Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for road travel
Classic New England Scenery
By Linda Tancs
Spanning 35 towns in northeastern Connecticut and south-central Massachusetts, The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor is a federally-designated National Heritage Corridor boasting a pastoral landscape interspersed with historical points of interest. You’ll find a plethora of museums, mill villages, rivers and quaint town centers, together with the last stretch of dark night sky in the coastal sprawl between Boston and Washington, D.C.
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The Hummingbird Highway
By Linda Tancs
Named for the abundance of hummingbirds found in the country, Belize’s Hummingbird Highway connects the Western Highway outside of the capital city of Belmopan in central Belize to the Southern Highway just outside of the town of Dangriga in the Stann Creek District in the southeast. Generally regarded as one of the most scenic routes in the country, the 53-mile road winds its way through postcard-worthy views of jungles, orchards and pretty villages. Although it only takes about two hours to drive through, you’ll want to stop and take in some of the popular attractions like Blue Hole National Park and its jungle trails as well as Hummingbird Gap, the highest elevation on the journey at almost 1,000 feet.
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Billed as the Great North American Eclipse, a total solar eclipse will cross North America on April 8, 2024, passing over Mexico, the United States and Canada. The path of the eclipse begins in Mexico, entering the United States in Texas, and traveling through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The eclipse will enter Canada in Southern Ontario, and continue through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton. This will be the last time any solar eclipse will be visible within the United States until 2045.
Be prepared! So long as supplies last, you can purchase eclipse glasses and other accessories, like a phone app and photo filter, from American Paper Optics, a NASA-approved manufacturer. The link in the preceding sentence is an affiliate link, which means that if you click on the link and purchase merchandise from the page, then I may receive a small commission.
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God’s Window
By Linda Tancs
Unique geological features are the highlight of Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The Blyde River Canyon is the third largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in the United States and the Fish River Canyon in Namibia and is one of the few areas of montane grassland left in Mpumalanga. Its marvels include rounded mountaintops known as the Three Rondavels, river-carved basins called Bourke’s Luck Potholes and the divine spectacle aptly named God’s Window, offering a sweeping vista of cliff walls reaching more than 2,000 feet to the canyon floor. These attractions are part of the Panorama Route, arguably one of the most scenic driving routes in the world.
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A Drive to the Sky
By Linda Tancs
Between Manchester and Arlington, Vermont, Skyline Drive is the longest private toll road in the country. In continuous operation since its completion in 1947, it boasts 5.2 miles of paved road ascending 3,248 feet to the summit of Mount Equinox, the highest peak in the Taconic Range. To say the views are sweeping is certainly an understatement. You’ll get 360-degree views of mountain vistas in Vermont, New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and, on clear days, Montreal’s Mount Royal. The route is open from late May (Memorial Day weekend) to October.
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The Lonesome Highway
By Linda Tancs
Lacking signs of intelligent life, the Lonesome Highway in Texas is aptly named. If you enjoy solitude, then take the drive along Highway 180 in West Texas, a route that brings you to the Guadalupe Mountains. Guadalupe Peak is the highest point in Texas, a signature feature of Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
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Gateway to the Endless Mountains
By Linda Tancs
Gateway to the Endless Mountains sounds like the title of a novel, but it’s actually a scenic byway in the Endless Mountains region of northeastern Pennsylvania. Running along US Highway 6 (Tunkhannock to Dushore), the mountain vistas do appear to be endless as are the hiking and birdwatching opportunities. The route is also known for spectacular views of the Susquehanna River.
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The Outlaw Trail
By Linda Tancs
Aptly named for the outlaws of a bygone era that roamed the area, Nebraska’s Outlaw Trail is a scenic byway along Highway 12 that stretches 231 miles between South Sioux City and Valentine. Highlights include the Niobrara National Scenic River, a must for river recreation. On the south side of the river you’ll find Smith Falls, the highest waterfall (at 63 feet) in the state and the centerpiece of Smith Falls State Park. Not far from there is Valentine National Wildlife Refuge, established by Congress in 1935. Maybe you’ll spend a night at the historic Argo Hotel in Crofton, built in 1912 to serve the railroad trade.
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Down on the Farm in Maryland
By Linda Tancs
The Mason-Dixon line is credited as the boundary line separating the North from the South in the United States. Its original purpose, however, was to establish boundaries of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and West Virginia thanks to the efforts of surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon. In Maryland, the Mason and Dixon Scenic Byway offers country vistas on a route running along the northern edge of Maryland near its border with Pennsylvania. The nostalgia of rural life is on full display at Carroll County Farm Museum in Westminster as well as at Union Mills Homestead and its functioning grist mill. And you won’t want to miss Foxcatcher Farms Covered Bridge in Elkton (near the Fair Hill Nature and Environmental Center), one of only two remaining authentic covered bridges in Cecil County.
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The Cajun Corridor
By Linda Tancs
A great way to experience Cajun heritage is to eat your way through it by driving Louisiana’s Cajun Corridor Byway. The route is 34 miles long, running between Gueydan and Delcambre. In addition to typical fare like shrimp, crawfish and oysters, you’ll find specialties you might be less familiar with, like turducken – a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken. You can learn the recipe for this and other treats at a Cajun cooking class like the one offered in the city of Kaplan at Crawfish Haven. Throughout the route you’ll find amazing vistas encompassing “dual crop” farms (rice fields that are also home to thousands of crawfish) and sugar cane fields as well as allées (alleys of shade trees) and cheniers (coastal ridges covered with stands of oak trees). Enjoy the ride.
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Indiana’s National Road
By Linda Tancs
Once a main transport path to the West for thousands of settlers, Indiana’s Historic National Road was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and was completed in 1834. It was the country’s first federally-funded interstate highway, connecting the eastern seaboard (Maryland) to the western interior (Missouri). You’ll find interpretive panels throughout the 156-mile stretch in eight counties. Richmond is a good place to start. You’ll find the Old National Road Welcome Center there, along with the Madonna of the Trail Monument (one of only 12 such statues in the country), honoring pioneer women who trekked westward from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The highway is designated both a National Scenic Byway and an All-American Road.
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