Best Blowhole

Mapu'a 'a Vaea is a coastal field of natural blowholes on the southern shore of Tongatapu, the main island of Tonga. Waves entering cavities and channels in the reef and limestone coast compress air and seawater, forcing spray upward through numerous openings. The height and intensity of the jets de...

Nakalele Blowhole is a coastal geological feature on the northern side of West Maui, Hawaii. Ocean waves force water and air through an opening in the volcanic rock, producing intermittent vertical sprays whose size and frequency depend on surf and tide conditions. Visitors view it from an exposed,...

The Bufones de Pría punctuate the limestone coast near Llames de Pría in Asturias, northern Spain. Waves from the Cantabrian Sea enter caves and channels beneath the cliffs, compressing air and driving water through vertical openings. Because these vents emerge through grassy coastal ground, the spr...

Smoo Cave is a large coastal cave complex near Durness in Sutherland, on the north coast of Scotland. Its broad outer chamber was formed by marine erosion, while an inland stream carved the inner passages through limestone and enters through an opening in the roof. During heavy rain, the stream beco...

On the limestone coast of Inis Mór, the largest of Ireland's Aran Islands, Poll na bPéist is a natural rock pool with a strikingly rectangular outline. Its Irish name is commonly rendered as 'the worm's hole' or 'the serpent's lair.' The straight edges can suggest deliberate construction, but fractu...

At Punakaiki on New Zealand's South Island, the Pancake Rocks and blowholes combine distinctive limestone formations with an active coastal setting. The rocks take their familiar name from their layered, stacked appearance. Wave action has worn passages and openings into the coast, creating places w...

Along Lanzarote's southwestern coast, Los Hervideros shows Atlantic waves meeting rock formed from solidified lava. Caves and channels cut into the dark volcanic shore concentrate the water's movement, sending foam and spray through openings. The resulting appearance resembles boiling water, which e...

Near Antigua's eastern end, Devil's Bridge is a natural limestone arch exposed to the Atlantic Ocean. Repeated wave action has worn the coastal rock into a bridge-like form, with nearby openings that can channel seawater and spray during rough conditions. Its defining feature is the relationship bet...

Near Cascais in Portugal, Boca do Inferno is a limestone coastal formation shaped by Atlantic erosion. An opened sea cave and chasm allow waves to enter a rocky cavity, where turbulent water and spray become especially conspicuous in rough weather. Its Portuguese name, 'Mouth of Hell,' reflects the...

The Kiama Blowhole is a dramatic coastal geological formation located in Kiama, New South Wales. It’s notable for its impressive displays of pressurized seawater ejected high into the air – reaching heights of up to 25 meters. This natural phenomenon occurs due to underground water sources and wave...

Water Blow is a coastal attraction on the Nusa Dua peninsula of Bali, Indonesia. At the site, Indian Ocean swells strike a rocky limestone shore and are funneled through a narrow opening, sending spray and sometimes large plumes of water above the rocks. It is a wave-driven blowhole rather than a ge...

Cueva del Indio is a coastal cave complex near Arecibo on the north coast of Puerto Rico, where Atlantic waves enter openings in the limestone and can force water and air upward through blowhole-like formations. The site is also archaeologically significant because its rock surfaces contain Indigeno...

Spouting Horn is a natural geological formation on Kauai’s Poipu coastline. It functions as a blowhole where ocean waves repeatedly drive seawater upwards through a submerged lava tube. This creates a dramatic vertical spray visible from a considerable distance. The phenomenon is notable for its con...

The Bridges of Ross are natural sea arches on the Atlantic coast near Kilbaha in County Clare, Ireland. Although the name is plural, erosion has caused all but one of the original arches to collapse, leaving a single surviving formation cut into the coastal rock. The exposed headland is also used by...

Bicheno Blowhole is a coastal rock formation near the town of Bicheno on Tasmania's east coast. Ocean waves enter a channel beneath the rocks and force water through an opening, producing intermittent jets whose height and intensity depend on swell, tide, and wind conditions. The site is an accessib...

Cook's Chasm Spouting Horn is a coastal blowhole in the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area near Yachats, Oregon. Waves entering a channel and cave in the volcanic shoreline compress water and air, producing a plume through an opening in the rock when sea conditions are favorable. The feature lies within Sius...

The Arnarstapi blowholes are coastal openings associated with the eroded basalt cliffs around Arnarstapi on Iceland's Snæfellsnes Peninsula. Atlantic waves enter cavities and channels in the volcanic rock, forcing air, spray, and sometimes columns of water upward through openings in the cliff surfac...

Little Blowhole is a coastal blowhole in Kiama, New South Wales, south of the town's larger and more widely known Kiama Blowhole. Ocean waves enter a sea cave beneath the rocky headland and force water and spray upward through an opening, with the display varying according to swell and wind directio...

Cape d'Aguilar Blowhole is a natural coastal opening at Cape d'Aguilar on the southeastern side of Hong Kong Island. Waves entering a sea cave or narrow rock channel compress air and force spray through an opening above, with the effect varying according to tides and sea conditions. The feature lies...

The Blowholes are coastal geological features in Torndirrup National Park near Albany, Western Australia. Waves from the Southern Ocean enter cavities and fissures in the rocky coast, compressing air and sometimes forcing spray through openings above; their activity depends on sea conditions. The si...

The Alofaaga Blowholes, also known as the Taga Blowholes, are a natural geological feature located on the island of Savai'i in Samoa. They consist of subterranean lava tubes formed by ancient volcanic activity, which have eroded to connect with the open ocean. When large waves crash into the submerg...

The Kilkee blowholes are coastal openings in the Carboniferous limestone cliffs near Kilkee in County Clare, Ireland. Atlantic waves entering caves and fissures beneath the cliffs compress trapped air and water, which can then escape through vertical shafts as spray or powerful bursts. Their activit...

Point Lobos Blowhole lies within Point Lobos State Natural Reserve near Carmel, California, one of the most ecologically rich protected stretches of the US Pacific coastline.

La Bufadora is a marine geyser located on the Punta Banda peninsula approximately 35 kilometers south of Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Ocean waves surge into an underwater sea cave, compressing trapped air and forcing seawater upward through a narrow opening in the rocky cliff face, creating a...

Gris Gris is a stretch of exposed coastline near Souillac in southern Mauritius where Indian Ocean waves strike dark volcanic rock and steep cliffs. Water driven into cavities and fractures can be expelled as spray through coastal openings, producing the blowhole effect associated with the site. Unl...

The Cape Perpetua Spouting Horn is a natural geological feature located on the central coast of Oregon, within the Siuslaw National Forest. It operates as a marine geyser, where incoming ocean waves are forced through a narrow channel into a sea cave, compressing the air inside. This compression for...

Thunder Hole is a natural coastal inlet on Mount Desert Island within Acadia National Park in Maine. Under suitable tide and wave conditions, incoming water enters a narrow rock channel and compresses air inside, producing a resonant booming sound and bursts of spray. A viewing area beside Park Loop...

The Blowholes are a coastal geological feature in Torndirrup National Park near Albany on the south coast of Western Australia. Ocean swell enters fissures and cavities in the granite coastline, forcing air and sometimes spray upward through openings in the rock; their activity varies with wave dire...

Bufones de Arenillas are coastal blowholes on the limestone shore of Asturias in northern Spain, near the village of Puertas de Vidiago. Waves entering sea caves force compressed air and water through vertical cracks and openings, producing jets, spray, and a characteristic roaring sound at the surf...