In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of
rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of
weathering
Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals as well as wood and artificial materials through contact with water, atmospheric gases, and biological organisms. Weathering occurs ''in situ'' (on site, with little or no movement) ...
and
erosion
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...
, with the effect of
gravity
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...
. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas,
escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''esca ...
s and along rivers. Cliffs are usually composed of rock that is resistant to weathering and erosion. The
sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...
s that are most likely to form cliffs include
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
,
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
,
chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...
, and
dolomite.
Igneous rock
Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma o ...
s such as
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
and
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...
also often form cliffs.
An
escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''esca ...
(or scarp) is a type of cliff formed by the movement of a
geologic fault, a landslide, or sometimes by rock slides or falling rocks which change the differential erosion of the rock layers.
Most cliffs have some form of
scree
Scree is a collection of broken rock fragments at the base of a cliff or other steep rocky mass that has accumulated through periodic rockfall. Landforms associated with these materials are often called talus deposits. Talus deposits typically ...
slope at their base. In arid areas or under high cliffs, they are generally exposed jumbles of fallen rock. In areas of higher moisture, a soil slope may obscure the talus. Many cliffs also feature tributary waterfalls or
rock shelters. Sometimes a cliff peters out at the end of a ridge, with
mushroom rocks or other types of rock columns remaining. Coastal erosion may lead to the formation of sea cliffs along a receding coastline.
The
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...
distinguishes between around most cliffs (continuous line along the topper edge with projections down the face) and outcrops (continuous lines along lower edge).
Etymology
Cliff comes from the Old English word ''clif'' of essentially the same meaning, cognate with Dutch, Low German, and Old Norse ''klif'' 'cliff'. These may in turn all be from a
Romance
Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to:
Common meanings
* Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings
* Romance languages, ...
loanword into Primitive Germanic that has its origins in the Latin forms ' ("slope" or "hillside").
[Monika Buchmüller-Pfaff: ''Namen im Grenzland - Methoden, Aspekte und Zielsetzung in der Erforschung der lothringisch-saarländischen Toponomastik'', Francia 18/1 (1991), Francia-Online: Sex nstitut historique allemand de Paris - Deutsches Historisches Institut Paris]
Onlineressource
[Max Pfister: ''Altromanische Relikte in der östlichen und südlichen Galloromania, in den rheinischen Mundarten, im Alpenraum und in Oberitalien''. In : Sieglinde Heinz, Ulrich Wandruszka d. ''Fakten und Theorien : Beitr. zur roman. u. allg. Sprachwiss.''; Festschr. für Helmut Stimm zum 65. Geburtstag, Tübingen 1982, pp. 219 – 230, ]
Large and famous cliffs
Given that a cliff does not need to be exactly vertical, there can be ambiguity about whether a given
slope
In mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes both the ''direction'' and the ''steepness'' of the line. Slope is often denoted by the letter ''m''; there is no clear answer to the question why the letter ''m'' is use ...
is a cliff or not and also about how much of a certain slope to count as a cliff. For example, given a truly vertical rock wall above a very steep slope, one could count just the rock wall or the combination. Listings of cliffs are thus inherently uncertain.
Some of the largest cliffs on Earth are found underwater. For example, an 8,000 m drop over a 4,250 m span can be found at a ridge sitting inside the
Kermadec Trench
The Kermadec Trench is a linear ocean trench in the south Pacific Ocean. It stretches about from the Louisville Seamount Chain in the north (26°S) to the Hikurangi Plateau in the south (37°S), north-east of New Zealand's North Island. Toget ...
.
According to some sources, the highest cliff in the world, about 1,340 m high, is the east face of
Great Trango in the
Karakoram mountains of northern Pakistan. This uses a fairly stringent notion of cliff, as the 1,340 m figure refers to a nearly vertical headwall of two stacked pillars; adding in a very steep approach brings the total drop from the East Face precipice to the nearby Dunge Glacier to nearly 2,000 m.
The location of the world's highest sea cliffs depends also on the definition of 'cliff' that is used. ''Guinness World Records'' states it is
Kalaupapa, Hawaii
Kalaupapa () is a small unincorporated community on the island of Molokai, within Kalawao County in the U.S. state of Hawaii. In 1866, during the reign of Kamehameha V, the Hawaii legislature passed a law that resulted in the designation of ...
, at 1,010 m high. Another contender is the north face of
Mitre Peak, which drops 1,683 m to
Milford Sound
Milford Sound / Piopiotahi is a fiord in the south west of New Zealand's South Island within Fiordland National Park, Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) Marine Reserve, and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site. It has been judged the world's top t ...
, New Zealand. These are subject to a less stringent definition, as the average slope of these cliffs at Kaulapapa is about 1.7, corresponding to an angle of 60 degrees, and Mitre Peak is similar. A more vertical drop into the sea can be found at Maujit Qaqarssuasia (also known as the '
Thumbnail
Thumbnails are reduced-size versions of pictures or videos, used to help in recognizing and organizing them, serving the same role for images as a normal text index does for words. In the age of digital images, visual search engines and imag ...
') which is situated in the
Torssukátak fjord area at the very tip of South Greenland and drops 1,560 m near-vertically.
Considering a truly vertical drop,
Mount Thor
Mount Thor, officially gazetted as Thor Peak ( iu, ᙯᕐᓱᐊᓗᒃ ''Qaisualuk'' "huge bedrock" or iu, ᑭᒍᑎᙳᐊᖅ ''Kigutinnguaq'' "tooth-like"), is a mountain with an elevation of located in Auyuittuq National Park, on Baffin Islan ...
on
Baffin Island in Arctic Canada is often considered the highest at 1370 m (4500 ft) high in total (the top 480 m (1600 ft) is overhanging), and is said to give it the longest vertical drop on Earth at 1,250 m (4,100 ft). However, other cliffs on Baffin Island, such as
Polar Sun Spire Polar Sun Spire is a peak in Beluga Mountain in the Sam Ford Fjord of Baffin Island, Canada. The spire is notable for its spectacular north face. The first ascent was made in 1996 by Mark Synnott, Jeff Chapman and Warren Hollinger. The team spent ...
in the
Sam Ford Fjord, or others in remote areas of Greenland may be higher.
The highest cliff in the solar system may be
Verona Rupes, an approximately high
fault scarp
A fault scarp is a small step or offset on the ground surface where one side of a fault has moved vertically with respect to the other. It is the topographic expression of faulting attributed to the displacement of the land surface by movement a ...
on
Miranda, a moon of Uranus.
List
The following is an incomplete list of cliffs of the world.
Africa
Above Sea
*Faneque, Gran Canaria, Spain, 1027 m above Atlantic Ocean
*
Anaga's Cliffs, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, above Atlantic Ocean
*
Cape Hangklip, Western Cape, South Africa, above False Bay, Atlantic Ocean
*
Cape Point, Western Cape, South Africa, above Atlantic Ocean
*
Chapman's Peak
Chapman's Peak is a mountain on the western side of the Cape Peninsula, between Hout Bay and Noordhoek in Cape Town, South Africa. The western flank of the mountain falls sharply for hundreds of metres into the Atlantic Ocean, and a road, known ...
, Western Cape, South Africa, above Atlantic Ocean
*
Karbonkelberg, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa, above
Hout Bay, Atlantic Ocean
*
Los Gigantes,
Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, above Atlantic Ocean
Above Land
* Innumerable peaks in the
Drakensberg
The Drakensberg (Afrikaans: Drakensberge, Zulu: uKhahlambha, Sotho: Maluti) is the eastern portion of the Great Escarpment, which encloses the central Southern African plateau. The Great Escarpment reaches its greatest elevation – within t ...
mountains of South Africa are considered cliff formations. The Drakensberg Range is regarded, together with Ethiopia's
Simien Mountains, as one of the two finest erosional mountain ranges on Earth. Because of their near-unique geological formation, the range has an extraordinarily high percentage of cliff faces making up its length, particularly along the highest portion of the range. This portion of the range is virtually uninterrupted cliff faces, ranging from to in height for almost . Of all, the "Drakensberg Amphitheatre" (mentioned above) is most well known. Other notable cliffs include the
Trojan Wall,
Cleft Peak,
Injisuthi Triplets,
Cathedral Peak,
Monk's Cowl,
Mnweni Buttress, etc. The cliff faces of the
Blyde River Canyon, technically still part of the Drakensberg, may be over , with the main face of the Swadini Buttress approximately tall.
**
Drakensberg Amphitheatre, South Africa above base, long. The
Tugela Falls
Tugela Falls is a complex of seasonal waterfalls located in the Drakensberg (''Dragon's Mountains'') of Royal Natal National Park in KwaZulu-Natal Province, Republic of South Africa. According to some measurements, it is the world's tallest wate ...
, the world's second tallest waterfall, falls over the edge of the cliff face.
* Karambony, Madagascar, above base.
*
Mount Meru, Tanzania Caldera Cliffs,
* Tsaranoro, Madagascar, above base
America
North
Several big granite faces in the
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
region vie for the title of 'highest vertical drop on Earth', but reliable measurements are not always available. The possible contenders include (measurements are approximate):
Mount Thor
Mount Thor, officially gazetted as Thor Peak ( iu, ᙯᕐᓱᐊᓗᒃ ''Qaisualuk'' "huge bedrock" or iu, ᑭᒍᑎᙳᐊᖅ ''Kigutinnguaq'' "tooth-like"), is a mountain with an elevation of located in Auyuittuq National Park, on Baffin Islan ...
,
Baffin Island, Canada; 1,370 m (4,500 ft) total; top 480 m (1600 ft) is overhanging. This is commonly regarded as being the largest vertical drop on Eart
ref name="Buchmüller-Pfaff" />ot:leapyear at 1,250 m (4,100 ft).
# The sheer north face of
Polar sun spire, Polar Sun Spire, in the
§74:MTAtoFa
of
Baffin Island, rises 4,300 ft above the flat frozen fjord, although the lower portion of the face breaks from the vertical wall with a series of ledges and buttresses.
#
Ketil's and its neighbor
Ulamertorsuaq's west faces in
Tasermiut,
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
have been reported as over 1,000 m high. Another relevant cliff in Greenland is
Agdlerussakasit's
Thumbnail
Thumbnails are reduced-size versions of pictures or videos, used to help in recognizing and organizing them, serving the same role for images as a normal text index does for words. In the age of digital images, visual search engines and imag ...
.
Other notable cliffs include:
* Ättestupan Cliff, northern side of
Kaiser Franz Joseph Fjord, Greenland
*
Big Sandy Mountain, east face buttress, Wind River Range, Wyoming, 550 m
*
Calvert Cliffs along the
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...
in Maryland, U.S. 25 m
*
Cap Éternité of
Saguenay River
__NOTOC__
The Saguenay River () is a major river of Quebec, Canada.
It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east; the city of Saguenay is located on the river. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River. ...
, Quebec, Canada, 347 m
* All faces of
Devils Tower, Wyoming, United States, 195 m
*
Doublet Peak
Doublet Peak () is the sixth-highest peak (tied with Turret Peak (Wyoming), Turret Peak) in the U.S. state of Wyoming and the fifth-highest in the Wind River Range. The summit is immediately south of Dinwoody Glacier and just west of Mount Warren.
...
, southwest face,
Wind River Range, Wyoming, United States, 370 m
*
El Capitan
El Capitan ( es, El Capitán; "the Captain" or "the Chief") is a vertical rock formation in Yosemite National Park, on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The granite monolith is about from base to summit along its talles ...
,
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California. The valley is about long and deep, surrounded by high granite summits such as Hal ...
, California, United States; 900 m (3,000 ft)
*
Grand Teton, north face
Teton Range
The Teton Range is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. It extends for approximately in a north–south direction through the U.S. state of Wyoming, east of the Idaho state line. It is south of Yellowstone National Park and ...
, Wyoming
* Northwest Face of
Half Dome, near El Capitan, California, United States; 1,444 m (4,737 ft) total, vertical portion about 610 m (2,000 ft)
*
Longs Peak Diamond,
Rocky Mountain National Park,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
, United States, 400 m
*
Mount Asgard,
Baffin Island, Canada; vertical drop of about 1,200 m (4,000 ft).
*
Mount Siyeh,
Glacier National Park (U.S.) north face,
* The North Face of
North Twin Peak
North Twin (Peak) is one of the two main peaks that comprise The Twins massif located at the northeast corner of the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada. The other lower peak is named South Twin (3,566 m). North Twin is t ...
,
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
, Alberta, Canada, 1,200 m
* The west face of
Notch Peak in the
House Range of southwestern Utah, U.S.; a
carbonate rock
Carbonate rocks are a class of sedimentary rocks composed primarily of carbonate minerals. The two major types are limestone, which is composed of calcite or aragonite (different crystal forms of CaCO3), and dolomite rock (also known as dolosto ...
pure vertical drop of about 670 m (2,200 ft), with from the top of the cliff to valley floor (bottom of the canyon below the notch)
* Painted Wall in
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is an American national park located in western Colorado and managed by the National Park Service. There are two primary entrances to the park: the south rim entrance is located east of Montrose, while ...
, Colorado, United States; 685 m (2,250 ft)
* Raftsmen's Acropolis, a rock face of the
Montagne des Érables, Quebec, Canada, 800 m
* Rockwall,
Kootenay National Park
Kootenay National Park is a national park of Canada located in southeastern British Columbia. The park consists of of the Canadian Rockies, including parts of the Kootenay and Park mountain ranges, the Kootenay River and the entirety of the V ...
, British Columbia, Canada, 30 km of mostly unbroken cliffs up to 900 m
*
Royal Gorge cliffs, Colorado, United States, 350 m
* Faces of
Shiprock
Shiprock ( nv, , "rock with wings" or "winged rock") is a monadnock rising nearly above the high-desert plain of the Navajo Nation in San Juan County, New Mexico, United States. Its peak elevation is above sea level. It is about southwest ...
, New Mexico, United States, 400 m
* All walls of the
Stawamus Chief
The Stawamus Chief, officially Stawamus Chief Mountain (often referred to as simply The Chief, or less commonly Squamish Chief), is a granitic dome located adjacent to the town of Squamish, British Columbia, Canada. It towers over above the wa ...
,
Squamish, British Columbia, Canada, up to 500 m
* Temple Peak, east face, Wind River Range, Wyoming, 400 m
* Temple Peak East, north face, Wind River Range, Wyoming, 450 m
*
Toroweap (a.k.a. Tuweep),
Grand Canyon, Arizona, United States; 900 m (3,000 ft)
*
Uncompahgre Peak, northeast face,
San Juan Range, Colorado, 275 m (550 m rise above surrounding plateau)
* East face of the West Temple in
Zion National Park
Zion National Park is an American national park located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a variety of ...
, Utah, United States believed to be the tallest sandstone cliff in the world, 670 m
South
* All faces of
Auyan Tepui, along with all other
Tepuis, Venezuela, Brazil, and Guyana, Auyan Tepui is about 1,000 m (location of
Angel Falls
Angel Falls ( es, Salto Ángel; Pemon language: ''Kerepakupai Merú'' meaning "waterfall of the deepest place", or ''Parakupá Vená'', meaning "the fall from the highest point") is a waterfall in Venezuela.
It is the world's tallest unint ...
) (the falls are 979 m, the highest in the world)
* All faces of
Cerro Chalten (Fitz Roy), Patagonia, Argentina-Chile, 1200 m
* All faces of
Cerro Torre
Cerro Torre is one of the mountains of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field in South America. It is located in Argentina and Chile, west of Fitz Roy (also known as Cerro Chaltén). The peak is the highest of a four mountain chain: the other peak ...
,
Patagonia
Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...
, Chile-Argentina
*
Pão de Açúcar/Sugar Loaf, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 395 m
* Pared de
Gocta, Peru, 771 m
* Pared Sur Cerro Aconcagua.
Las Heras,
Mendoza, Argentina, 2,700 m
*
Pedra Azul,
Pedra Azul State Park,
Espirito Santo, Brazil, 540 m
* Scratched Stone (Pedra Riscada),
São José do Divino/MG,
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...
, Brazil, 1,480 m
* Faces of the
Torres del Paine
The Cordillera Paine is a mountain group in Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. The cordillera is located north of Punta Arenas, and about south of the Chilean capital Santiago. It belongs to the Commune of Torres del Paine i ...
group, Patagonia, Chile, up to 900 m
Asia
Above Sea
*
Qingshui Cliff,
Xiulin Township,
Hualien County
Hualien County ( Mandarin Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien² Hsien⁴; Pīnyīn: ''Huālián Xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-koān'' or ''Hoa-liân-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Fâ-lièn-yen''; Amis: ''Kalingko'') is a county on the east coast of Taiwan. I ...
, Taiwan averaging 800 m above Pacific Ocean. The tallest peak, Qingshui Mountain, rises 2408 m directly from the Pacific Ocean.
*
Ra's Sajir,
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
, above the
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...
*
Theoprosopon, between
Chekka and
Selaata in north Lebanon jutting into the Mediterranean.
*
Tōjinbō,
Sakai
is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...
,
Fukui prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 778,943 (1 June 2017) and has a geographic area of 4,190 km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the north, G ...
, Japan 25 m above Sea of Japan
Above Land
* Various cliffs in the Ak-Su Valley of Kyrgyzstan are high and steep.
*
Baintha Brakk
__NOTOC__
Baintha Brakk ( ur, بائنتھا براک) or The Ogre is a steep, craggy mountain, high, in the Panmah Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram mountain range. It is located in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan.This region is disputed, and is ...
(The Ogre),
Panmah Muztagh, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 2,000 m
*
Gyala Peri
Gyala Peri ( Chinese: 加拉白垒, Pinyin: ''Jiālābáilěi'') is a peak just beyond the eastern end of the Himalayas at the entrance to Tsangpo gorge. It is part of Nyenchen Tanglha Shan, although it is sometimes included in Namcha Barwa Hi ...
, southeast face,
Mêdog County,
Tibet, China, 4,600 m
*
Hunza Peak
Hunza Peak () lies in the westernmost subrange of the Karakoram range in Pakistan, along with the Ladyfinger Peak (Bublimating). It lies on the southwest ridge of the Ultar Sar massif, the most southeasterly of the major groups of the Batura M ...
south face, Karakoram, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 1,700 m
*
K2 west face, Karakoram, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 2900m
*
The Latok Group, Panmah Muztagh, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 1,800 m
*
Lhotse northeast face, Mahalangur Himal, Nepal, 2900m
*
Lhotse south face,
Mahalangur Himal
Mahālangūr Himāl ( ne, महालङ्गूर हिमाल, ''Mahālaṅgūra himāla'') is a section of the Himalayas in northeast Nepal and south-central Tibet of China extending east from the pass Nangpa La between Rolwaling Himal and ...
, Nepal, 3200 m
*
Meru Peak,
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...
, India, 1200 m
*
Nanga Parbat
Nanga Parbat ( ur, ) (; ), known locally as Diamer () which means “king of the mountains”, is the ninth-highest mountain on Earth, its summit at above sea level. Lying immediately southeast of the northernmost bend of the Indus River in ...
, Rupal Face, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, 4,600 m
*
Qingshui Cliff,
Xiulin Township,
Hualien County
Hualien County ( Mandarin Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien² Hsien⁴; Pīnyīn: ''Huālián Xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-koān'' or ''Hoa-liân-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Fâ-lièn-yen''; Amis: ''Kalingko'') is a county on the east coast of Taiwan. I ...
, Taiwan averaging 800 m above Pacific Ocean. The tallest peak, Qingshui Mountain, rises 2408 meters directly from the Pacific Ocean.
* Ramon Crater, Israel, 400 m
* Shispare Sar southwest face, Karakoram, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 3,200 m
* Spantik northwest face, Karakoram, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 2,000 m
* Trango Towers: East Face Great Trango Tower, Baltoro Muztagh, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 1,340 m (near vertical headwall), 2,100 m (very steep overall drop from East Summit to Dunge Glacier). Northwest Face drops approximately 2,200 m to the Trango Glacier below, but with a taller slab topped out with a shorter overhanging headwall of approximately 1,000 m. The Southwest "Azeem" Ridge forms the group's tallest steep rise of roughly 2,286 m (7,500 ft) from the Trango Glacier to the Southwest summit.
* Uli Biaho, Uli Biaho Towers, Baltoro Glacier, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan
* Ultar Sar southwest face, Karakoram, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, 3,000 m
* World's End, Sri Lanka, World's End, Horton Plains, Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka. It has a sheer drop of about 4000 ft (1200 m)
* Various cliffs in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Hunan Province, China. The cliffs can get to around 1,000 ft (300 m).
Europe
Above Sea
*Beachy Head, England, 162 m above the English Channel
*Beinisvørð, Faroe Islands, 470 m above North Atlantic
*Belogradchik Rocks, Bulgaria - up to 200 m high
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
towers
*Benwee Head Cliffs, Erris, Co. Mayo, Ireland, 304 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Cabo Girão, Madeira, Portugal, 589 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Cap Canaille, France, 394 m above Mediterranean sea is the highest sea cliff in France
*Cape Enniberg, Faroe Islands, 750 m above North Atlantic
*Conachair, St Kilda, Scotland, St Kilda, Scotland 427 m above Atlantic Ocean, highest sea cliff in the UK
*Croaghaun, Achill Island, Ireland, 688 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Dingli Cliffs, Malta, 250 m above Mediterranean sea
*Dvuglav, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria 460 m (south face)
*Étretat, France, 84 m above the English Channel
*Faneque, Gran Canaria, Spain, 1027 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Hangman cliffs, Devon 318 m above Bristol Channel is the highest sea cliff in England
*High Cliff, between Boscastle and St Gennys, 223 m above Celtic Sea
*Hornelen, Norway, 860 m above Skatestraumen
*:is:Hvanndalabjarg, Hvanndalabjarg, Ólafsfjörður, Iceland, 630 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Jaizkibel, Spain, 547 m above the Bay of Biscay
*Kaliakra cliffs, Bulgaria, more than 70 m above the Black Sea
*The Kame, Foula, Shetland, 376 m above the North Atlantic, second highest sea cliff in the UK
*Le Tréport, France, 110 m above the English Channel
*Cliffs of Moher, Ireland, 217 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Møns Klint, Denmark, 143 m above Baltic Sea
*Monte Solaro, Capri, Italy, 589 m above the Mediterranean Sea
*Ontika Limestone cliff, Estonia, 55 m above Baltic Sea.
*Preikestolen, Norway, 604 m above Lysefjorden
*Slieve League, Ireland, 601 m above Atlantic Ocean
*Snake Island (Black Sea), Snake Island, Ukraine, 41 m above the Black Sea
*Vixía Herbeira, Northern Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain, 621 m above Atlantic Ocean
*White cliffs of Dover, England, 100 m above the Strait of Dover
Above Land
*Great north faces of the Alps, The six great north faces of the Alps (Eiger 1,500 m, Matterhorn 1,350 m, Grandes Jorasses 1,100 m, Aiguille du Dru, Petit Dru 1,000 m, and Piz Badile 850 m, Cima Grande di Lavaredo 450 m)
*Giewont (north face), Tatra Mountains, Poland, 852 m above Polana Strążyska Glade (geography), glade
*Kjerag, Norway 984 m.
*Mięguszowiecki Szczyt north face rises to 1,043 m above Morskie Oko lake level, High Tatras, Poland
*Troll Wall, Norway 1,100 m above base
*Vihren peak north face, Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria 460 m to the (Golemiya Kazan)
*Vratsata, Vrachanski Balkan Nature Park, Bulgaria 400 m
Submarine
*Bouldnor Cliff - the waters of the coast of the Isle of Wight
Oceania
Above Sea
* Ball's Pyramid, a sea stack 562m high and only 200m across at its base
* The Elephant, New Zealand, has cliffs falling approx 1180m into Milford Sound, and a 900m drop in less than 300m horizontally
* Great Australian Bight
* Kalaupapa, Hawaii, 1,010 m above Pacific Ocean
* The Lion, New Zealand, 1,302 m above Milford Sound (drops from approx 1280m to sea level in a very short distance)
* Lovers Leap, Highcliff, and The Chasm, on Otago Peninsula, New Zealand, all 200 to 300 m above the Pacific Ocean
*
Mitre Peak, New Zealand, 1,683 m above
Milford Sound
Milford Sound / Piopiotahi is a fiord in the south west of New Zealand's South Island within Fiordland National Park, Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) Marine Reserve, and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site. It has been judged the world's top t ...
* Tasman National Park, Tasmania, has 300m dolerite sea cliffs dropping directly to the ocean in columnar form
* The Twelve Apostles (Victoria). A series of sea stacks in Australia, ranging from approximately 50 to 70 m above the Bass Strait
* Zuytdorp Cliffs in Western Australia
Above Land
* Mount Banks in the Blue Mountains National Park, New South Wales, Australia: west of its saddle there is a 490 m fall within 100 M horizontally.
* Omarama Clay Cliffs, Waitaki District, New Zealand
As habitat
Cliff landforms provide unique habitat Niche (ecology), niches to a variety of plants and animals, whose preferences and needs are suited by the vertical geometry of this landform type. For example, a number of birds have decided affinities for choosing cliff locations for nesting, often driven by the defensibility of these locations as well as absence of certain predators.
Flora
The population of the rare'' Borderea chouardii'', during 2012, existed only on two cliff habitats within western Europe.
See also
* Cliffed coast
* List of landforms
* Steilhang
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Cliffs,
Coastal geography
Erosion landforms
Slope landforms
Coastal and oceanic landforms
Oronyms