Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for November, 2024
The Gem of the Catskills
By Linda Tancs
Located in the Great Northern Catskills of Greene County in Hunter, Kaaterskill Falls is the highest cascading waterfall in New York State. Dropping in two tiers over 260 feet, the waterfall has been one of the region’s most popular destinations among locals and tourists for centuries. A convenient way to access the falls is to park and take the trolley, which stops in locales like Tannersville, Haines Falls, Palenville and throughout the Kaaterskill Clove (the gorge). A roundtrip hike to the falls, a moderately challenging route, is less than 2 miles on a marked path.
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A Legacy in Bristol
By Linda Tancs
Blithewold (meaning “happy woodland” in Old English) is an estate in Bristol, Rhode Island, that chronicles the Van Wickle, McKee and Lyon families. Shunning the nearby grandeur of Newport, the story begins with the wealthy couple Augustus and Bessie Van Wickle, who purchased the property in 1894 to create a rural retreat on Narragansett Bay. It’s one of the few late 19th and early 20th century New England estates that retains its integrity and authenticity down to the details of plant materials and interior furnishings, family archives and artifacts present in the 45-room mansion. It’s also one of the most fully-developed and intact examples of the Country Place Era in the United States and represents the influence of the Arts and Crafts movement in the country. The 33-acre estate features gardens that combine layouts from the 1800s with contemporary settings. Opening times vary with the season.
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What’s Hot in Idaho
By Linda Tancs
Numerous natural hot springs pools can be found along Idaho’s Highway 21, also known as the Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway. One of those sites is Kirkham Hot Springs outside Lowman. Nestled on the South Fork of the Payette River below a highway campground, a staircase leads adventurers down to the soaking pools. What distinguishes this locale from other geothermal pools are the small, steaming waterfalls as well. The site is open for day use only. You can enjoy the warm water this time of year without the summer crowds when the site is swarming with tourists and the lack of shade heats up the place.
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A Giant Hydrant in Beaumont
By Linda Tancs
For centuries, Dalmatians have been the unofficial mascot for firefighters in the United States. Due to their expertise as carriage dogs, they were reliable accompaniments to fire carriages of the 1700s, clearing the way for the horses. Their vital role in firefighting is commemorated with a Dalmatian-spotted fire hydrant that stands 24 feet tall next to the Fire Museum of Texas in Beaumont. The structure was donated to the city in 1999 by The Walt Disney Company to celebrate the re-release of the animated movie “101 Dalmatians.” It weighs a whopping 4,500 pounds and it works, capable of spewing 1,500 gallons of water per minute.
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The Island of Dreams
By Linda Tancs
Home to the second largest lagoon in the Tuamotu atolls, Fakarava is affectionately known as French Polynesia’s Island of Dreams. A UNESCO Marine Biosphere Reserve, it’s prized for its multicolored coral as well as for its school of sharks in the Tumakohua Pass. Not surprisingly, these assets present irresistible diving opportunities, the most popular activity on the island. Rotoava is the main village, and there are regular flights there from Tahiti.
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An Outpost on the Texas Frontier
By Linda Tancs
Fort Martin Scott in Fredericksburg, Texas, was the first U.S. Army outpost built on the Texas Frontier. Used by the Army from 1848 to 1853, it also served as a camp for the Texas Rangers and as a fort for the Confederate States Army during the Civil War. The historic site contains one original garrison building, one late 1800s old farm shed and three reproduction garrison buildings. Although the buildings are closed to the public, the grounds are open daily from dawn until dusk for self-guided tours.
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Nebraska’s Version of Stonehenge
By Linda Tancs
There’s only one Stonehenge in England. Not so in America, where the love of Britain’s prehistoric, megalithic structure finds expression across the country in media like foam, granite, concrete and other materials. In Alliance, Nebraska, the scale replica takes it up a notch to Carhenge. As you might have guessed, this tribute comprises automobiles (39 of them) arranged in the familiar circular pattern. Some are held upright in pits 5 feet deep, trunk end down, and arches have been formed by welding automobiles atop the supporting models. The site, located at 2151 County Road 59, is open year round from dawn until dusk.
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A Blockbuster in Bend
By Linda Tancs
Bend, Oregon, boasts a budding tourism industry. Part of the credit goes to the last remaining Blockbuster video rental store. Nothing short of a miracle in an era of streaming, the lone franchise is as much a tourist destination for nostalgia seekers as it is a store. It’s even the subject of a documentary. You’ll find it on Revere Avenue.
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Monkey Island
By Linda Tancs
Monkey Island Estate is a luxury hotel on a private island in the River Thames in Bray, England. Once the haunt of monarchs, aristocrats and artists, the estate may have taken its name from the 17th-century fresco that adorns the ceiling of the ground-floor Monkey Room. Another theory is that the name evolved from Monks Eyot (eyot being Old English for island) after the Augustinian monks who settled there in the 12th century. Among its 40 exquisite guest rooms is the Wedgwood Suite (so named and designed after the most recognizable name in British ceramics), which is Grade-1 listed.
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Stones and Water
By Linda Tancs
Guatapé is an Andean resort town in northwest Colombia. Its name means “stones and water” in Quechua. The water includes a lake and nearby waterfalls. The most famous stone is La Piedra del Peñón (or El Peñon de Guatapé), a giant granite monolith that defines the skyline. You can climb the 740 steps to the top for enviable views of the lake, islets and mountains. Medellín–Guatapé buses can drop you off at ‘La Piedra.’
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