Crocodile Rock Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Twelve Apostles

There are not actually twelve of these rocks any more, if there ever were. One eroded by the action of the sea collapsed in 2005, leaving eight at the time. The tallest is about 50m (165 ft) high. The stacks were formed by erosion of the limestone that formed the cliff edges along the coast to form caves, which then eroded further to produce arches, which eventually collapsed to leave a free-standing offshore pillar. Formerly known as the Sow and Piglets, the site was renamed as The Apostles to create a more enticing name for tourism purposes. Popular usage renamed them the Twelve Apostles.

Answer: Wave Rock

Wave Rock, which is about 110 m (350 ft) long and 14 m (45 ft) high, resembles a wave that is in the process of breaking in the surf. The shape was created by the erosion of softer rock originally under the harder rock that remains. Rainwater dissolves chemicals (especially carbonates and iron hydroxide) from the top of the rock, some of which are then deposited on the curved surface during runoff, producing vertical stripes of grey, yellow and red.

As the angle of the sun changes during the day, the colors seem to change, and the wave appears to be dynamic.

There are other smaller wave rocks in the region, as well as some popular ones called "Hippo's Yawn" and "The Humps".

Answer: A child on her back

This granite rock is on top of a hill near Sha Tin, which is in Kowloon, Hong Kong. According to legend, it is at the spot where a fisherman's wife waited daily with her son for the return of her husband, who had drowned at sea. The goddess of the sea rewarded her fidelity by turning her into a rock so that her spirit could be reunited with that of her husband.

Answer: Hoodoo

A hoodoo is a tall thin sedimentary rock with a harder layer on the top that resists erosion. Hoodoos are also called tent rocks, mushroom rocks, and fairy chimneys. They are usually found in badlands, so the Queen's Head is unusual in its location near the sea. There are a number of similar formations nearby, also named for their shapes, such as a candlestick or a fairy shoe. Technically, this should be called a hoodoo rock, rather than a hoodoo, because it is not very tall - only about a metre (a bit over 3 ft).

A Ho ho is a kind of cake (and what Santa Claus says); a Vo vo is an Australian biscuit/cookie; Voodoo is a religion.

Answer: Noah's Ark

Lotus Flower Peak is the highest of the 72 Yellow Mountains. Its name derives from its resemblance to a lotus flower in full bloom. "Five Old Men Going to the Heavenly Capital" is a rock formation to be found on Tiandu Peak which resembles five walking figures. "Flowers Painted with a Dreamed Writing Brush" resembles a writing brush and a pen-holder, with flower-like pine trees protruding at its tip. "Two Immortals Paying Chess" can be seen on Shixing Peak, while "Monkey Watching the Sea" is located at Qingliang Terrace.

Answer: It is carved out of the tufa of a Fairy Chimney

About 500 CE, a cave complex was created by digging out the base columns of several chimneys, and used as an early byzantine monastery. The "Fairy Chimney Inn" has created modern conveniences inside the caves. It is not uncommon in this region to find houses and churches carved into the fairy chimneys.

Answer: Rock of Gibraltar

The Rock of Gibraltar is also sometimes referred to as being one of the Pillars of Hercules, along with Mons Abyla (Latin) or Jebel Musa (Arabic) on the African side of the Strait of Gibraltar. It is 426 m (1400 ft) high at its highest point, and is connected to the Spanish mainland by a narrow spit with a maximum height of three metres (10 ft). Most of the upper area of the Rock is a nature reserve, where the famous Barbary Macaques can be found. Along with the extensive network of tunnels in the Rock itself, these form a major tourist attraction.

Answer: Bowerman's Nose

Bowerman's Nose is the granite core of a former tor that can be seen on the northern slopes of Hayne Down, near the village of Manaton. It is about 6.6 m (21.5 ft) tall. According to local legend, a hunter names Bowerman was chasing a hare one day about 1000 years ago when he and his hounds ran into a coven of witches and disturbed their ceremony.

This was not a great idea! The next time he was out hunting, one of the witches turned herself into a hare and lured him and his dogs into a quagmire, then turned them into stone.

The dogs are now a chain of rocks on the top of nearby Hound Tor.

Answer: The Devil's Organ Pipes

According to Irish legend, the Giant's Causeway was built by the Irish warrior Finn mac Cumhaill so that he could walk to Scotland to fight his Irish counterpart, Benandonner. More prosaically, geologists consider this to be a volcanic structure, formed when molten lava intruded through chalk beds to form an extensive lava plateau called the Thulean Plateau.

As the lava cooled rapidly, contraction caused cracking. The result is a series of connected basaltic columns. The tops of many of the columns seem to form stepping stones that lead from the base of the cliff and disappear under the sea.

The Devil's Organ Pipes is a set of columns (resembling organ pipes, as you will be surprised to hear) formed near to the set of columns which formed the stepping stones.

Answer: Delicate Arch

Delicate Arch is one of the many (over 2000) sandstone arches to be found in Utah's Arches National Park. Other spectacular features of the park include Balanced Rock (a large rock, the size of three buses, balanced on a column), Courthouse Towers (a collection of tall stone columns), Dark Angel (a 30m tall sandstone pillar near one end of the area known as Devil's Garden), Landscape Arch (a very thin and long arch, over 90 m in length) and Fiery Furnace (a maze-like area of narrow passages between tall rock columns).

The Arch of Triumph, better known as the Arc de Triomphe, can be seen in Paris; the Gateway Arch is in St Louis; Marble Arch will be found in London. All three are man-made structures, not natural formations.