⛰️ Mountains and hills

Mountains form when huge pieces of ground deep underground push against each other. They push so hard that the land between them has nowhere to go but up. This pushing happens incredibly slowly, longer than anyone has ever been alive. Even today, some mountains are still growing taller, just a tiny, tiny bit each year, far too slowly for anyone to notice while standing on them.

A mountain is a huge pile of rock and land that rises up very high into the sky.

A hill is like a small, gentle mountain, a bump of land you can walk or roll down.

Your ears have a tiny pocket of air trapped inside them. When you go up or down a mountain fast, that pocket needs to catch up, and that is the funny popping feeling. Swallowing, yawning, or chewing gum can help your ears adjust and feel normal again more quickly.

Yes, you can climb steps, a small slope, or a low rock, just like climbing a tiny mountain.

Hills are often much older than mountains, or made of softer rock. Wind and rain have had more time, or an easier job, wearing their edges into smooth, rolling shapes. Mountains are usually made of harder rock that has not worn down yet, so they keep their steep, jagged shape for much longer. Given enough time, even a tall, steep mountain will slowly wear down and could end up looking like a gentle hill.

At the very top, the air is thin and freezing cold. You would need warm layers and sometimes extra oxygen just to breathe comfortably. The wind up there can howl fiercely, and the sky often looks a deeper blue than usual. Climbers who reach the very top usually only stay for a short while, since staying too long at that height is hard on the body.

Walking uphill means your legs have to push your whole body up higher, which takes more work.