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
Sand and Solitude in Indiana
By Linda Tancs
There’s plenty of sand and opportunity for solitude at Indiana Dunes. Recently elevated to national park status, it’s Indiana’s first national park. Hiking is a prized activity, with over 50 miles of trails reaching dunes, wetlands, prairies, rivers and forests. Lying at the southern tip of Lake Michigan, it benefits from its habitat with a wide variety of fish, birds and aquatic organisms. The park also ranks fourth in plant diversity among all the national parks. Visit this weekend for some maple tapping. Taking place at the historic homestead, Chellberg Farm, the free event is one of the park’s most popular activities. Bottled syrup will be offered for sale at both the main and Bailly/Chellberg visitor centers.
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Defying Gravity in North Carolina
By Linda Tancs
If space flight is beyond your budget, you can still experience a gravitational oddity or two on Earth. Just head for Mystery Hill in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. Billed as a natural gravitational anomaly, the “vortex room” features water and a ball moving uphill and folks standing at 45 degree angles. Guided tours leave every 10 minutes. May the force be with you.
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Delaware’s First State Capitol Building
By Linda Tancs
Just minutes from Wilmington, Delaware, historic New Castle presents a treasure trove of colonial history. For instance, the New Castle Court House, built in 1732, served as Delaware’s first court and state capitol building. At that site in 1776, New Castle, Kent and Sussex counties declared their independence from Pennsylvania and England, creating the State of Delaware. A National Historic Landmark and museum, the trials of abolitionists Thomas Garrett and John Hunn were held there. In 2003, the court house was designated as a National Historic Underground Railroad Site by the U.S. Government. Visitors to the museum learn about Delaware’s colonial and state history, early European settlements and the Delaware Underground Railroad.
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America’s First Museum
By Linda Tancs
Founded in 1773, Charleston Museum is touted as “America’s First Museum.” It was established by the Charleston Library Society on the eve of the American Revolution and focuses on the South Carolina Lowcountry. The collections include natural history, historical material culture and both documentary and photographic resources. Among the permanent exhibitions a highlight is Kidstory, a series of interactive displays for children providing the opportunity to examine creatures under a microscope, hear stories of the Lowcountry and illuminate a lighthouse, among other things.
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Byway Explores Underground Railroad
By Linda Tancs
Former slave Harriet Tubman is the most widely recognized symbol of the Underground Railroad movement, leading hundreds of slaves to freedom. You can learn more about her legacy along the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway, a 125-mile, scenic road linking historic sites and areas associated with Tubman. Meandering through Maryland’s Eastern Shore, it’s the only place in the world that preserves and interprets the places where Harriet Tubman was born, lived and labored and from which she fled. In addition to the visitor center, the lands associated with the area are part of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park, affording visitors opportunities to hike, bike, paddle, shop, dine and attend events.
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A Rarity at Yale
By Linda Tancs
The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Yale University is one of the world’s largest libraries devoted entirely to rare books and manuscripts. Just 90 minutes from New York in the city of New Haven, Connecticut, its lobby and mezzanine public exhibition areas are open to the public. That’s where you’ll find such gems as the Gutenberg Bible (the first Western book printed from movable type) and John James Audubon’s Birds of America, a series of hand-colored, life-size prints first published as a series in sections between 1827 and 1838. The building itself is a conversation piece. Built of Vermont marble and granite, bronze and glass, its exterior marble panels filter light so that rare materials can be displayed without damage.
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Swamped in Florida
By Linda Tancs
Located just a few miles west of Daytona Beach, Florida, Tiger Bay State Forest comprises large areas of swamp with embedded pine islands and a large pine ridge area. It’s located among several publicly owned lands that create wildlife corridors for species listed as endangered, threatened or of special concern. Named for its largest feature, Tiger Bay, this extensive hydric swamp forest is dominated by pine islands. It also contains two lakes and several ponds ideal for fishing. Other recreational activities include hiking, bicycling, horseback riding, picnicking, boating, hunting and photography.
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Minerals of New York
By Linda Tancs
Gems and minerals are just one of the many ongoing exhibitions at the New York State Museum in Albany, New York. Its collection includes specimens from several notable sites throughout the state, including 93 mineral species from the Balmat-Edwards mining district in St. Lawrence County (the only locale where tremolite is found), super garnets (the official state gemstone) from the Barton Mine in the Adirondack Mountains and Herkimer diamonds from Herkimer County, New York. In fact, the state museum has the world’s largest and most complete collection of New York minerals. Established in 1836, the facility also boasts the distinction of being the oldest and largest state museum in the country. Admission is free.
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A Revitalized River in California
By Linda Tancs
The Los Angeles River is a 51-mile waterway, meandering from the San Fernando Valley to the Pacific Ocean in Long Beach. For more than 20 years various groups have been working to transform this California treasure into a continuous 51-mile recreational zone. Two recreation zones, Elysian Valley River Recreation Zone and Sepulveda Basin River Recreation Zone, benefit nature lovers with flourishing wildlife and natural habitats. Any member of the public is welcome to walk, fish, canoe and kayak in the recreation zones free of charge. You do not need a permit unless you are part of an organized group. Private vendors also offer guided trips at each of the locations as well as kayaks for rental.
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Georgia’s Civil War Capital
By Linda Tancs
The city of Milledgeville, Georgia, takes its name from John Milledge, governor of Georgia from 1802 to 1806. It’s one of five capitals in the history of the state, the others being Savannah, Augusta, Louisville and the present capital, Atlanta. Besides Washington, D.C., it’s the only city actually designed to be a capital city, a decision that was made in 1804. Beginning in 1839 and ending in 1868, the Old Governor’s Mansion served as home to 10 governors and their families, including during the tumultuous Civil War period. Other attractions include the Old Capital Museum, located in the building where Georgia legislators voted to secede from the Union, and Andalusia Farm, a former cotton plantation and the home of celebrated author Flannery O’Connor.
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