白霜覆盖下的山毛榉林，英格兰多塞特郡 Beech woodland in hoar frost, Cranborne Chase, Dorset, England (© Guy Edwardes/Minden Pictures)

白霜覆盖下的山毛榉林，英格兰多塞特郡 Beech woodland in hoar frost, Cranborne Chase, Dorset, England (© Guy Edwardes/Minden Pictures)

被白霜覆盖的山毛榉林 Beech forest covered in hoarfrost

Cranborne Chase, England

If this looks to you like the setting of a fairy tale, you're not alone. These surroundings have long inspired writers and painters alike. Naturally, Cranborne Chase, England, has been designated a national protected area because of its natural beauty. It may be especially beautiful in winter, when the trees and shrubs can be coated with hoarfrost, an uncommon type of frost that forms when water vapor turns directly into ice, skipping the liquid stage.

Cranborne Chase is a plateau in southern England touching the counties of Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset, and Wiltshire. These 380 square miles of diverse countryside include rolling grasslands, river valleys, hillsides, and ancient woodlands. The area has been inhabited since the stone age, and for centuries was a royal hunting ground—in fact, the word 'chase' derives from these hunts. Today, while Cranborne Chase is protected from most new development, it's not a wilderness—nearly 90% of the land is used for farming and more than 30,000 people live here.

英国克兰伯恩蔡斯

如果你觉得这就像童话故事的背景，那么你并不孤单。长期以来，这些环境一直激励着作家和画家。自然地，英格兰的克兰伯恩蔡斯因其自然美景而被指定为国家保护区。在冬天，树木和灌木丛可能会被白霜覆盖，这是一种罕见的霜，当水蒸气直接变成冰，跳过液体阶段时形成。

克兰伯恩蔡斯是英格兰南部的一个高原，与多塞特、汉普郡、萨默塞特和威尔特郡接壤。这380平方英里的多样化乡村包括起伏的草原、河谷、山坡和古老的林地。该地区自石器时代起就有人居住，几个世纪以来一直是皇家狩猎场。事实上，“追逐”一词源自这些狩猎。如今，尽管克兰伯恩蔡斯受到保护，不受大多数新开发项目的影响，但它并不是一片荒野。近90%的土地用于农业，有3万多人居住在这里。