Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for November, 2021
A Prodigy in Lincolnshire
By Linda Tancs
A prodigy house is a large, showy, late-Elizabethan or Jacobean English country house built by a courtier and other wealthy families. One of England’s grandest surviving examples of such a place is Burghley House in Stamford. It was conceived by William Cecil (the first Lord Burghley), Lord High Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I, one of the most powerful courtiers of the first Elizabethan age. Direct descendants lived in the house for over 500 years, and it’s still very much a family home, with a direct descendant overseeing the charitable trust that governs operations at the estate. Among its many treasures, the house boasts one of the finest private collections of Italian Old Master paintings, and its gardens and parkland were largely designed by Lancelot “Capability’ Brown” in the 18th century. Enjoy a guided or self-guided tour of 18 sumptuous state rooms.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Small But Mighty in New Zealand
By Linda Tancs
Abel Tasman National Park is a wilderness reserve at the north end of New Zealand’s South Island. Despite its small size, it’s the country’s most popular national park, making the case that good things come in small packages. It’s known for the Abel Tasman Coast Track, a 33-mile trail between the seaside village of Marahau and Wainui. Along the way you’ll experience golden sand beaches and a 154-foot-long suspension bridge over Falls River as well as plenty of lookouts and rocky headlands. Don’t miss a side trip to Cleopatra’s Pool, a natural rock pool with a moss-lined waterslide. It’s best to take the trek in stages; there are four huts and 18 campsites along the track, which must be booked in advance all year round.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Smoking Mountain
By Linda Tancs
They say that only the most adventurous dare to climb Mount Fitz Roy, the highest peak in Southern Patagonia’s Glacier National Park. At over 11,000 feet above sea level, you can understand why. Due to a fairly consistent atmospheric haze over its peak, it was originally named Chaltén, a word meaning “smoking mountain” in the indigenous Tehuelche tribe’s dialect. The current moniker, Fitz Roy, is a nod to Captain FitzRoy of HMS Beagle, the ship that voyaged around South America with Charles Darwin. Although there’s nothing volcanic about the revered granite walls, you’ll get smokin’ views of Fitz Roy from Laguna de Los Tres, some 1,400 feet from the base camp reserved for mountaineers.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Japan’s Atlantis
By Linda Tancs
You may recall the legend of Atlantis, the lost civilization created by Plato, submerged by a cataclysmic earthquake. Scholars occasionally muse whether the place really existed, especially whenever a spectacular underwater rock formation is discovered. Japan has its own version of Atlantis, Yonaguni Submarine Ruins, a submerged rock formation off the coast of Yonaguni. The southernmost of the Ryukyu Islands, it’s located about 62 miles east of Taiwan. The primary structure is an ancient underwater pyramid measuring a staggering 500 feet in length, 130 feet in width and 90 feet in height. Is it the remnant of an ancient Pacific civilization or a natural wonder? You can take an underwater sightseeing boat tour or dive there and decide for yourself.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Bristling in Nevada
By Linda Tancs
Characterized by their growth in twisted fashion at high altitudes, bristlecone pines are one of the longest-lived life forms on Earth. The name bristlecone refers to the dark purple female cones that bear incurved prickles on their surface. Nevada’s Great Basin National Park is noted for its ancient grove of bristlecone pines, a species only otherwise found in California and Utah. Although the largest grove of pines in the park is on Mt. Washington, the most accessible grove is located on the northeast side of Wheeler Peak, where a short, self-guided nature trail passes through a portion of it. The tree is legendary for its ability to thrive in impossible conditions, as is evidenced by the roots set among quartzite boulders. That no doubt accounts for the longevity of Prometheus, once recorded as the oldest tree in the world at between 4,700 to 5,000 years. The stump of that ancient bristlecone is in the park. You can count its rings at the visitor center.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Victoria’s Marine Emblem
By Linda Tancs
The weedy sea dragon is a marine emblem in Victoria, Australia. You’ll find it at Churchill Island Marine National Park, a protected marine national park located in Western Port, Victoria, Australia. Boasting 1,700 acres, it’s an important roosting and feeding site for migratory waders like whimbrels and bar-tailed godwits. So, needless to say, bird watching is a popular activity, as is snorkeling among the seagrass beds where black swans and fish congregate. You might also enjoy canoeing among the mangroves. Just off the coast of Phillip Island, Churchill Island holds an important place in the history of European settlement in Victoria.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Where History is Written in Stone
By Linda Tancs
In Georgia’s Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests, history is written in stone. Literally. Tucked away in the gap between Thunderstruck Mountain and Buzzard Roost Ridge, Track Rock Gap is a petroglyph site created by Creek and Cherokee people beginning more than 1,000 years ago. Boasting more than 100 carvings on soapstone boulders, it’s one of the most significant rock art sites in the southeastern United States and the only such site located on public land in Georgia. The Forest Service offers a fact sheet with drawings of the rock art so that you can identify the figures. The best time to visit is early or late in the day when the light is at a low angle and the figures are more discernible.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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An Upgrade for the Pine Barrens
By Linda Tancs
New Jersey’s Pine Barrens is an expanse of coastal plain in the southern part of the state. It’s long been recognized as a state scenic byway and now has been federally designated a national scenic byway. The 130-mile route contains multiple wildlife refuges, reserves, forests, parks, rivers and streams as well as historic villages. It extends from Batsto and Tuckerton in the north to Dennisville and Port Elizabeth in the south. Just under an hour’s drive from Philadelphia, the byway features some of the most extensive, unbroken forests remaining in the northeastern United States. Motorists, cyclists and walkers will benefit from an interactive map developed by the Pinelands Commission.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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The Maldives of Switzerland
By Linda Tancs
At the heart of Switzerland’s Verzasca Valley you’ll find the emerald-green waters of the Verzasca River, enveloped by polished gorges and bathing pools. Locals like to compare its natural beauty to Maldives. One of the most iconic features across the river is Ponte dei Salti (jump bridge), a double-arched medieval stone pedestrian bridge in photogenic Lavertezzo. It’s a jumping point, literally, for divers as well as a good starting point for hikers. The best way to get to this Italian-speaking region in southern Switzerland is by car.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Visionary Art in Baltimore
By Linda Tancs
Do you consider yourself an artist? Then again, maybe you are, and you just don’t know it. That’s the theme behind the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. The facility is dedicated to exhibiting the works of self-taught artists. Unlike folk art, it’s geared toward showcasing spontaneous, intuitive art. Some of the permanent exhibitions include the museum’s exterior mosaic walls and an outdoor, wind-powered sculpture. The museum is located at the base of historic Federal Hill, adjacent to downtown Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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