Interesting Photo of the Day: The World’s Tallest Palm Trees

Interesting Photos

The mighty wax palm tree is the symbol of Colombia. The ones pictured below, which are the tallest palms in the world, rest loftily in the Cocora Valley, one of Colombia’s most visited tourist destinations in Quindío, a half-hour’s drive away from Salento. The giants are an impossible 200 feet tall on average–nearly as tall as a 25-story building:

The Cocora Valley wax palms are roughly 200 feet tall. (Via Imgur. Click for larger size.)

This particular photo, with a beautifully desolate contrast of lush green grass and foggy gray skies, was captured by British travel photographer Alex Treadway for National Geographic. Treadway has an eye for making people look small against enveloping surroundings, and this shot–with a lone tourist’s head careening backward–is a perfect example of wide-scale composition and perspective.