Nature has so much to offer from stunning landscapes and majestic waterfalls, to lush and dense forests, incredible mountains, and wonderful beaches.

We are indeed blessed with so much fascinating beauty, but one more naturally occurring phenomenon that leaves us in amazement are the remarkable and unusual rock formations around the world. From giant mushroom shapes to elephant shapes or even cone-shaped ones, one looks more intriguing than the other, transformed by thousands and thousands of years of weathering and erosion.

1. Unusual rock formation in the desert of Arizona, United States

Credit: David Swindler

2. The Al Naslaa rock formation, located south of Tayma oasis, Saudi Arabia

Credit: zazahardyinsaudi

This spectacular rock measures about 6 m high and 9 m wide, and is neatly split down the middle into two parts, such that it appears as if it was performed with the precision of a laser beam. Each part of the rock is balanced on small pedestals, and there are numerous petroglyphs present of the south-east face of the rock.

3. The Mushroom rock (also called Pedestal rock) in Tamanrasset, Saharian desert, Algeria

Credit: @tourism_algeria

Another perspective of the rock showing both pedestals

This massive rock owes its particular shape to the action of wind erosion and weathering, and the different rate at which these occur at the top and bottom of the rock.

4. The Pinnacles at Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, Borneo island

Credit: Manuel Beers / Flickr

The Gunung Mulu National Park consists of a number of impressive geological formations of caves and pinnacles. There are three mountains within the park: Mount Mulu standing at 2,376 m high (7,795 ft), Mount Api at 1,750 m (5,740 ft), and Mount Benarat at 1,858 m (6,096 ft). These limestone pinnacles are located among the jungle on the slopes of the upper part of Mount Api. Their unique, razor-like, sharp forms extend to a height of about 50 m from the ground.

5. The Balanced Rock in the Garden Of The Gods in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States

Credit: John Hoffman’s Photography

This phenomenal red sandstone rock is said to be about 290-million-year-old, rising 35 ft from its pedestal base and weighing about 700-ton. Some concrete was poured around its base to prevent tourists from cutting out a chunk to take away, but apart from that, there is nothing much to protect the rock from erosion. Although the rock surrounding Balanced Rock eroded, the massive rock itself did not, and it is believed it won’t be falling, rolling, or crashing anywhere, anytime soon. Unless perhaps in the event of a major earthquake.

6. The ‘Hedgehog’ rock formation at Tassili n’Ajjer National Park in Algeria

Tassili n’Ajjer is a national park in the Sahara desert and classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Situated on a vast plateau, it consists of geological formations of rock forests, composed of eroded sandstone, which somehow is evocative of a lunar landscape. There are about 300 natural rock arches formed, along with deep gorges and permanent water pools.

7. The “Pointing rock” in Little Finland, Clark County, Nevada, United States

Credit: Tomas Hoste Photography

Little Finland is a scenic red rock area, known for its red rock scenery and unusual rock formations, which are composed of red Aztec Sandstone, fossil sand dunes.

8. Mushroom rock formation in the Mushroom Rock State Park, Kansas, United States

Credit: Franklin B Thompson (kansa𝓈ℯ𝓍plorer)

Mushroom Rock State Park is famous for its mushroom rock formations, which are the remains of beach sands and sediments of the Cretaceous Period, about 144 to 66 million years ago. Among the several rock formations, there are two mushrooms and a giant shoe rock, and the largest rock measures 27 feet in length.

9. The Árbol de Piedra Rock Tree in the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve of Sur Lípez Province, Bolivia

This isolated rock formation, known as the “Stone Tree”, protrudes out of the altiplano sand dunes and is shaped like a stunted tree of about 7 m in height. Its specific shape, especially the thin stem, is the result of strong winds carrying sand and eroding the soft sandstone.

10. The Chicken and Mushroom Rock Formation, White Desert Protected Area (Sahara el Beyda) in Egypt

Credit: Education Images/Universal Images Group (via Getty Images)