2019年6月
苏格兰福斯湾的巴斯岩 Bass Rock in Scotland’s Firth of Forth (© Richard Shucksmith/Minden Pictures)
苏格兰福斯湾的巴斯岩 Bass Rock in Scotland's Firth of Forth (© Richard Shucksmith/Minden Pictures)
An island for the birds
Those white specks scattered around the surface of Bass Rock are northern gannets—seabirds that spend their springtime breeding and nesting season on the islands and shores of the North Atlantic. At the height of the birds' Bass Rock nesting, roughly 150,000 gannets arrive to rear their chicks, making this location the largest gannet colony on Earth. There are no human inhabitants on Bass Rock—the lighthouse is automated. The tiny volcanic plug island is just over a mile off the coast of the Lothian region of eastern Scotland in the Firth of Forth.
爱荷华州中部的高架栈桥 The High Trestle Trail Bridge in central Iowa (© Kelly van Dellen/Getty Images Plus)
爱荷华州中部的高架栈桥 The High Trestle Trail Bridge in central Iowa (© Kelly van Dellen/Getty Images Plus)
Hiking the High Trestle Trail
The unique 130-foot-tall bridge you see here is just a small part of a longer, 25-mile trail that connects five small towns in central Iowa. The High Trestle Trail is a rail trail—a decommissioned railroad track that’s been turned into a multiuse trail—and it follows the path of an old Union Pacific Railroad freight line. The rail-to-trail movement began in the 1960s when many railroad tracks began to be removed and people noted that the relatively flat rail corridors were perfect for hiking and biking trails. We can now enjoy thousands of miles of rail trails throughout the US. So today, on National Trails Day, find a trail near you and get outside to celebrate.