In Chicago, it has become a tradition to dye the Chicago River bright green to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, as shown in a timelapse video featured by ABC News. But some waterways are naturally green, so I have posted eight videos from throughout the world to show these natural wonders.
Huge crowds of people visit the Chicago River each year to see the color change, which lasts about five hours, according to a report by Jennifer Wood in Mental Floss.
At one time, a green dye was used as needed to identify sources of sewage flowing into the river, Jennifer reports. The result was an occasional green splotch seen in the river. In 1962, a member of the local plumbers union thought it would be a good idea to dye the entire river green for St. Patrick’s Day. It has since become an annual tradition — although in 1966 the dye was changed to a nontoxic vegetable-based coloring at the insistence of environmentalists.
Today, environmentalists are still grumbling about artificially turning the river green, not so much because of damage to the ecosystem — which is really unknown — but because the river is much healthier than it has been in 150 years, according to a report by Steven Dahlman in Loop North News.
“I think [it] sends a message to people that the river is not alive,” said Margaret Frisbie, executive director of Friends of the Chicago River. “Dyeing the river green does not respect that resource.”
In a story written for Smithsonian magazine, Jennifer Billock reports that no dye is needed if you really want to enjoy St. Patrick’s Day in or around a green waterway. The source of the green color varies from one place to another and may include natural minerals, algae growth or even optical illusions based on reflections or depth.
Jennifer talked to Rick Stumpf, an oceanographer who said one of his favorite places is Florida Bay in the Keys, where the green color is a reflection of seagrass just a few feet underwater.
Our tour of green waterways begins with Lake Carezza, in South Tyrol, Italy. The lake is fed from underground springs, and the level of the lake changes with the seasons.
According to a local fairy tale, a wizard fell in love with a beautiful water nymph while watching her braid her hair at the edge of the lake. To get her attention, a witch advised him to dress up as a jewel merchant and cast a rainbow across the lake. He followed her instructions except that he forgot to change his clothes. The water nymph realized his true identity and disappeared into the lake. In frustration, the wizard destroyed the rainbow, which fell into the lake, and then he tossed all of his jewels into the water, leaving the lake with its unusual colors.
Wai-O-Tapu is a lake in an 18-square-mile geothermal area in New Zealand’s Taupo Volcanic Zone. The green color of the water, which is somewhat milky and yellowish, is due to particles of sulfur floating in the water.
The area has been protected as a scenic reserve since 1931 and includes a tourism attraction known as Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. Marked hiking trails provide visitors access to natural hot springs and mud pools.
The Verzasca River in Switzerland is a 19-mile river known for its turquoise-colored water and colorful rocks. The swift river, which flows into Lake Maggiore, is popular with scuba divers.
The green colors are provided by natural algae growing in the water as well as the reflection of vegetation along the shoreline.
Ambergris Caye, the largest island in Belize, offers the sea-green colors of a tropical paradise. It is mainstay for tourists who wish to swim or dive in the Caribbean Sea. Visitors can enjoy the marine life of Belize Barrier Reef, the longest reef system in North America, second in the world after the Great Barrier Reef of Australia.
Blue Spring State Park features the largest spring on Florida’s St. Johns River, a critical winter refuge for manatees. To protect the manatees, the spring pool is closed from Nov. 15 to March 15.
From the pool, a vertical cave plunges down to a room about 90 feet deep. At about 120 feet down, the cave constricts and water pours swiftly out of the spring, which produces about 165 million gallons of water per day.
In addition to the pool, the park includes a historic home and offers boat tours, hiking trails and camping sites.
Lake Quilotoa in Ecuador is a deep crater lake in the Andes formed by the collapse of a volcano following an eruption about 600 years ago. The green color is caused by dissolved minerals.
In five hours, visitors can hike around the volcano’s caldera, which is about two miles across. Pack mules and guides are available in and around the village of Quilotoa.
Sproat Lake is located in the center of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. In addition to lakeside homes, three provincial parks are located along the shore.
Sproat Lake Provincial Park features a variety of trails, including one trail that reaches the eastern side of the lake. A wall of rock carvings, named K’ak’awin, depict mythological creatures. The age of the petroglyphs is unknown.
Abyss Pool is the name of a hot spring in the West Thumb Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park. In 1883, a visitor to the park called the pool “a great, pure, sparkling sapphire rippling with heat.”
The pool is about 50 feet deep. A geyser in the pool had no record of eruption until 1987, when the first eruption was followed by several others until June 1992. The eruptions were up to 100 feet high.
