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Nambung National Park - The Nambung National Park in Western Australia is known for its huge coastal dunes—vast swathes of white sand that resemble spilled flour.

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Nambung sand dunes - But the park, located 200 km (124 mi) from Perth and not far from the small coastal town of Cervantes, is celebrated for a far more unworldly-looking natural phenomenon.

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Pinnacles Desert - Nambung National Park is synonymous with the Pinnacles—thousands of weird limestone formations that soar upwards out of the sand like petrified fingers.

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The Pinnacles - These ancient columns are the weathered and eroded fragments of limestone beds composed of deposited marine organisms such as coral and mollusks. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0)

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Formed by erosion - The pillars were formed 25,000 to 30,000 years ago, after the Indian Ocean coastal winds eroded the surrounding sand. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY 2.5 AU)

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Different formations - The different types of formations include ones that are much taller than they are wide and resemble columns—suggesting the name of "Pinnacles."

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Tombstones - Others are far shorter in height and width and look like squat tombstones. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

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Witches' hat - In some cases, columns have been shaped by the elements to appear like witches' hats.

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Raw material - The raw material for the limestone of the Pinnacles came from seashells in an earlier era that was rich in marine life.(Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 2.5)

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Influence of the ocean - The rock formations stand within sight of the Indian Ocean. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Debate - Debate surrounds exactly how such raw materials formed the Pinnacles. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0)

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Buried trees? - Some theories suggest the pillars were formed through the preservation of buried tree casts: the Pinnacles do conjure up images of a petrified forest. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Rain water - The accepted theory, however, is that every time it rained, water would cause some of the calcium carbonate in the shell-sand to seep into the ground, hardening and slowly forming the Pinnacles beneath the surface. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Mushroom tops - Pinnacles with tops similar to mushrooms are created when the calcrete (sedimentary rock) capping is harder than the limestone layer below it.

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Natural wonder - Over the centuries, bushfires and natural erosion caused the surrounding loose sand to blow away, leaving behind the natural splendor of the Pinnacles that is admired today.

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Ghostly allure - Clear night skies lend the Pinnacles a ghostly allure. 

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Dark sky tourism - In fact, Nambung National Park is a dark sky tourism destination in its own right. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Aboriginal word - Nambung is an Aboriginal word that means crooked or winding. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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A river runs through it - The word was first used in 1938 when naming the Nambung River, which flows into the park and disappears into a cave system within the limestone.

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Flora and fauna - Nambung National Park is home to a variety of wildlife. It's not uncommon to see families of long-legged emu sauntering across the sand.

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Wildlife - The western grey kangaroo is equally at home relaxing on the park's coastal dunes as it is bouncing across the outback.

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Birdlife - A mob of Baudin's black-cockatoo. The species is frequently observed in the park. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY 2.0)

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Desert dweller - With its heavily armored body and a tail that resembles its head, the bobtail, or shingleback, greatly confuses potential predators.

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Desert bloom - The acorn banksia, one of the park's more florid shrubs, has a shape not unlike the shorter, tombstone-like Pinnacles found in the desert.

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Loose teeth - Viewed from above the Pinnacles look like scattered shark's teeth.

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Recent discovery - The Pinnacles Desert remained relatively unknown until the late 1960s, although the national park had been created in 1956.

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Desert walk - A 4.5-km (2.7-mi) walk through the Nambung National Park is the best way to admire the Pinnacles. The unusual white dunes can also be viewed from the track.

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Traveling by road - Vehicles (a 4x4 is ideal) can access Nambung National Park by road.

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Obey the law of the land - Note that while driving or walking you must remain on the designated tracks within the park.

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Further afield -

Just south of Cervantes is Lake Thetis, which is known for its stromatolites—amazing rock-like formations protruding from the water's surface called "ancient living fossils" because they are formed by millions of tiny living organisms.

See also: Earth's alien-looking landscapes. 

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