Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Captiva Captivates
By Linda Tancs
Sister Sanibel may be larger, but Captiva Island in southwest Florida is just as captivating. This is the land of the Calusa Indians, a place that pirates reportedly roamed. It’s where you’ll find the ever popular Bubble Room restaurant, where it’s always Christmas. Even nature’s oddities await you here—you could discover a giant toad, a tiny starfish or an endangered Eastern Indigo snake. Captiva is just over a small bridge that crosses at Turner Beach, where a drive down Captiva Drive will net you giant cacti, colorful bougainvilleas and other tropical flora.
Share this:
Bear With It in Japan
By Linda Tancs
Located in eastern Hokkaido in Japan, Shiretoko’s unspoiled nature is epitomized by the five lakes, Shiretoko Goko. Formed long ago by the eruption of nearby Mount Io and fed by underground springs, the lakes are accessible via an elevated wooden path (leading to the first lake) or a ground pathway (offering views of all five lakes). Visitors are free to walk along the elevated wooden path to the first lake throughout the season (which opens in late April and closes in November). The ground pathway, however, is subject to guided tours during bear season, which is generally May 10 to July 31. But bears live in the lakes region all year, so bear encounters are always possible and may result in path closures. Further regulations apply during this time of year (ecosystem aware season), when tourist traffic threatens the tender vegetation in the area. For the privilege of viewing the pristine lakes and surrounding mountains, you’ll need to attend a lecture and wait your turn to hike because there’s an hourly limit to the number of visitors allowed on the trails. So just grin and (ahem) bear it.
Share this:
World’s Largest Corn Maze
By Linda Tancs
Thousands have braved the maze at Cool Patch Pumpkins, site of the world’s largest corn maze according to Guinness World Records. Sixty acres’ strong, each year’s design gets ever more challenging. The maze (and pumpkin patch) are open now through early November. Located in Dixon, California, look for the famous Milk Farm landmark sign visible from Interstate Highway 80 between First Street and Pedrick Road.
Share this:
Where the Forest Meets the Sea
By Linda Tancs
Cape Perpetua Scenic Area is where the forest meets the sea. Managed by the United States Forest Service as part of Siuslaw National Forest, it’s a large forested headland on the coast of central Oregon, projecting into the Pacific Ocean. It’s also where a sinkhole of sorts meets the sea. Known as Thor’s Well, a deep chasm fills with salt water and produces a fountainous spectacle before Mother Nature vacuum sucks its bounty back to its rightful owner. The site is particularly spectacular at high tide or during storms—when it’s also most dangerous.
Share this:
An Underwater Nature Path
By Linda Tancs
Port Cros is a small, charming island in the French Riviera. In fact, the entire island is a national park (the smallest in France), affording nature lovers ample opportunity to discover its flora and fauna. There are 602 land species of flora, 500 algae species, 144 bird species, 180 fish species and some endemic tenants like the Tyrrhenian painted frog. Its unspoiled, pristine nature gives rise to one of its most unique attractions: an underwater marked nature path. Beginning at Plage de la Palud, the trail takes about 30 minutes to complete. Thanks to a prohibition on mooring at the beach to protect the underwater species, you’ll be assured remarkable views.
Share this:
A Cathedral of Limestone
By Linda Tancs
Tsingy is the Malagasy word for “walking on tiptoes,” quite appropriate for the limestone cathedral dominating Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve. Its otherworldly, needle-like rock formations hundreds of feet tall draw tourists not only for the views but also for a chance to see amazing endemic flora and fauna. Decken’s sifaka, the red-fronted brown lemur, fat-tailed dwarf lemur, grey mouse lemur, Cleese’s woolly lemur and the Sambirano lesser bamboo lemur are only found here. You might view some over the several hanging bridges kissing the karsts. The park is only open during the dry season (April through November).
Share this:
Fossil Hunting in Montana
By Linda Tancs
The Hell Creek Formation in northeastern Montana is a fossil hunter’s paradise, a living chronicle of the end of the dinosaur age. That’s one reason why its impressive bounty of dinosaur remains such as Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops is so significant. Hunting privileges get leased out for big bucks. For an affordable dig, go along with a prospecting company for a weeklong guided tour on property that they’re leasing. Best of all, you can usually keep what you find. Happy hunting!
Share this:
Grieg’s Symphony
By Linda Tancs
Inspired by his country’s folk songs, Edvard Grieg became one of Norway’s most famous composers. On the grounds of his 19th century home in Bergen, Troldhaugen, visitors can enjoy daily lunchtime concerts at the chamber music hall. Each week a featured pianist plays Grieg’s most well-known and prized piano pieces. The annual event takes place from June 1 to September 30. Better hurry!
Share this:
A Blast in Alabama
By Linda Tancs
A testament to America’s coming of industrial age, Alabama’s Sloss Furnaces is the only 20th century blast furnace in America being preserved and interpreted as a historic industrial site. Located in Birmingham, the facility contains two 400-ton blast furnaces and 40 other buildings although nothing remains of the original furnace complex. Nevertheless, the oldest building on the site dates from 1902 and houses the eight steam-driven “blowing-engines” used to provide air for combustion in the furnaces, vintage engines that drove (no pun intended) the Industrial Revolution. Sloss produced iron for nearly 90 years, rendering Birmingham a great industrial hub of the South that earned it the nickname The Magic City.
Share this:
Glasgow’s Catacombs
By Linda Tancs
In Glasgow, Scotland, the catacombs aren’t the usual subterranean ossuary, the likes of which you’ll find in Paris. It might feel just as spooky, though, except for the new steak and gin restaurant gracing the brick vaults. We’re talking about Glasgow Central, the busiest train station in Scotland and the second busiest outside London. You can tour the entire station—from its iconic roof (with 48,000 imposing panes of glass) to its boiler rooms and tunnels and, yes, the catacombs. This is a unique guided tour of the operational areas of a hallmark of Victorian engineering. Wear sensible shoes and dress for the weather.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 