app on Apple iOS to help you rediscover the hidden wonders of the world! For years, we’ve tirelessly worked with our community members to help build a database of over 22,000 places highlighting the off-the-beaten-path, undiscovered, rare wonders that lurk in our backyards and further abroad. We’re pleased to bring that wonder to your phone alongside our launch partner Land Rover. Find your adventurous spirit and download the new Atlas Obscura app on Apple iOS today. DOWNLOAD NOW →