Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for U.S. travel
In Homage to Mother Nature
By Linda Tancs
An icon of Disney’s Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, the Tree of Life is a 145-foot sculpture of a baobab tree boasting over 8,000 branches of very different sizes and about 102,000 artificial leaves. Over 300 animals are carved into the tree, celebrating nature’s diversity; they come alive during a colorful light show that begins after dark. You’ll get a close-up view of the carvings by walking the pathways around the tree, where a lush landscape brims with wildlife.
Share this:
A Rite of Passage in Carlsbad
By Linda Tancs
The advent of spring in Southern California is marked by a very special attraction in North San Diego County. That’s where you’ll find 55 acres of ranunculus flowers laden like a rainbow at Carlsbad Ranch in Carlsbad. Heralding the season for over 60 years now, the display blooms for approximately six to eight weeks from March to May. A popular tourist attraction, it’s best to visit on a weekday to avoid the crowds. Be sure to buy a ticket online in advance.
Share this:
A Landmark in Duluth
By Linda Tancs
The Aerial Lift Bridge is a landmark in Duluth, a port city on Lake Superior in Minnesota. In fact, the lake itself is its closest rival, being one of the Great Lakes and the largest freshwater lake in the world. At 138 feet tall and 390 feet wide, the steel bridge spans the Duluth Shipping Canal, connecting the sandbar of Park Point with the rest of Duluth. The elevator bridge features a suspension system that raises the bridge to a height of 135 feet to allow ships to pass underneath. Check the lift schedule to watch this amazing feat. You can also walk across it to experience the bridge in its entirety.
Share this:
Freedom’s Fortress
By Linda Tancs
Positioned on a 565-acre peninsula known as Old Point Comfort, Fort Monroe National Monument in Hampton, Virginia, is known as “Freedom’s Fortress.” That’s because, due to a legal loophole, thousands of enslaved Africans escaped and found refuge there during the Civil War. Strategically located at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, it was a key defensive site. The site’s military history is chronicled at the Casemate Museum. Buildings of note include the oldest house (Building #1, Old Quarters), where Abraham Lincoln stayed while planning the attack on Norfolk in 1862, and Building #17, where Robert E. Lee and his family stayed while he was a young engineer helping to oversee the construction of the fort. The peninsula is also home to Old Point Comfort Lighthouse, the second-oldest light in the bay and the oldest still in use.
Share this:
The Search for Gold in Kansas
By Linda Tancs
Built in the 1930s and resembling an old stone fortification, Coronado Heights Castle in Lindsborg, Kansas, marks the spot where a conquistador allegedly gave up his search for the fabled Seven Cities of Gold. Specifically, Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado is believed to have visited what is now the Kansas wilderness in the 1540s during his hunt for the fabled Seven Cities of Gold. Like other explorers, he was unsuccessful in his mission and returned to his native land. Today the site is a favorite for picnicking, flying kites, hiking or riding the off-road bike trails.
Share this:
All About Trout
By Linda Tancs
Established in 1896 to propagate, stock and establish trout populations, D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery and Archives in Spearfish, South Dakota, is one of the oldest operating hatcheries in the country. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it boasts over 1.8 million fisheries artifacts and other objects, the largest collection in the country. The site still rears trout for tribal and military waters. Visitors can engage with brown and rainbow trout by feeding them or watching them through the underwater viewing windows. The grounds are open daily from dawn until dusk.
Share this:
The House That Beer Built
By Linda Tancs
Just 25 miles south of downtown St. Louis, the ancestral home of Fred and Mabel Ruth Anheuser (of beer fame) is located in Kimmswick, Missouri. Affectionately known as Fredmar Farms, the historic estate was gifted to Fred and Mabel Ruth in the 1940s by his father, W. Fred Anheuser, whose ancestor, Eberhard Anheuser, was the founder of E. Anheuser Brewing Company. The brewery later became the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company, producer of world famous Budweiser beer, after Eberhard’s daughter Lillie married Adolphus Busch. The pristine river estate and its 23-acre grounds were donated to the city, which offers Saturday tours by appointment only.
Share this:
Fort Ancient
By Linda Tancs
The largest hilltop enclosure in North America, Fort Ancient is a Native American earthworks complex in Oregonia, Ohio. Located on a bluff overlooking the Little Miami River, the 2,000-year-old site was not really a fort but rather a gathering place for ceremonial activities, particularly at Morehead Circle near the museum on the premises. Today, the site (a UNESCO World Heritage site) is a nature-lover’s paradise with miles of trails, scenic overlooks and earthen embankments, some of which reach 23 feet high. Allow at least two hours for your visit.
Share this:
The Home of William Faulkner
By Linda Tancs
Regarded as one of the most preeminent American writers of the 20th century, Nobel Prize-winning novelist William Faulkner featured his native state of Mississippi in his works. Rowan Oak in Oxford was his home from 1930 until his death in 1962 and is an essential part of any visit to the North Mississippi area. The Greek Revival house served as inspiration for much of his work and is open for visits year round. The grounds of the estate include Bailey Woods Trail, which links Rowan Oak to the museum of the University of Mississippi, which now owns and operates the estate. Stretching approximately 3,000 feet, the heavily wooded trail, a favorite of Faulkner’s, takes about 20 minutes to walk.
Share this:
The Wildlife of Wichita Mountains
By Linda Tancs
Best known for its roaming herds of bison, longhorn and Rocky Mountain elk, Oklahoma’s Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge is the oldest managed wildlife facility in the United States Fish and Wildlife Service system. There are abundant opportunities for wildlife photography as well as fishing, bird watching, hiking, camping and kayaking. Take time to explore over 50,000 acres of mixed grass prairie, ancient granite mountains and fresh water lakes and streams. Located near Cache and Lawton, the refuge is open daily from sunrise to sunset.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 