Small boats line a cherry blossom basin next to Hirosaki Castle in Hirosaki, Japan.
Find it yourself: +40° 36’ 28.58”, +140° 27’ 35.32”
Image: Google via Oessa
Blue skies hang overhead in Bahia de Concepcion in Baja Sur, Mexico.
Find it yourself: +26° 37’ 32.56”, -111° 48’ 47.20”
Image: Google via Oessa
Street View isn't just for streets. This underwater shot shows the Hourglass Reef in Bermuda.
Find it yourself: +32° 20’ 49.41”, -64° 38’ 59.23”
Image: Google via Oessa
This spectacular sea view was spotted on Isla Isabela, one of the Galapagos Islands, in Ecuador.
Find it yourself: -0.830222,-91.164393
Image: Google via Oessa
In addition to nature, Street View has captured some unique architectural gems, such as these abandoned buildings on Ha Island in Japan.
Find it yourself: +32° 37’ 39.72”, +129° 44’ 17.73”
Image: Google via Oessa
This surreal shot was taken from California Route 1 on Bixby Bridge, south of Monterrey, Calif.
Find it yourself: +36° 22’ 19.60”, -121° 54’ 8.21”
Image: Google via Oessa
These mountainside cottages were captured near Ogimachi, Japan.
Find it yourself: +36° 15’ 10.94”, +136° 54’ 2.72”
Image: Google via Oessa
Two deer walk along Lago di Vernago in Northern Italy, by the Austrian border.
Find it yourself: +46° 44’ 17.74”, +10° 50’ 3.56”
Image: Google via Oessa
This scenic dirt road in Jopera, Estonia is lined by trees and flower-filled fields.
Find it yourself: +58° 16’ 13.27”, +27° 26’ 9.55”
Image: Google via Oessa
This broken dock was spotted at the Kennedy Town Jockey Club Clinic in Hong Kong. Find it yourself: +22° 16’ 48.41”, +114° 7’ 2.36”
Image: Google via Oessa
This view from the Bryant Patton Bridge to St. George Island, Fla. feels like you're driving over the ocean.
Find it yourself: +29° 41’ 18.69”, -84° 53’ 5.69”
Image: Google via Oessa
Sometimes you need to look down to spot the most charming Street Views, like these flower pots in Goldap, Poland.
Find it yourself: +54° 18’ 24.84”, +22° 18’ 13.19”
Image: Google via Oessa
These dainty footprints were captured on Heron Island, near Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Find it yourself: -23° 26’ 33.89”, +151° 54’ 23.90” Image: Google via Oessa
Google Street View gives you access to some vistas ordinary people never see, like this look from the top of Japan's Great Seto Bridge.
Find it yourself: +34° 22’ 58.81”, +133° 49’ 8.54”
Image: Google via Oessa
This baby calf was spotted prancing through a field near Mjolby, Sweden.
Find it yourself: +58° 11’ 57.61”, +15° 26’ 2.80”
Image: Google via Oessa
The leaves change colors next to the Torokko Saga Station in Kyoto, Japan.
Find it yourself: +35° 1’ 7.67”, +135° 40’ 49.48”
Image: Google via Oessa
This small wood cabin near Tyssedal, Norway has a charming view.
Find it yourself: +60° 8’ 2.25”, +6° 32’ 18.57”
Image: Google via Oessa
You can now visit museums like Berlin's Gemäldegalerie, with Street View.
Find it yourself: +52° 30’ 31.42”, +13° 21’ 53.61”
Image: Google via Oessa
These three boats rest on the banks of the Amazon River near Manaus, Brazil.
Find it yourself: -2.97917°, -60.604366°
Image: Google via Oessa
A rocky mass lies off the coast of the Island of Sado, Japan.
Find it yourself: +38° 19’ 51.87”, +138° 29’ 8.45”
Image: Google via Oessa
Street View lets you explore this verdant creek near Kikuchi, Japan.
Find it yourself: +33° 0’ 3.27”, +130° 57’ 5.57”
Image: Google via Oessa
This gushing waterfall is in Seydisfjordur, near Fljotsdalsherao, Iceland.
Find it yourself: +65° 14’ 26.45”, -14° 3’ 18.34”
Image: Google via Oessa
Japanese Macaques bathe in hot springs at Jigokudani Monkey Park in Nakano, Japan.
Find it yourself: +36° 43’ 57.30”, +138° 27’ 43.49”
Image: Google via Oessa
These cliffs were captured on the island of San Cristabal, one of Ecuador's Galapagos Islands.
Find it yourself: -0° 46' 43.10", -89° 31' 10.44"
Image: Google via Oessa
This ocean view was captured at Buddha Point in Holoholokai Beach Park, on the island of Hawaii.
Find it yourself: +19° 55’ 39.63”, -155° 53’ 19.20”
Image: Google via Oessa
A snowmobile glides across this white landscape near Kebnekaise, Sweden.
Find it yourself: +67° 56’ 55.00”, +18° 4’ 57.73”
Image: Google via Oessa
This picturesque, tree-lined road is near Poprad, Slovakia.
Find it yourself: +49° 6’ 48.61”, +20° 3’ 39.42”
Image: Google via Oessa
Miharu Takizakura is a 1,000-year-old weeping higan cherry tree in Miharu, Fukushima, Japan. The wooden supports were added by the local community following heavy snow in 2005.
Find it yourself: +37° 24’ 27.89”, +140° 30’ 0.58”
Image: Google via Oessa
Japan's Torokko Saga train station is set along a stunning river.
Find it yourself: +35° 1’ 7.58”, +135° 40’ 48.16”
Image: Google via Oessa
Few views are as surreal as watching the sun set over water, as seen here in Loviste, Croatia.
Find it yourself: +43° 1’ 34.66”, +17° 1’ 56.55”
Image: Google via Oessa
The mountains of Nesheim Camping & Hytter, located north of Bergen, Norway, reflect almost perfectly in the water.
Find it yourself: +61° 4’ 5.88”, +5° 48’ 10.90”
Image: Google via Oessa
A snow-covered road in Tolga, Norway.
Find it yourself: +62° 20’ 3.23”, +11° 14’ 51.75”
Image: Google via Oessa
A school of fish swim near Heron Island in Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Find it yourself: 23° 26’ 34.35”, +151° 54’ 23.71”
Image: Google via Oessa
A river runs through this valley in Buttermere, England.
Find it yourself: +54° 30’ 56.92”, -3° 12’ 23.31”
Image: Google via Oessa
Few Internet explorers are strangers to the pleasure of discovering a new landscape in Google Street View. However, unearthing true beauty in the massive database is an art.
A Tumblr called Oessa, started by UK student Mere Pachner in August 2012, documents some of the most striking visual images found in Google Street View, a novel form of nature photography.
See also: 36 Embarrassing Google Street View Sightings
"I wanted to start a nature blog and began experimenting with using Street View. It gave me the freedom to compose my own shots of the world, instead of posting other peoples," Pachner wrote to Mashable in an email. "I've always wanted to travel but at the moment I can't afford to, and so I guess in a way I'm using this medium instead."
To find beautiful new places, Pachner picks a country and explores areas far removed from major cities. Most of the shots are the results of accidental stumbles, not places the blogger knew of in advance. Each post includes the exact location where the image was captured, so readers can use Oessa as a jumping off point for their own explorations.
There are roughly 900 posts on the blog to date. The above gallery features a selection of Pachner's favorite shots, which are aggregated on the blog.
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Homepage image: Google via Oessa