Chevron Auto Club - ODYSSEY FALL/WINTER 2021

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ODYSSEY T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E C H E V R O N A U T O C L U B • W I N T E R 2 02 1

Coast-to-Coast on the Lincoln Highway There’s More to Park City than Skiing Ancient Treasures Abound in Rome Peace and Quiet at Your Urban Oasis

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ODYSSEY

THE MAGAZINE OF THE CHEVRON AUTO CLUB

Dear Members, ODYSSEY is now the magazine of the Chevron Auto Club—a slight name change, but you’ll find that all the same benefits of your club membership are as great as ever! From roadside assistance, to insurance, to travel ideas, the tools are in place to help make your time and travels on the road both safe and enjoyable.

As you probably know, mandates regarding COVID-19 and the Delta virus vary widely, and change as conditions change. With that in mind, you’ll find that the Information For Travelers section at the end of each article in this issue provides contact information for specific destinations mentioned in the article, that in most cases publish their current virus-related protocols online.

Featured in this issue is the story of America’s first coast-to-coast road—the Lincoln Highway. The 1913 route, in its first iteration, was 3,389 miles in length, linking small and not-so-small towns, from New York to California. The highway has seen upgrades in the form of re-routings and other improvements over the years. Many of the towns and cities along the route that benefitted from its presence continue to return the favor, providing hospitality and interesting things for motorists to see and do.

Park City, Utah, has a history that predates its preeminence as a ski town and home to the Sundance Film Festival. Originally the eastern terminus of Parley Pratt’s toll road into Salt Lake City, it quickly became a mining boomtown in the 1860s.

When the boom ended, it was a ski jump at legendary Ecker Hill that played an important role in Park City’s new lease on life.

Rome is mesmerizing. To visit Rome is to come face-to-face with history on a grand scale. Throughout this fashionable metropolitan city, centuries of western civilization are revealed at every turn. It is no wonder that Rome is perpetually among the top most-visited cities in the world.

But if Rome seems a bit far afield at this time, perhaps a destination in your city, or in a nearby city, could be your ticket to a fun day trip. Consider a visit to one of our country’s many urban oases. Great urban parks are found the world over, but there is no shortage of them right here in our own backyard. And, with their entertainment programs and museums, most offer more to visitors than just a walk in the park!

Wishing you a safe and enjoyable holiday season and new year,

ODYSSEY is the official publication of the Chevron Auto Club Volume 52 Number 1 Winter 2021

On the cover: A bit of snow does not keep runners and walkers from enjoying this path in the Boise River Greenbelt in the Idaho capital city.

Photo: CFNafzger/Shutterstock

ODYSSEY

President Chevron Auto Club Patrick J O’Brien

ODYSSEY

is created, edited, and designed by the editorial staff and associates of C A Bergquist & Associates

Patrick J O’Brien, President, Chevron Auto Club

Your Auto Club Is Always As Near As The Phone!

For Auto Club Information contact: Chevron Auto Club, P.O. Box 660460, Dallas, TX 75266-0460 Call toll-free, Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central time

1-800-677-3939 Questions and comments regarding this magazine may be addressed directly to: Editor, ODYSSEY, 131 Stony Circle, Santa Rosa, CA 95401; cadb-delta@sonic.net

Visit the Chevron Auto Club online at:

www.ChevronAutoClub.com

Advertising Representative National C A Bergquist & Associates

916/668-9530

Winter 2021

Contents 02 The Lincoln Highway Revisited Piggybacking on the Good Roads Movement of the nineteenth century, Hoosier Carl Fisher conceived of a plan for a paved passage across the nation.

The project, started in 1913 and completed in 1925, linked scores of cities and towns on its three-thousand-mile coast-to-coast route. by Ben Vanderhousen

10 Skiing and More at Park City, Utah Park City’s roots go back to a time when skiing was pretty much a means of cross-country transportation in Scandinavian countries or a highflying spectator sport for brave ski jumpers. The end of mining at Park City coincided nicely with a new, mid-twentieth-century enthusiasm for recreational downhill skiing. by M. Max Richardson The Lincoln Highway begins its westward journey at Times Square (above) in New York City.

20 The Many Faces of Old Rome Rome, on its seven hills, once sat at the center of the Western world.

The city’s fortunes, ebbing and flowing over the millennia, left a landscape rich with historical artifacts and archeological elements.

Fortunately for modern-day visitors there remains a world of Roman history to be seen within the city walls. by Elizabeth Martin

26 Your Great, Local, Urban Respite

The McPolin farm (above) offers a friendly visual greeting to visitors to Park City.

From San Diego, California, to Austin, Texas, to Washington, D.C., and points in between there are lovely urban gardens scattered across the country. Whether to admire or study the horticultural offerings, to take in a concert, view the collections in a museum, jog a mile or two, or just take a quiet walk, a visit to an urban park may be just what your inner self ordered. by Claire Esprey

The Colosseum (above) is an enduring symbol of Rome’s storied history.

Departments

16 Scenic Drives 18 Travel Bulletin 32 Travel Library

An explosion of color awaits visitors to the Morrison Azalea Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C.

Photos from top: PHOTOS-EXCALIBER; TW PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK; J ROA/SHUTTERSTOCK; J.W. CROSS/SHUTTERSTOCK

ODYSSEY Volume 52, Number 1, December 10, 2021. Copyright © 2021. Cover or contents may not be reproduced in any form without written permission. ODYSSEY is a registered trademark. Chevron and Texaco logos are the registered trademarks of Chevron Corp. ODYSSEY (ISSN1073-5259) is published by the Chevron Auto Club. Address all editorial correspondence to ODYSSEY, 131 Stony Circle, Suite 500, Santa Rosa, CA 95401. • ODYSSEY and CA Bergquist & Associates, are not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, or artwork. • ODYSSEY is produced for distribution to members of the Chevron Auto Club. Individual issues are not available. • Presorted Standard A Postage paid at Liberty, Missouri. (Permit No.1215) POSTMASTER: Send change of address orders to ODYSSEY c/o Chevron Auto Club, Post Office Box 660460, Dallas, TX 75266-0460. ODYSSEY provides information about lodging rates, hours of operation, ticket prices and admission fees. Readers should be aware that these are revised frequently, and

although believed to be accurate at press time, they are subject to change. It is the responsibility of the individual to verify details before travel.

Printed in the U.S.A.

This article, by design, features points of interest mostly on the eastern portion of the Lincoln Highway. The Fall/Winter 2020 issue of ODYSSEY carried an article on the Transcontinental Railroad, traversing the western states from the Missouri River west to California. Much of the western portion of the Lincoln Highway, aka US Route 30, follows closely the path of the Transcontinental Railway.

As such, this article will touch on just a few highlights in the western states.

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JOSEPH SOHM/SHUTTERSTOCK

COAST-TO-COAST

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he automobile emerged from a rich stew of transportation inventions in the nineteenth century. The world witnessed the emergence of steamships, trains, and early gliders that were followed quickly by powered aircraft. The fragile buggy-like, gasoline-powered passenger vehicle developed by Karl Benz, generally considered to be the first

production automobile, made its appearance in Germany in 1887. Six years later two brothers in Massachusetts brought America’s first car to fruition as the Duryea Motor Wagon. Henry Ford’s Model T, benefitting from Ford’s implementation of mass production, began rolling off the Detroit, Michigan assembly line in 1908. But it was the lowly bicycle that can claim credit for starting the movement that led to the smooth roads we travel today. The Good Roads Movement was born in 1880 out of cyclists’ concerns for better roads. Local governments across the country were lobbied by members of the movement and its offshoot, the League of American Wheelmen. Improved roads were a bona fide grassroots concern across the nation around the turn of the century.

Racing (and selling) bicycles in the late 1800s primed Carl Fisher for racing around in motorcars as soon as he could. (And selling them as well. Carl Fisher is acknowledged also as America’s first car dealer!) It didn’t take him long to come up with plans for a big “oval” racetrack in his hometown of Indianapolis. With the force of Carl Fisher behind it, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway opened in 1909. The first weekend of racing PHOTOS: TOP: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, G.G.BAIN COLLECTION; BOTTOM: EDDIE J. RODRIQUEZ/SHUTTERSTOCK

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on the unpredictable, 2 1⁄2-mile, gravel track claimed five unfortunate vic-

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ON THE

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LINCOLN HIGHWAY

by Ben Vanderhousen

tims. Faced with writing off the project as a failure or paving the track, Fisher and his partners decided to pave the track—with 3.2 million 10-pound bricks. Hence its legacy nickname: The Brickyard. With the value of paving proven to Carl Fisher, the vision of a paved route connecting the coasts materialized in his fertile promotional mind. And so in 1912 Mr. Fisher convened groups of investors and politicians and sold them on his plan for a coast-to-coast highway. Buoyed by the Good Roads Movement his idea quickly took hold. For their part, the politicians in Washington formed the Federal Highway Administration, supplying funding directly and through legislation. Additional funding was up to states and townships along the proposed route—and to private investors. Notably, Henry Ford declined the invitation to participate as an investor on the grounds that roads should be fully publicly, not privately, funded.

Carl Fisher’s associate Henry Joy proposed that the national highway be named in honor of President Lincoln. The government in Washington, already having

PHOTO ADAPTED FROM ORIGINAL, JOHN OXLEY LIBRARY

plans and funding in place for a Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, nonetheless accepted Joy’s suggestion.

The Lincoln Highway was born, with West 42nd Street and Broadway in

Carl G. Fisher, (opposite left) father of the Lincoln Highway, is shown with one of the many markers placed along the highway. Photos at top, from left: an Amish roundbarn at Nappanee, Indiana; a service station at Grand Island, Nebraska; the coffee pot building at a former gas station in Bedford, Pennsylvania; Pittsburgh’s Duquesne Incline; a car (above) typical of traffic on early Lincoln Highway.

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Sinclair, WY

Cheyenne, WY

Omaha, NE

Massillon, OH Canton, OH

Cedar Rapids, IA Fulton, IL

Chicago, IL

Cozad, NE

Salt Lake City, UT Sacramento, CA Reno, NV

Pittsburgh, PA Point of Rocks, WY Rock Springs, WY

Grand Island, NE

Elkhart, IN South Bend, IN

Geneva, IL

North Platte, NE

Gettysburg Lancaster, PA

Ely, NV

Placerville, CA Folsom, CA Stockton, CA

New York, NY Edison, NJ Trenton, NJ Philadelphia, PA

San Francisco, CA

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A number of reconstructed cabins, typical of those built by colonial soldiers under the command of General George Washington, dot the grounds of the Valley Forge National Historical Park at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

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New York City, a spot popularly known as Times Square, as the point of origin. The concept as proposed by Carl G. Fisher, acknowledged promotional genius, became a reality on the last day of October, 1913. Fast forward to 1925; when the transcontinental route was completed, the Federal Highway Administration banned highway “names” in order to facilitate the adoption of the new “numbered” highway system. Fortunately, with the participation of the Boy Scouts of America, thousands of concrete roadside markers were quickly placed designating the route of Carl Fisher’s coast-to-coast highway.

The Lincoln Highway Association, formed in 1913 to shepherd the project to completion, ceased operations in 1927, but was reestablished in 1992 to preserve the legacy of the “named” Lincoln Highway.

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eparting Manhattan, the motorist embarking on a Lincoln Highway journey would encounter long stretches of improved roadway dotted with municipalities providing food, water, lodging, and oftentimes something interesting to see or do. Present-day motorists traveling the route of the original Lincoln Highway will find, as before, many interesting things to see and do. Few folks are likely to drive the dotted line comprising all the extant links of the old highway spanning the continent, but the interesting things to see and do are, in many cases, still there—along the dotted line. And following is a selected list of those things.

If the Lincoln Highway is all about transportation, Elizabeth, New Jersey, just 15 miles beyond the Holland Tunnel, is worth a tip of the hat as you drive through, for it was in Elizabeth that two (early) electric car companies brought that “currently” popular technology to the roads. An electric vehicle from one of the companies, the Riker Electric, won, in 1896, what is considered to be the first closed circuit auto race in America. Riker was absorbed by the Electric Vehicle Company in 1901 and ceased production in 1902 when the company closed. Notably, inventor John Phillip Holland developed a hybrid gas-electric submarine that was built and tested in Elizabeth and eventually purchased by the U.S. Navy. Holland’s Torpedo Boat Company evolved into the General Dynamics Corporation. The hybrid sub USS Holland unfortunately was scrapped in 1932.

Fifteen miles beyond Elizabeth lies Edison,

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National Historical Park. Here visitors can take a self-guided tour of the 3,500-acre grounds where Washington spent the winter of 1777-78 with his Continental force of 12,000. With your cell phone you can dial up information on 93 points of interest as you drive the park.

Riding on the tour bus with its audible narration is another way to absorb the incredible Valley Forge story.

Carl Fisher’s dream in 1912 was an improved coast-to-coast highway, but another similar dream on a smaller scale came to fruition some 117 years earlier. Connecting Philadelphia and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 62 miles to the west, the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike is notable as America’s first “paved” road, taking its place as part of the newly designated Lincoln Highway in the early twentieth century. So, what paving method was used in 1795 on this “first paved road?” Cobbles? Bricks? Wood?

No. It was a multi-layered gravel road that proved serviceable for many decades.

Proceeding west from Lancaster puts travelers in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country. Dutch, as you might know, in this case is derived from Deutsch, meaning German, nothing to do with Holland. Amish, Mennonite, and German Reformed immigrants settled this territory in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and their continuing presence colors much of what one sees here. Quaint horse-drawn buggies, tidy farms, and hard-working communities of “the plain Dutch” are evocative reminders of an alternative lifestyle.

And in the middle of Pennsylvania Dutch country is perhaps the most powerful of this country’s remembrances of the War Between the States—Gettysburg National Military Park. The Lincoln Highway passes, fittingly, right through Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, making a stop here a no-brainer. Whether you are a student of the Civil War or not you will find the park filled with historical relevance.

Begin your visit at the park’s Museum and Visitor Center, where you’ll discover just how much there is to see and do at the park— easily a day’s worth. Even if you don’t leave

An 8th Cavalry horseman (left) stands near the Pennsylvania state memorial at Gettysburg National Military Park.

Lancaster, Pennsylvania’s Central Market (above) is the oldest continuously operating market in the United States.

General George Washington repelled British forces with a surprise attack after crossing the icy Delaware River in December of 1776.

A worthwhile short side trip from Lincoln Highway at Trenton, New Jersey takes you to the Washington Crossing State Park. The area is rife with Revolutionary War and Colonialera historical sites including the c. 1719 William Trent House Museum. Touring the house you will find yourself immersed in period-correct, eighteenth-century Colonial surroundings. On the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware, the Washington Crossing Historical Park offers another view of the crossing point.

Philadelphia is rich with things to see and do—too many to cover here, but the Independence National Historical Park is certainly a must. Just off the Lincoln Highway outside Philadelphia lies the Valley Forge

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New Jersey. The Lincoln Highway passes right by the site of Edison’s Inventions Factory, a complex of buildings in the Menlo Park neighborhood that Edison had constructed to house his laboratories, shops, and manufacturing operations. The buildings fell into disrepair after Edison left for New York City in 1882, and later West Orange, New Jersey, where he died at his estate. The Menlo Park site in Edison features a 131-foot tall concrete monument topped by a 14-foot light bulb. The two-room Thomas Edison Center Museum is located on the now landscaped grounds.

The Thomas Edison National Historical Park, offering more extensive exhibits and tours, is at Edison’s Glenmont estate, about 20 miles north in West Orange, New Jersey.

One hundred years before Edison transformed our world with his inventions,

These straw hats are typical of crafts for sale in shops of Pennsylvania Dutch country.

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HOSPITAL INDEMNITY

ACCIDENT BENEFIT PLAN* Coverage For Hospital Confinement Due to a Covered Accident Give your family added coverage with this optional insurance plan, at an additional cost.

Provided for Chevron Auto Club Members.

Benefit Highlights • Benefits are paid directly to you – regardless of any other insurance you may have.

• No health questions asked or medical examinations required.

• Coverage is available to you and your eligible dependents, as a Chevron Auto Club Member in good standing.

FOR DETAILS CALL 1-800-222-0585 This policy provides limited accident-only benefits. This policy has exclusions, limitations, and terms under which the policy may be continued in force or discontinued. See the plan description for more complete details of coverage.

Chevron Auto Club Hospital Indemnity — Accident Benefit Plan is underwritten

by Life Insurance Company of North America.

ROSEMARIE MOSTELLER/SHUTTERSTOCK

Wind chimes are suspended within the columns of the Flight 93 National Memorial near the Lincoln Highway at Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

the building you can, after purchasing tickets, experience Pickett’s Charge via the 377-foot circular painting, watch the film A New Birth of Freedom, and wander the extensive museum itself. Tours of several types are on offer taking visitors all around the battlefield—and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Home and Farm.

This past September saw the twentieth anniversary of 9/11. A plane thought to be targeting the U.S. Capitol was taken down by the brave passengers of Flight 93, coming to rest at Shanksville, Pennsylvania, at a spot just

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two miles from where the Lincoln Highway passes by. Travelers along this stretch would do well to consider spending a contemplative moment of reflection at the Flight 93 National Memorial that commemorates the lives lost.

Another 80 miles brings the Lincoln Highway traveler to Pittsburgh, which has no shortage of things to see and do. A steel tour is appropriate in the Steel City and a tour of the Carrie Blast Furnace, a National Historic Landmark, is a good one. The tour is one of several offered by the Rivers of Steel company.

A ride up the Duquesne Incline showcases a bit of Pittsburgh history with a museum and souvenir shop at the top.

Whether you are a Steelers fan or root for another team you might want to stop in at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, over the state line, in Canton, Ohio. You will be entertained and informed with movies, colorful displays, videos, and enthusiastic docents. Canton’s next-door neighbor, Massillon, is home to the Lincoln Car Museum, featuring a collection of many early Lincolns right up through modern concept projects. Also in Massillon, the Spring Hill Historic Home features a

WIRESTOCK CREATORS/SHUTTERSTOCK

Studebaker made some interesting and innovative vehicles in its day. For a heavy dose of automotive Americana, a short jog over to South Bend gets you to the outstanding Studebaker National Museum, where you’ll see pre-automotive Studebaker carriages and wagons, early, open “horseless carriages,” and coupes and sedans up to the last model, the 1964 Avanti R3. The museum’s collections include the Presidential Carriage Collection, the Originals Collection, and Military Vehicles.

From Indiana the Lincoln Highway skirts the southern reaches of Chicago and makes its way to Geneva, Illinois. A Viking ship has also

The distinctive shape of an early ’50s Studebaker Commander nose is seen here at the Studebaker National Museum (above) at South Bend, Indiana, the marque’s home. An Amish buggy (below) makes haste on a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, road.

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history dating from the early nineteenth century including its roles as a sheep farm homestead and as a station along the route of the Underground Railroad.

Ten miles west of Massillon, at Orrville, Ohio, just off the highway, everyone’s favorite jams and jellies are featured at the J.M. Smucker Company Store and Café—along with a large selection of gift items. Orrville is home to the J.M. Smucker Company.

The Lincoln Highway followed two routes through Indiana. The original 1913-1915 alignment passed through Elkhart County, the focus of our attention here. The route was later moved south to a straighter alignment along what is now US Route 30. Elkhart County has put together something very special for the auto tourist—a 90-mile, audioguided route around the county. Check out (or download) the 37-page “People and Places Along the Heritage Trail” for a look at what’s on offer in Elkhart County. Time your stops to visit Amish-style dining establishments (aka “the 10-pound tour”), the vintagedesigned Janus Motorcycles (factory and showroom) in Goshen, Amish craftwork from furniture to baskets to walking sticks at shops along the route, and lots more.

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A lovely setting on the banks of the Cedar River (top) enhances the National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library at Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Grant Wood painted his well-known work American Gothic in his now restored Cedar Rapids studio (above). Equines in the wild (right) are among the attractions on the Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop in western Wyoming.

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made its way to Geneva, to Good Templar Park, where it is restored, maintained, and displayed in all its splendor by the Friends of the Viking Ship. To some, its graceful lines have earned it the name “the most beautiful ship in the world.” The Friends are looking for a new, enclosed home for the ship, a replica built in Norway for the 1893 World’s Columbia Exposition in Chicago, that for now is in Geneva, as is the Little Traveler. This quaint and somewhat historic shop and tea room has been a Geneva fixture since 1925.

The 36 rooms display an eclectic assortment of items (for sale) from around the world, from bath to fashion to toys to housewares.

At the western edge of Illinois the Lincoln Highway crosses the Mississippi River at Fulton. Lock and Dam No. 13, constructed in 1938 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004, is located just north of Fulton. The lock activities are viewable from a specially constructed and well kept observation area that has picnic tables—and bald eagles, at least sometimes. Once in Iowa, at Clinton, the Sawmill Museum documents the town’s history as a major lumber producer in the 1800s.

Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is home to the highly acclaimed National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library. Colorful exhibits document not only the arrival of the Bohemian immigrants to the area, but also the history and culture of the homeland in east-central Europe. The facility became a Smithsonian affiliate museum in 2019. The famous painting, American Gothic, is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, however it was painted by Grant Wood, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Grant Wood Home and Studio, now in the

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PHOTO: WAYNE JOHNSON, MAIN STREET STUDIOS; RESTORATION: OPN ARCHITECTS

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National Trust for Historic Preservation program, is owned by the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. Docent-led tours of the handsome, refurbished, red brick building are conducted Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

West from Cedar Rapids the Lincoln Highway, over US Route 30, traverses a vast stretch of Iowa farmland, dipping south to a point just north of Omaha, Nebraska. West from Omaha, the Lincoln Highway follows the path of the Union Pacific’s original transcontinental railway, passing through the railroad towns of Grand Island and North Platte on its way to, well, you decide.

At a junction in southwest Nebraska travelers on the Lincoln Highway have a choice to make: continue west over the table-flat prairie landscape, or turn south and head for mile-high Denver. In its first two years the original highway looped south through Denver, at the insistence of Colorado’s governor, who had embraced the highway project from the start. But the southerly “dogleg” loop was not the best to go west, so in 1916 the route was realigned to head directly to Cheyenne, Wyoming, relegating the “Denver dogleg” to historical status.

US Route 30, although straightforward in its mission to get west, nevertheless gives life to numerous points along its route. In Cozad, Nebraska, for instance, the Robert Henri Museum and Gallery showcases the life and work of the influential New York artist of the same name. The foundations of Fort Fred Steele linger at the state historic site near Sinclair, Wyoming, where an interpretive trail recounts the fort’s colorful history. The Almond Stage Station at Point of Rocks, Wyoming, is a historic site with a history as a significant nineteenth-century overland stopover. A bit further along, at Rock Springs, Wyoming, a side trip on the 30-mile, graveled Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop provides

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a look at the horses and other local wildlife including, with a bit of luck, desert elk, rabbits, coyotes, hawks, and eagles.

Controversy surrounded the locating of the Lincoln Highway through Utah and Nevada as San Francisco and Los Angeles vied for a favorable routing. A route midway between the two preferences was chosen, with the official highway making its way to Reno, Nevada. The National Automobile Museum in Reno, as one of the country’s great automotive museums, is worth a visit.

The Lincoln Highway is the topic of occasional lectures in the museum’s theater. From Reno, the Lincoln Highway traveler can choose a route to the north of Lake Tahoe or to the south through Stateline, Nevada.

Recreational activities abound in the Tahoe area and Stateline is somewhat of a gambling mecca. Heading south down (literally) US Route 50 from Stateline lands travelers in Gold Country. Stops in Placerville and Folsom provide for interesting shopping, dining, and a dose of gold country history.

El Dorado Street carries the Lincoln Highway through downtown Stockton’s Magnolia Historic Preservation District.

Then it’s onto freeways to San Francisco, where the highway comes to an end at the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park in the fancy Seacliff District. The Legion of Honor, a replica of the French pavilion at the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, is a fine museum in a beautiful setting with views of the Golden Gate. A concrete marker, of course, on the grounds marks the terminus of the Lincoln Highway’s original 3,389-mile, coast-to-coast span.

I N F O R M AT I O N ODYSSEY—The Magazine of the Chevron

Auto Club. Fall/Winter 2020 issue. Online at: www.chevronautoclub.com/membership-plans. Scroll to auto club highlights, click “here.”

The Lincoln Highway Association. Information on the national organization and links to the state chapters. Online at https://lincolnhighwayassoc.org.

Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park.

Monument and small museum on the grounds of the (razed) Invention Factory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Phone 732/549-3299; online information at www.menloparkmuseum.org.

Thomas Edison National Historical Park. West Orange, New Jersey. Phone 973/736-0550; online at www.nps.gov/edis.

Valley Forge National Historical Park. Located at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Phone 610/7831000; website: www.nps.gov/vafo.

Gettysburg National Military Park. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Phone: 717/334-1124; website: www.nps.gov/gett.

Rivers of Steel Company. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Phone: 412/464-4020; online at https://riversofsteel.com/experiences/tours.

Elkhart County Heritage Trail. An Elkhart County (Indiana) driving tour. Phone: 800/262-

FOR

San Francisco’s Lincoln Park, fittingly, is home to the western terminus of the Lincoln Highway, marked by a special concrete marker adjacent to the beautiful Legion of Honor Art Museum (left).The building is a 3/4size replica, from the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition, of the Palace of the Legion of Honor located in Paris, France.

T R AV E L E R S

8161; online at www.visitelkhartcounty.com/things-todo/heritage-trail/driving-tour. For a brochure contact www.indianascoolnorth.com/plan-your-visit/request-adestination-guide.

Studebaker National Museum. South Bend, Indiana. Phone: 574/235-9714; website: www.studebakermuseum.org.

The Viking Ship. Geneva, Illinois. For information on visiting the viking ship go to Friends of the Viking Ship at https://vikingship.us.

The Little Traveler. Geneva, Illinois. Around the world in 36 rooms! Phone: 630/232-4200; online www.littletraveler.com.

National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library.

Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Phone: 319/362-8500; website is https://ncsml.org.

Grant Wood Home and Studio. Owned and operated by the Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Museum of Art. Phone: 319/366-7503; online at: www.crma.org/grant-wood.

Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop. Rock Springs, Wyoming. Visit the website at: https://travel wyoming.com/listings/pilot-butte-wild-horse-scenic-loop.

National Automobile Museum. The extensive former Harrah’s collection is in Reno, Nevada.

Phone: 775/333-9300; https://automuseum.org.

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P

ark City, Utah, is a great American ski town—but there is much more to

the story of Park City than skiing. The Utah burg east of the state’s capital has a colorful history that predates its identity as a ski town.

The Norwegian pavilion at the 1878 Exposition Universelle in Paris caught the attention of the international fairgoers. It featured skiing, and effectively introduced recreational skiing to a worldwide audience. But, by 1878, Park City was already a thriving community and the story of how it came to be so is a bit unusual—having nothing to do with skiing. In fact, it was not until the mid-twentieth century that ski parks and resorts with their ski lifts would provide opportunities for a broad base of participants to take up the sport of recreational downhill skiing.

Utah, mid-1860s—with the objective of bringing settlers into the Wasatch Mountains area, U.S. Army soldiers were dispatched there, with orders to look for mineral deposits. The thinking was that, as the California gold rush had proven, the discovery of mineral deposits, especially gold, would bring in a rush of people. The soldiers, as it turned out, were successful in their assignment. Silver was discovered in 1868 near Parley’s Park City, the eastern terminus of Mr. Parley Pratt’s toll road into Salt Lake City. The first yields of their discovery were transported over Pratt’s toll road to the territorial capital, Salt Lake City. This, not surprisingly after the news had spread, started a stampede of prospectors who arrived to the area in search of silver. Accompanying them was the predictable army of merchants and entrepreneurial types supplying goods and services. “Parley’s” was dropped from the name and the silver boomtown that sprang up became known simply as Park City. The most productive of the silver mines was the Ontario, prospected by a group of Canadians. In 1872 the Ontario was purchased by George Hearst for $27,000—a rather good investment since the mine would produce over its life span some $50 million of silver.

Hearst, you say? Yes, that Hearst family.

It wasn’t just silver that miners were taking from the ground around Park City. Deposits of gold, lead, and zinc added to the area’s mining economy. In 1882 another large silver deposit was discovered and several more mines went into operation. 1884 marks the year of Park City’s PHOTOS: TOP LEFT: OLDRICH/SHUTTERSTOCK; LEFT: DEBORAH KEKONE/SHUTTERSTOCK; TOP CENTER: PETAR BOGDANOV/SHUTTERSTOCK

PARLEY’S PARK CITY? IT’S NOW SIMPLY

by M. Max Richardson

PARK CITY

A beautiful stamp (opposite top) issued by the Czech Republic commemorates the 2002 Winter Olympics. Alf Engen is memorialized in bronze (opposite bottom) outside the Eccles Center at the Utah Olympic Park. Evening settles upon a snowy Park City (top).

A photographer (left) frames a shot in the snow. A chair lift PHOTOS: LEFT: STOCK DESIGN/SHUTTERSTOCK BACKGROUND: JASON FINN/SHUTTERSTOCK

(above) carries skiers up the mountain for their runs.

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ODYSSEY 11

WIKIPEDIA BOOK ARCHIVES

incorporation. Newfangled electric lights kept darkness at bay on the town’s streets.

As the century came to a close, Park City’s population had grown to 8,000 with some of its citizens unfortunately homeless for a time due to a fire that, in 1898, swept through the wooden framed buildings in town.

A robust economy allowed a quick rebuilding of the town, this time employing much more brick and stone.

Despite flooding in the mines, explosions, labor disputes, and wildly fluctuating silver prices, Park City’s golden—or rather, silver bedecked—era lasted roughly 60 years. With the Great Depression of 1929

The Daly West and Quincy mining operations (above) are prominent in the mining history of Park City.The Daly West head frame was left standing, but collapsed in 2015. It is scheduled to be uprighted in the near future.The Alf Engen Ski Museum (below right) and the George Eccles Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games Museum are located in the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center at the Utah Olympic Park.

Logan

GREAT SALT LAKE

Salt Lake City WASATCH MOUNTAINS

Provo

But just outside of town, at a place now called Ecker Hill, an unusual project was undertaken.

A wooden ramp was constructed halfway down the big, sloping face of the hill...

the price of mining stocks collapsed. The mining operations dwindled and trailed into the early 1950s, then finally closed for good.

The town’s population had shrunk to just over 1,000. It’s boom and bust was so pronounced that Park City, probably unjustifiably, was included in a book of ghost towns in the West. There were, no doubt, many empty storefronts.

But just outside of town, at a place now called Ecker Hill, an unusual project was undertaken. A wooden ramp was constructed halfway down the big, sloping face of the hill.

Park City Speeding down from the UINTA MOUNTAINS top of the snow-covered hill, skiers would hit the ramp and launch into the air. We, of course, know this as ski jumping. In fact, for centuries, skiing meant either nordic (cross-country) skiing or jumping. It wasn’t until the 1950s that downhill skiing became a widely popular recreational activity. So, in 1928, in Park

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City, Utah, ski jumping was the thing.

In a redeeming twist of fate for the boomand-bust “city,” the ski jump facility at Ecker Hill, just north of town, turned out to be an especially good one. So good, in fact, that in 1934, world record holder Alf Engen soared to a distance of 281 feet, stretching that to 331 feet in the following year. Ski jumpers came from the world ‘round to compete at Ecker Hill. Park City was thusly born as an acclaimed world ski capital—and the promise of even bigger things to come loomed on the snowy slopes. Peter Ecker, for whom the ski facility was subsequently named, was the force behind the construction of the jump and served as the president of Park City-based Utah Ski Club.

But it was Alf Engen and his skiing brothers who, through their ongoing enthusiasm for the sport, gave the Park City area its high-profile status as a ski destination.

As an immigrant in 1931, Alf Engen, from an already famous Norwegian ski family, made his way to Salt Lake City. At Park City’s Ecker Hill he set numerous world ski jump records, though they mostly were not recognized internationally due to one technicality or another. Nonetheless, his worldclass skills were recognized, both by the local spectator crowds (that numbered in the

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were a given, but the three new ski jumps, the bobsled chute, and the media center later to be museum space all played a crucial role in the Olympic Committee’s choice of Salt Lake.

The Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation has assigned itself the task of carrying the benefits of the 2002 Olympic event into Utah’s future. From the Legacy’s website: “Inspired by the success and momentum of the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Winter Games, the Foundation has turned its focus toward embracing, engaging and involving Utah’s youth in winter sport. From communitybased recreational camps and progressionoriented development programs to its official designation as an official U.S. Olympic Training Site at Olympic Park—the Foundation represents the future of winter sports in North America.”

The 400-acre Utah Olympic Park now functions as a year-round training facility for U.S. Olympians and hopefuls. The ramps with their water-filled landing pools—for freestyle skiers and snowboarders—are testament to that.

And for us the public, it serves also as a year-round recreation center with activities and attractions for all ages and abilities!

Thrill to the zipline, traverse the Discovery Course, zoom down the bobsled chute in a wheeled bobsled, climb the climbing wall, tube down the ski jump landing slope at up to 50 mph, or just follow a local trail—hiking or cycling—to enjoy the alpine environment.

(There are over 400 miles of bike trails in and around Park City!) And be sure to visit the two museums (free) in the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center.

Making Park City your base, winter or summer, you’ll find that accommodations are plentiful and that eateries cater to most every taste—from quick and filling tacos to

JAKUB ZAJIC/SHUTTERSTOCK

JAKUB ZAJIC/SHUTTERSTOCK

thousands) and by the touring professional ski jumpers competing at Ecker Hill. Alf (1909-1997) and his brothers were the architects of the ski movement that put not only Park City on the worldwide ski map, but also the adjoining areas including Alta, where Alf spent most of his time.

The history of skiing at Park City is well documented and well presented at the Alf Engen Ski Museum near the famed Ecker Hill. The 29,000-square-foot Joe Quinney Winter Sports building that houses the museum was built in 2001—as a museum—but with the agreement that it would be used first by Olympic officials, the media, and athletes during the upcoming 2002 Winter Olympic games.

After the Olympics, the building would become the originally intended museum at a cost of an additional $2.5 million. The Alf Engen Ski Museum shares the space in the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center with another notable enterprise, the George Eccles Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games Museum. The two-museum combine serves as a colorful and informative bridge between Utah skiing’s formative days and the monumental event that took place 70 years later— the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics. The museum is part of the Utah Olympic Park.

Much of what is now the Utah Olympic Park was built before Salt Lake City had even won the bid to host the Winter Olympic Games. But it was with that goal in mind that the facilities rode to life on Salt Lakes’s hopes and dreams—first for the 1998 games, which went to Nagano, Japan, and then successfully for the 2002 games. The snow and the slopes

Artificial snow material covers the ramp surfaces of the jumps (top) at Utah Olympic Park.

Skiers practice their maneuvers in the air before landing in the pool. A wheeled bobsled (bottom) takes passengers down the Olympic chute minus its ice coating.

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ODYSSEY 13

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by Life Insurance Company of North America. Coverage amount reduces to 50% at age 70 and another 50% at age 80.

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The landmark clock on Park City’s Main Street (below) carries the brand name of the adjacent watch shop.

elegant dinner establishments, and lots in between. The resorts provide, if you choose, complete winter ski and summer adventure packages. But with a hotel of your own choosing, you can select from a variety of activities provided by independent operators.

One such is All Seasons Adventures that offers fly fishing, rafting, mountain biking, and horseback riding in the summer and snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, and even dog sledding in the winter.

For an extensive list of Park City lodgings visit https://lodging.visitparkcity.com. Both Park City Mountain Resort (which is now combined with the former Canyons Resort) and Deer Valley Resort offer an assortment of lodgings right near the ski lifts adjacent to town. And for evening entertainment consider a film, presented by Park

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City Film, at the Jim Santy Auditorium at Utah Olympic Park, or an outdoor concert in the Summer Concert Series at Canyons Village. The free concerts are on selected Thursday and Saturday evenings; check the Park City Mountain website for dates and performers. Deer Valley Resort presents multiple concert series at its Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater. Along with popular music performances, the venue is the summer home of the Utah Symphony-Utah Opera.

Another reason to visit Park City, besides its summer recreation possibilities, winter sport and ski offerings, and lovely scenic environment, is an indoor event that happens every January. Since 1985 the Sundance Institute, founded by Robert Redford, has conducted programs for independent filmmakers, and held a competition for independent films—those produced outside the mainstream corporate film industry. Though a prestigeous competition in fact, for most film enthusiasts and moviegoers it is in reality truer to its title: the Sundance Film Festival.

Awards are given in over 35 categories including drama, documentaries, foreign,

PURE RADIANCE PHOTO/SHUTTERSTOCK

Built in the period following the great fire of 1898, the Egyptian has overcome physical and financial setbacks to emerge as one of Park City’s beloved establishments. Along with Sundance Film Festival screenings, the theater hosts live music and theatrical events.

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short films, animation, directing, screenplay, and more. The film festival is but one of the programs of the international Sundance Institute, a fount of creative and financial support for independent filmmakers.

In 2021, due to COVID-19 concerns, the festival was online, with viewers participating remotely. The 2022 festival will see a combination of viewing remotely and viewing as usual at theaters in Park City, Salt Lake City, and at the Sundance Resort near Provo. For 2022 the Institute plans to screen about 80 films. Premiers are screened from January 20 through January 25 with additional screenings through the 30th. Winners in each of the categories will be announced on Friday, January 28th.

Whether for sporting activities or some relaxing recreation in any season, or for a world-class cultural film experience, Park City, riding on its colorful history and beautiful setting remains a popular destination.

I N F O R M AT I O N

FOR

T R AV E L E R S

Park City visitor information. Extensive site covering all aspects of a Park City visit. Phone: 800/453-1360 or visit the main website at: www.visitparkcity.com. To request or view online a guest guide, visit www.visitparkcity.com/explore/request-a-brochure.

Alf Engen Ski Museum. Located in the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center at Utah Olympic Park. Phone: 435/658-4228; online at: https://engenmuseum.org.

Utah Olympic Park. For a listing of all the activities at the park visit https://utaholympiclegacy.org/ Phone: 435/658-4200. For specific information on the Alf Engen and the Eccles Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games museums visit https://utaholympiclegacy.org/activity/museums.

Park City Mountain Resort. Major provider of hospitality services and activities year round in Park City. Now combined with former Canyons Resort. Main phone: 435/649-8111; online at: www.parkcitymountain.com.

Deer Valley Resort. Major provider of hospitality services and activities year round in Park City. Phone: 435/649-1000; online at: www.deervalley.com.

Deer Valley Music Festival. Presents concerts in several venues including Deer Valley Resort. Summer home of Utah Symphony-Utah Opera.

Concert themes include chamber, classical, and pops. Many notable pop artists have appeared with the Utah Symphony. Phone: 801/533-6683; online at: https://deervalleymusicfestival.org.

Park City Film. A “non-profit art house cinema presenting a curated selection of independent, foreign and documentary films.” At the Jim Santy Auditorium at Utah Olympic Park. Phone: 435/615-8291; online at: https://parkcityfilm.org.

Sundance Film Festival. Scheduled for January 20-January 30, 2022 in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Provo, Utah. For general and ticket information visit Sundance Institute online at: www.sundance.org.

Park City is the main host to the Sundance Film Festival each January. Here actress Keira Knightley helps create a memorable selfie for an adoring attendee.

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“Scenic Drives” is compiled by

Historic Columbia River Highway, Oregon

SCENIC DRIVES

are many pull-outs along the way for wildlife viewing and scenic photo ops. You can stop on your way up or down and take advantage of ranger-led activities at the Crystal Reservoir Visitor’s Center and the Historic Glen Cove Inn. At the top, there is the Meet the Ranger program, and the Summit House, where you can grab a burger and indulge your sweet tooth with their famous donuts—perhaps the altitude makes them extra tasty. There is no gas service available on the mountain, so fill up at Colorado Springs before you head up. Gate opening times, and last entry, change three times a year, so check ahead for times.

was opened in 1922. Designed specifically with tourists in mind, access to singularly attractive recreational areas and the Vista House overlook were built into the process. Earning the nickname, “King of Roads,” the spectacular waterfalls, dramatic rock walls, unique bridges, and the loops and turns of the road live up to the hype. The Columbia River Gorge was created by floods some 14,000 years ago and left sections of 400,000 year old basalt rock walls exposed. The walls are punctuated with prehistoric-looking ferns and magnificent waterfalls—with the grand 620-foot Multnomah Waterfall being the showstopper. Take US-84 east out of Portland for 29-miles of scenic bliss, with Exit 31 leading to Multnomah Falls.

Colorado’s famous 14,115-foot peak is driver-friendly and scenic all the way. Dubbed “America’s Mountain,” Pikes Peak Highway toll-road begins at 7,500 feet traversing 19 miles through Aspen trees, alpine forest, and above the tree line to the summit. There 16 ODYSSEY

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Pikes Peak Hwy, Colorado

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One of the original scenic highways in the western states, the Columbia River Highway

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the staff of ODYSSEY.

Palo Duro Canyon Drive, Texas Just 25 minutes outside Amarillo, traversing the flat Panhandle Plains along Hwy. 217, your senses are suddenly jolted as the earth opens to a gaping chasm—you’ve reached the entrance to the 800-foot deep, 20-mile wide Palo Duro Canyon. The 16 miles of paved roadway allows visitors to drive all the way to the floor of the canyon. This is a full service state park, and there is an abundance of trails throughout the canyon. Camping, biking, hiking, horseback riding, and climbing are all on the slate in the canyon. This can be an

aking a scenic drive is not only a great way to see our vast country, one road at a time, but a good way to stay out of harm’s way while the pandemic is ongoing. So many events have been cancelled or postponed that we decided to forgo the Calendar of Events this issue and focus on another great American pastime—the Road Trip. There are an abundance of routes to choose from, something in every state. We’ve chosen a few for you to consider.

The “ Scenic America” website has a listing of scenic drives in every state at

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www.scenic.org/blog/state-scenic-byways-maps-available-for-download.

Scenic Byway 12, Utah

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PAUL BRADY PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK

This scenic byway stretches for 122 miles with access to three national parks, a national forest, three state parks, historic towns, and a national monument—a plethora of incredible views, grand rock formations, archeological resources, and geologic demarcations. Scenic Byway 12 connects with US 89 and Bryce Canyon National Park in the southwest and SR 24 and Capitol Reef National Park at the northeast end.

Obviously, many come for the views alone, which are stupendous, but if you can spare the time, this is the

drive worth parceling out over several days. After all, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument encompasses a staggering 1.9 million acres alone. There are petroglyphs in Capitol Reef, a petrified forest near the town of Escalante, Anasazi ruins near the town of Boulder, and many more worthwhile sites reached by a short hike. Not to be missed—

explore the slot canyon near the town of Boulder on the Burr Trail.

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hour drive or three hours, depending on how many stops you choose to make. Its vibrant colors and fantastical rock formations along the rim, and elsewhere, offer an abundance of artsy photo ops. The drive down and back is described as a drive through a geologic wonderland. Not to be missed— watching the sunset from the rim.

Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, New Mexico Locations selected for movies such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Easy Rider, are just some of the scenery viewed along this 83-mile scenic byway starting at Taos. The road crosses high mesas, river valleys, and sagebrush-covered foothills, as it circles the forested Wheeler Peak, which stands at 13,161-feet. Look for Enchanted Circle markers to point the way. Along your route, explore for quartz and feldspar rocks that are dated to two billion years old. First, stop for a visit at Taos Pueblo, the Native American community inhabited for over a thousand years and designated a World Heritage Site (COVID-19 restricted).

As you follow the scenic route, small towns such as Questa pop up, which feature local artisans, tinsmiths, and woodworkers, among others. Following NM 38 east, you will arrive at the little ski town of Red River where it’s all about that Old West vibe. Continue on NM 38 east and south to the village of Eagle Nest where gold panning is a fun activity. Eagle Nest Lake State Park is a well-known camping and fishing spot.

Head south on NM 64 to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a very moving and educational memorial worth visiting. The nearby village of Angel Fire is a popular local ski resort with great views. There are lots of artisan shops to check out along NM 64 as it twists and turns its way back to Taos.

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BULLETIN

T R A V E L

NutriBullet GO®

New and noteworthy items and events. Check them out!

Compiled by the editorial staff of ODYSSEY

Never be without your morning smoothie while on a road trip— the cordless blender

by NutriBullet® has you covered. Includes USB-C cable, cup with lid, and blade cover. Approx. $30. www.nutribullet.com.

Pre-trip Packing Help Get it folded fast, even, and ready for the suitcase or vacuum-sealed space saver mode. You’ve seen store clerks use those handy clothes folder boards making their clothes stacks so neat.

Now you can have the home version, perfect for travel packing, Boxlegend®, priced from $11. Online at www.amazon.com.

Extra Cargo Space With the family, or pet, or both on board, space can get tight. Create extra storage space out of thin air with a rooftop carrier. Lots of styles to choose from with either rack or waterproof bag styles available— such as Yakima’s LoadWarrior® basket from $369, and Sport Car Top waterproof bag by RightLine Gear® from $100. www.yakima.com and www.rightlinegear.com.

Furry Friend Tracker Taking your four-legged friend with you on your adventures is fun but can present some

problems, such as little Ruffie getting off leash. Now you can track fido in real time with worldwide Tractive® GPS tracker. One plan with unlimited range.

Also has Virtual Fence alert mode. Device, $50, with subscription plan starting at $84/year. www.tractive.com.

Dash Cams Mobile dash cams have come a long way in recent years, and are ever more useful. One of the most NEXTBASE 622 GW unobtrusive is the Garmin Dash Cam™ Mini 2, from $130. Another dash cam with all the bells and whistles is the Nextbase® GARMIN DASH CAM 4k 622GW model with a front and rear camera system and Alexa interface, from $400. www.garmin.com and www.nextbase.com.

Sip & Stash Your ever-present (non-plastic) water bottle does double duty with secure storage space in a hidden compartment—a little cash, car keys, snacks, an ID—you get the idea.

The Bindle bottle is a vacuum-insulated, stainless steel water bottle that comes in multiple colors. From $39. www.bindlebottle.com.

Safety First It would be nice to stow it and forget about it, but a little pre-trip safety check is well worth the time. Everyone should have a first-aid kit in their car—if you don’t, get one—and if you do, now is a good time to check the supplies for missing pieces and expiration dates. Along with your first aid kit, don’t forget to check the car’s fluids, tire changing tools (including road flares/markers), water, and a few long-lasting snacks.These are just the basics, your family may need specialty items—make a list and be sure to have your Chevron Auto Club card with you. Happy travels!

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Hiking America America’s National Historic Trails: Walking the Trails of History, inspires everyone to get out and explore, and even if you can’t, this beautifully illustrated and educational book will be your guide through the history of America by following in the footsteps of those who were there.

This is the official book of the 19 National Historic Trails as designated by the National Park Service and the Congressional Act of 1968 that created the National Trails System—commemorating and preserving routes of historical significance that affect all of us. Highlighting both great accomplishments and sorrowful tragedies, the designated trails cover 37,000 miles amid 41 states.

This large-format book beautifully weaves together, in both words and illustrations, our shared past. Published by Rizzoli, written by Karen Berger, and photographed by Bart Smith.

Charging While Driving

21 st- Century Rubik’s Great game to keep the youngsters, or oldsters, busy in the car. Learn to solve the puzzle, play mini games, improve your time, or compete with others world-wide.

Connects via bluetooth to phone or tablet.

App-enabled interactive game for beginners to pros, Rubik’s® Connected. $60. www.rubiks.com.

OtterBox® manufactures fast charge dual charge autochargers with USB-C and USB-A connections.

Two USB-C ports, 20w and 30w, allow fast charging for two devices at once. Drop and vibration tested for durability. $35.00.

Also, a USB-C with USB-A combo charger with 18w and 12w for $30. www.otterbox.com.

Rain’s Coming Look for light weight, crushable rain gear that won’t put your luggage over the weight limit. No one wants rain on their vacation, but rain happens. Plan ahead and pack the stylish, slim, PreCip® Eco rain jacket by Marmot, in women’s and men’s sizes. Priced from $70. www.marmot.com.

Ground to Drone: Follow Me Portable, packable drones are a new fun way to memorialize your adventures. New technology makes the drones faster, lighter, and smaller with new features. Drones can be programmed to follow you, or even your car, while you are making great memories. Check out the Skydio 2, from $1400, or DJI Mini 2, from $450. www.skydio.com and www.dji.com.

Glamorous+Camping = Glamping Loved camping when you were younger, but now that you’re so busy with work and family, maybe a little achy, you feel a little pampering is in order.

Not a fad, this reinvented form of “sleeping under the stars in the great outdoors” is hitting its stride. Glamping is camping but with resort-style amenities so you are not responsible for all the tent, cooking, and cleaning duties.

Safari-style tents (yes they are tents), may have everything from comfy beds with linens and wood floors to en-suite bathrooms and room service.

In addition to tents, there is a category of accommodations, normally under eco-travel, that is now included on booking sites for glamping—treehouses, log cabins, tiny homes, domes, etc. The concept is the same, sleep under the stars (sort of) without sleeping on the ground.

Location, location, location— you’ll find glamping rentals at national forests, on farm land, at camping resorts, in the mountains, along the rivers, and even at major attractions like Safari West park in Santa Rosa, CA— close to everything, but a world away as you listen to the animal sounds at night.

Here are just a few of the websites you can go to and explore the vast variety of offerings: www.glamping.com, www.glampinghub.com, and www.undercanvas.com.

RSTOCK DAVID PHAHL/SHUTTE

MINT IMAG ES/SHUTTER STOCK

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THE ETERNAL CITY

ROME

by Elizabeth Martin

Columns of the Temple of Antonius and Faustina, dating from 141 AD, remain in place. The temple was rebuilt and designated a Christian church in the eleventh century. (Opposite from top) A stroll down Via Condotti, Rome’s upscale shopping district, takes visitors to the Spanish Steps; a segment of the Appian Way; the double helix Bramante Staircase at the Vatican Museum; a portion of frieze from Domus Flavia on Palatine Hill.

PHOTO: WIRESTOCK CREATORS/SHUTTERSTOCK

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he height of the Roman Empire’s rule was over 2,000 years ago, yet their ideas, concepts, and skill set, warts and all, left an indelible mark on the history of Western civilization.

The city of Rome, with nearly a million residents in the first century AD, was dubbed by the Romans as caput mundi (head of the world).

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the city of Rome almost disappeared by the sixth-century. Less than one thousand residents were left within the city walls after the decay of leadership from within, and multiple sackings from without. And, yet, tenaciously, the Romans hung on, the population waxed and waned until the fifteenth century, when the population finally stabilized. As you cross paths with remains of structures and artwork from 500 BC, you will also encounter the hectic

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pace and vibrancy of this major metropolitan city as it is today.

Rome can be overwhelming—volumes of historical texts cover every known structure, piece of artwork, and ruler.

So, where to start? A timeline approach satisfies a whole range of traveler modes from casual to quest trip to bucket lister. So start with the first inhabited hill of Rome’s Seven Hills, Palatine Hill, the site where the legend of Romulus’s rule, after killing Remus, is said to have occurred.

Visiting Palatine Hill as your first stop has a few additional perks—it is a great site often overlooked, meaning fewer tourists, with great views of the city, Forum, and Colosseum, and shorter queues for tickets, which include entrance to the Forum and the Colosseum—win, win.

The most central of Rome’s Seven Hills, Palatine Hill is considered the oldest part of ancient Rome.

Excavations on the hill, labeled the “Hut of Romulus,” found evidence of a village dating to the ninth-century BC. The first king, from the period of the Seven Kings, 800-509 BC, ruled from the hill. One of the quietest and most serene of Rome’s sites, it is easy to imagine why rulers and the elites built their palaces here in later centuries.

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Vatican Museum Vatican City Rail Station Trevi Fountain Pantheon St. Peter’s Basilica T I

Capitoline Hill

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Forum

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Colosseum

Trastevere

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Palatine Hill Circus Maximus

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The ruins of the House of Augustus (above right) contain an array of colorful rooms—viewable along the visitation route. The Roman Forum (below) was at the functional center of Roman life through the ages of the Seven Kings, the Republic, and the entirety of Imperial Rome.

The House of Augustus, Rome’s first emperor (27 BC-14 AD), and the House of Livia, his wife, are located at the far end of the hill from the entrance. The excavation of “Hut of Romulus” is also on this side of the hill. If you want to see the oldest structures first, pass by the Domus Flavia and the museum, and save those sites for later.

Built in the first-century BC, the House of Augustus and House of Livia may be modest in size and grandeur compared to the Domitian Palace, but the surviving frescoes on the walls, the structural features, the mosaicladen corridors, and the building layout are the most complete of all the palaces on the hill. There are so many frescoes and decorative touches visible at the site, it would be worthwhile to hire a tour guide or pick up a book detailing the meaning of frescoes found at the site.

Palatine Hill is dominated by the Palace of Domitian built in the first-century AD, and is made up of three main structures—Domus

Augustana, the living quarters used by the reigning rulers for three centuries; Domus Flavia, the public meeting space; and the Stadium Domitian, not large enough for chariots, but is said to have been used for sports such as foot races. By the time Septimius Severus, 193-211 AD, built his palace, so much building had taken place on the hill, that Severus’s extension of Domus Augustana extended out over the hill’s edge requiring ingenious engineering for support.

Viewing the remains of the baths Emperor Serverus built here also offers a good view of the Circus Maximus from the terrace.

Among the archeological finds on the hill are the ruins of Rome’s early water and sanitation marvels that delivered potable water to the hill via a cistern fed by the Aqua of Nero (an extension of Aqua Claudia), and sewer lines that extended down the hill to join the main sewer.

The modest grey building, near the Domus Flavia was once a convent but now houses the Palatine Antiquarium, free admission. The museum exhibits include some of the oldest artifacts from the site, along with modeled depictions of how the earliest inhabitants lived.

Looking down on the great Roman Forum and taking in the details before you descend the stairway will jump-start your imagination before you tour the area. You’ll need that imagination as the Forum can seem a little sparse after touring the Palatine Hill or Colosseum. There is very little left of the Forum after centuries of appropriating stones to build new buildings, looting, and decay. However, armed with a good map, an

The Colosseum held approximately 50,000 attendees, while the Circus Maximus held an enormous 250,000 spectators. shop until they dropped. Again, this was meant to relieve overcrowding at the great Forum.

The scale and beauty of the structure led it to be considered a marvel in its time. The complex also housed a “free grain” reserve that was promised to citizens to avoid starvation during hard times. There are walkways and corridors accessible to visitors, and a very interesting

Trajan’s Markets (below) was completed in the early part of the second century AD. Tours of the Roman Colosseum (bottom) are conducted both above and below the arena floor.

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Imperial Forum Museum.

To the southeast of the great Forum is the Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater), 72-80 AD. The amphitheater was an architectural wonder, despite its horrific events.

More elaborate and detailed than Circus Maximus, sixth-century BC, the Colosseum was actually significantly smaller than the much older Circus Maximus (racetrack). The Colosseum held approximately 50,000 attendees, while the Circus held an enormous 250,000 spectators. The chariot races at the Circus, the most popular venue, were tame by comparison to other events, save the ceremonial or religious ones. Both structures were used to entertain the masses, to promote political agendas, and to push the wishes of the emperor and senate. The enormous structures were used until the end of the Roman Empire, when the invader, King Totila, promoted the last chariot race at Circus Maximus in 547 AD—spanning a thousand D•VISIONS/SHUTTERSTOCK

audio guide, and your aerial view from Palatine Hill, the tour of the Forum will be greatly enhanced.

The Forum, dating from the seventh century BC, started as a market place. The addition of the royal residence of the second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius, along with the Temple of Vesta and Domus Publica, became the nucleus of what would become the great Roman Forum. The complex was built out during the ensuing centuries under each successive ruler, with more and more grandeur, but without a consensus on order. The rectangular center of the great Forum was formed by the somewhat haphazardly placed temples, monuments, basilicas (which housed the legal and financial proceedings), shops, and arches. The most important matters of governance, commerce, and citizenship were conducted on these grounds during the monarchy of the Seven Kings (800 BC-509 BC) and the Republic (509 BC-44 BC). The emphasis shifted to more ceremonial and celebratory events during Imperial times (27 BC-284 AD).

The population of Rome swelled by hundreds of thousands of people by 46 BC and the great Forum became overcrowded. Caesar commissioned the first Imperial forum to be built, at great expense, in the vicinity of the great Forum to relieve the overcrowding.

Several subsequent rulers followed Caesar’s example and built additional forums. Worth a visit are the ruins of Trajan’s Forum, and the Forum of Augustus, dating from 2 BC, on the Via dei Fori Imperiali. The latter celebrates Augustus’s victory at the Battle of Phillipi and is dedicated to Mars the Avenger.

A huge wall was built on one side of this forum to protect it from fires that often erupted in the overcrowded neighborhood behind it. An interesting light projection show, from June to November, uses these ruins as the backdrop. Emperor Augustus is quoted as saying, “I found Rome a city of brick and left it a city of marble.”

Trajan’s Markets, adjacent to Trajan’s Forum, was the first mega-mall in history built in 107112 AD, by the order of Emperor Trajan. This multi-storied complex housed scores of vendors, offices, and food stalls, so visitors could

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years of use. There is nothing left to see at the circus other than the grounds (the Rolling Stones played there in 2014), but the ruins of the colosseum are recognized by everyone.

On a lighter note, the Pantheon, in the center of the city in Piazza della Rotunda, is strikingly ethereal. Originally built in 27 BC, it was rebuilt in 125 AD by the order of Emperor Hadrian. The front pediment with Agrippa’s inscription is all that remains of the original temple. The expansive 142-foot domed rotunda was built with an opening at the top, the oculus, open rain or shine. The beauty and vastness of the rotunda, not apparent from the columned portico facing the piazza, creates a sense of calm once inside. The Pantheon is one of the best preserved ancient temples in all of modern Rome.

The streets around the Pantheon offer unique shopping opportunities—the old meets new. Nearby, on via Condotti, is the well-known

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Built on the site of an earlier temple, the Pantheon (above), c. 126 AD, is remarkably well preserved due to its continuing use.The Aurelian Wall (below), twelve miles in length, surrounded a third century AD Rome. A statue of Marcus Aurelius (bottom) occupies the center of the elegant, Michaelangelo-designed, piazza atop Capitoline Hill.

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high-end shopping district; but just around the corner from the Pantheon, on via Dei Cestari, is the shopping mecca for the ecclesiastical minded. Church officials from all over the world shop here for religious necessities including incense, chalices, vestments, and altar pieces. But, shopping is not limited to the clergy; anyone can shop here. Adjacent, on via Santa Chiara, is the tailor shop Gammarelli’s. For decades, the shop has had a standing order to supply the Pontiffs’s wardrobe. If you would like to see some of their work, their window display includes headgear for bishops and the Pope.

Romans were known throughout the ancient kingdoms of the world for their engineering prowess as well as their fighting skills. Pre-dating the Pantheon by hundreds of years, the Appian Way, the first highway, and the Aqua Appia, the first Roman aqueduct, were both in use by 312 BC. Via Appia eventually reached a total of 335 miles from the great Forum to the port in Brindisi, gateway to the east. The paved road was constructed wide enough to facilitate the speedy deployment of troop wagons and also to connect the towns to the south. The phrase, “all roads lead to Rome,” was a reference to this road.

There is a lot to see and do along Via Appia, including museums, catacombs, ruins, and, of course, the road itself.

Approach Via Appia through the Porta San Sebastiano (Porta Appia), which is part of the Aurelian Wall erected in 271-275 AD by citizen builders. The Emperor was short on manpower and finances due to all the wars, so the citizens took it upon themselves.

They repurposed material from Circus Maximus and other buildings as part of the build to save money. They also incorporated

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extensive Vatican museum collections.

The Vatican is used to handling large crowds so they are very well organized compared to some other venues in Rome.

There are so many sights to see here, take as many tours as time allows. It is worth making the effort to book a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica that includes the “Dome Climb,” or show up at least an hour before closing to purchase a ticket, cash only.

The magnificence of the dome, created by Michelangelo, and the unparalleled view of the city makes this a fitting farewell view of the city.

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part of the Aqua Claudia to form the fortified wall by bricking-in the arches.

The twelve-mile-long, 20-foot-high wall surrounded all Seven Hills, Campus Martius, and the Trastevere district, across the Tiber River. There is a nice little museum at Porta Appia (free admission). The Museo della Mura, on the first and second floor, has access to the parapet, where the view is spectacular.

Rome fell into disrepair and decay until 1447, when a determined Pope Nicholas V decided Rome should once again be the center of the papacy and its image should be as grand as it once was. Artwork and rebuilding were commissioned in grand style, but one more sack of the city in 1527 was endured before stability allowed the new Rome to emerge.

During the 200 years that followed, Rome was the recipient of an explosion of all the best art and architecture that money could buy. The brightest stars flocked to Rome to create masterpieces for all to admire during the Renaissance and Baroque eras. The two must-see sites of the renewed Rome are Capitoline Hill and the Vatican.

Capitoline Hill was an important site in ancient Rome, but very little remains from that era. Instead, it is a grandly sumptuous early Renaissance site which includes the first public museum, Palazzo Nuovo, opened in 1734. Ascending the staircase from the west, the geometric paving of Piazza del Campidoglio comes into view. The staircase, piazza, as well as the handsome surrounding façades, were all designed by Michelangelo.

The other staircase, with 124 marble steps, leads to Basilica of Santa Maria in Aracoeli. Built in the Middle Ages, the church served as a central location for civilian life. A plain façade belies the richly, and unusually, adorned church that houses frescoes from the fifteenth-century

by Pinturicchio, a bevy of chandeliers, and 22 columns in the nave that were repurposed from various ancient sites. It is also known for the chapel which housed the wooden carving of Santo Bambino (Holy child)—to which several miracles have been attributed.

Capping off any trip to Rome save a few days to tour the Holy See. The Vatican, granted statehood by the Treaty of Lateran in 1929, is a huge complex and houses some of the greatest artworks known to man. The Sistine Chapel, and its famous ceiling painted

by Michelangelo, is here, along with the

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Opening and closing times vary greatly throughout Rome, even more so during COVID-19 protocols. Be sure to check details frequently for last-minute changes.

For general tourist information in Italy, the official website is: www.italia.it/en/home.html.

For specific information on Rome, the official website is: www.turismoroma.it/en.

There is a link on the website to purchase the Rome Pass tourist card at www.romapass.it/en.

The Holy See has their own website for information and ticket purchase. The Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Cathedral tend to have the most reliable and consistent schedules in Rome. Their official website is: https://tickets.museivaticani.va.

The Pontifical Swiss Guard (top) has provided security and ceremonial duties at the Vatican since 1506. St. Peter’s Basilica is at the right of St. Peter’s Square in the aerial photograph (above) of the Vatican.

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IN SEARCH O F P E AC E AND QUIET

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by Claire Esprey

iving in a major, or even minor, city has its perks—lots of activities, longer shopping hours, fine restaurants, live entertainment, and time spent with the community. However, the pace of everything seems to have sped up over the years, maybe things have gotten a little harsher, and perhaps a bit irritating in large doses. It’s time for a break! If you’re longing for some quiet time to hear your own thoughts, a little tranquility to decompress, visual stimulation that doesn’t involve brick and mortar—a beautiful city park may be just what your senses need.

Though the urban oases may offer seemingly simple paths to trod, planners have, in fact, packed a great deal of thought into the overall designs. Some sections of these urban sanctuaries have designs that evoke far-away lands, while others replenish nature right at home. Bandshells, sculptures, waterfalls, nature trails, and a myriad of clever ideas have been incorporated to engage the senses as much, or as little, as one wants.

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A few parks are within walking distance for a large contingent of the population in a major city, others are a short drive away, but all offer a chance for a worthwhile day trip to relax, recharge, enjoy nature, and maybe even learn a thing or two.

Balboa Park, San Diego, California San Diego may be better known for its world-famous zoo, but the 1,200 acres of Balboa Park, right next door, is just as well-known to locals for its tranquil gardens and abundance of nature trails that are available to use 24/7.

When you enter the park at the main entrance off Park Boulevard, you will be on Presidents Way, which will lead you to the free-form Australian Garden, the Japanese Friendship Garden, and the formal Alcazar Garden, as well as a bevy of museums and exhibits. But, before you get to those, you have the option of taking a quick right, past the Activity Center, and onto the 3.7-mile Trail #33, which will take you through the peaceful Rose Garden and into the large network of nature trails in the Florida Over 350 species of plants are on display in the Botanical Building (opposite top) at Balboa Park in San Diego.

A bridge (opposite bottom) features in the tranquil Taniguchi Japanese Garden in Zilker Metropolitan Park in Austin,Texas. Cycling is popular at Boise River Greenbelt (above, top) in Idaho.The Cow’s Horn cactus (above, left) is part of the landscape at Balboa Park in San Diego where visitors can also view the water lilies (above, right).

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The beautiful Japanese Friendship Garden (top) is a popular attraction at San Diego’s Balboa Park.The park’s Moreton Bay fig trees are noted for their unusual root systems (above). People and canines enjoy a walk through the trees (right) in the Boise River Greenbelt along the capital city’s waterway.

Canyon Native Plant Preserve. The preserve covers a whopping 150 acres.

Florida Canyon is maintained as an example of the original landscape of the region before industrialization, and the dirt trail is well marked with flora identification. There are numerous entry points into the Preserve, including at the tennis complex and ball fields to the northeast of the park.

Trail #33, along with the other four main trails, will lead you through, or back through, the center of the park where the historic structures are located. Not to be missed, as you loop into the main section, are the lily pond in front of the Botanical Building and the two giant Moreton Bay Fig trees with their exposed root systems looking like giant, raised tentacles. One tree, the most photographed, is located next to the Natural History Museum. The less well-known example is on a slope near the International Cottages.

Entrance to the museums, exhibits, and Japanese Garden have a fee, but everything else, including parking, is free of charge. All of this is just minutes from downtown.

Boise River Greenbelt, Boise, Idaho Just over 50 years ago, the idea for the string of parks in the Boise River Greenbelt were born partly out of necessity. The local river that ran through the heart of the city had become overly polluted and the city leaders decided they had to act. A local grassroots effort joined the fight to clean up the river and promote public access.

The 25 miles of paved pathways connect

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eight parks, twenty points of interest, river access, and numerous nature trails. Dubbed the “Ribbon of Jewels,” the eight distinct parks nestled along the now sparkling river offer everything from museums and formal gardens to unpaved nature walks and water sports. The Greenbelt can be entered at numerous points along the river, so selecting the activity that suits your mood is easy.

Toward the north end of the Greenbelt, water-borne activities of all sorts are encouraged. From downtown, take Main Street or Pleasanton Avenue west to Whitewater Park Boulevard and follow the signs to Quinn’s Pond. Lots of activity here with swimming, boarding, boating, fishing, and tubing available to all. Just across the river is the Kathryn Albertson Park, where kayakers work the whitewater. Just being an observer here is also a fun experience.

Using the same Americana Boulevard entrance, or Capitol Boulevard, takes you to the quieter Ann Morrison Park which features 3⁄4-mile walking loops with interpretive signs on wildlife habitats.

To reach the southern end of the Greenbelt via the 9th Street Bridge, go past Boise State University then take Boise Avenue to the end before turning left to Barber Park where you’ll reach the Bethine Church River Trail. No scooters or bikes are allowed on this serene 1.8-mile walking trail that offers prime birdwatching opportunities. The picturesque trail, with wooden bridges, has one of the best river overlooks on the Greenbelt. Over 150 varieties of birds can be spotted in the area—even bald eagles have been known to perch in the tall cottonwood trees.

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park was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.

At the meeting point of Barton Creek and Lady Bird Lake, this 350-acre park is clearly a family friendly park with lots of open space for sports activities. One of the main attractions is the very popular Barton Springs Pool.

The excavated, 3-acre pool at the center of the park, once part of Mr. Zilker’s ranch land, is fed from three underground springs and maintains a 68 degree (F) temperature year-round, ideal for swimming.

More for the kids—the Hillside Theater and the Zilker Zephyr Train depot are close to the pool. The miniature train takes the little ones on a 25-minute ride through the park criss-crossing the Lady Bird Lake bikeand-hike trail. While the bulk of the children’s

Zilker Metropolitan Park, Austin, Texas Austin’s first park, Zilker Metropolitan Park, is situated on parcels of land donated by Mr. Andrew Zilker from 1917 through 1934. The

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Papago Park and Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix, Arizona This 1,200-acre desert park has mesmerizing sandstone formations dating back 10 million years, and giant saguaro cacti reaching 40 feet high. Worth the short uphill hike, enjoy the great views from the popular Hole-in-theRock formation, which can be reached along the trail of the same name. There is some evidence that the holes, eroded by weather in the ceiling of the cave, were used by ancient tribes to mark the solstices.

The trails around the red butte formations, on the west side of the park, are relatively smooth with little rise in elevation. There is a paved pathway around the buttes as well.

An interpretive nature trail, on the east side of the park, highlights the flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert. Parking is available near each trailhead.

To get a fuller knowledge of how plants and humans managed to survive the harsh conditions of the desert, the award-winning Desert Botanical Garden offers a wealth of information. Take the brick-paved Desert Discovery Loop Trail where you’ll find an eye-popping collection of desert plants— some of which are extinct elsewhere, and one of which, Queen of the Night, blooms only one night per year. Take the Plants and People of the Sonoran Desert Loop to get handson lessons making use of desert plants like grinding mesquite into flour, and turning agave fibers into rope.

Joshua trees and other cactii dot the landscape (left) of the 1,200-acre Papago Desert Park in Phoenix, Arizona. At the confluence of Barton Creek, on the left, and the Colorado River’s Lady Bird Lake, on the right, lies Zilker Park (below), in the heart of the Austin,Texas, metro district.

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rental kayaks. It is possible to paddle over to the Congress Avenue Bridge to watch the thousands of bats emerge at sunset—a real stunner. Whether by river or road, a great way to cap your park visit is to end the day at the Congress bridge.

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activities are clustered in the southern portion of the park, the tranquil Botanical Garden and the Nature Preserve are located in the northwest section.

The Zilker Botanical Garden has been tended since 1962. The 26-acre site features a bevy of specialized gardens including rose, cactus, butterfly, and Japanese gardens. The koi-filled ponds, quaint foot bridges, and lush landscaping make this one of the most relaxing spots in the park.

For a sweeping view of Lady Bird Lake and Austin’s skyline, head to the historic Zilker Clubhouse terrace, just north of the Nature Preserve. The 1934 limestone structure designed by Charles Page sits on 30 acres and was constructed by workers hired during the New Deal. The building showcases handhewn design details in iron and stone.

The calm waters of Lady Bird Lake help even first-timers navigate the waterway on

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Sited on a knoll between the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum, and the Grove of State Trees, the National Capitol Columns (top) occupy a regal setting in the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. The art of miniaturized gardening is displayed at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum (above).The National Arboretum is worldrenowned for the spectacular collection of varietals in its Morrison Azalea Garden (right).

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United States National Arboretum, Washington, DC Washington is a busy place, and the abundance of sightseeing gems seems never-ending—so take a little time to smell the azaleas.

The National Arboretum, established by an act of Congress in 1927, eventually grew to 446 acres. The arboretum is always free to visit, and is just minutes from the Capitol building.

As you enter the Arboretum, one of the first exhibits you come across is the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum, a must-see venue; but first head over to the azalea collection and have a nice walk.

Head west and up the hill through the azalea bushes where specially bred varieties were created to withstand a wider range of weather. The blooming in May is dense and spectacular. From the top of Mt. Hamilton, you’ll even glimpse a view of the Capitol dome.

When you head back down, toward the gate, turn right and head for the exquisite Bonsai and Penjing Museum. The ancient art form of growing and shaping these miniature plants in beautiful and quixotic shapes was pioneered as bonsai in Japan, and penjing in China, which predates bonsai.

After visiting the exquisite miniatures,

White River State Park, Indianapolis, Idiana In the heart of the city, the 250-acre White River State Park has a full slate of nature and nurture activities. Home to two well-attended museums—the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art (one of the best known in the US), and the Indiana State Museum, a multi-purpose museum of science, architecture, and history—there is much to learn. There is plenty of additional parkland to offer the nature-lover an oasis from the city as well.

There are vast open spaces, when not in use for a concert or community event, that offer a peaceful respite for a picnic with friends. Along the Urban Wilderness Trail there are enchanting scenic views of the river as well as wildlife viewing spots, including the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary.

The trail, originally service roads, was transformed into a beautiful pathway as part of the IWF Certified Sustainable Trails program. The trail winds through 210 acres of preserved natural habitat along the river.

The White River Greenway loop covers both shorelines of White River, including an unusual section that runs behind the zoo where cut limestone walls flank the trail.

The 3-mile Canal Walk Loop, part of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, runs from the river to West Street and north to 10th Street. Although the original canal was never completed, the restoration of the Indianapolis section, with its wide paved

boulevards, has turned it into a popular spot for a stroll all year long.

A historic pedestrian bridge spans the river and connects the museums and the Indianapolis Zoo—which is accredited as a zoo, an aquarium, and a botanical garden. The not-to-be-missed lovely bridge doubles as a sculpture garden that changes twice a year.

Finally, if you build it, they will come— the Victory Field ball park, voted best minor league stadium in the country, affords a panoramic view of downtown from the stands and the grassy hill.

Preceding is just a handful of parks in the country, so be sure to check your own city, or a city nearby; you might be pleasantly surprised at what they have to offer.

In downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, residents and visitors alike enjoy the many features of the city’s White River State Park. From live entertainment at the Celebration Plaza (below), to museums to peaceful strolls, the park offers a variety of recreational opportunities.

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head over to the Ellipse Meadow, where twenty-two giant Corinthian columns are set on an inviting knoll. Originally created for the east portico of the US Capitol in 1864, the beautiful but ill-suited sandstone columns were replaced in 1958. After languishing in storage for years, they eventually found their way here. The regal setting, with its accompanying reflecting pool, evokes a sense of an ancient civilization. This is a very popular photo spot.

If you have the time, there are many more spots to visit—walk through the Grove of State Trees; marvel at the Gotelli Dwarf Conifer Collection, considered best in the world; follow the path through hickory specimens from around the world on Hickory Hill; and take the trail on the east side that leads down to the Anacostia River where bamboo hugs the shoreline.

I N F O R M AT I O N Balboa Park, Visitor Center, 1549 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101.

Phone: 619/239-0512. (Located in the park’s House of Hospitality building, near Plaza de Panama).

Website: www.balboapark.org.

Boise River Greenbelt, Julia Davis Park, Friendship Bridge, Boise, ID 83702. Phone: 208/608-7600.

Website: www.cityofboise.org/ departments/parks-and-recreation/ parks/boise-greenbelt.

Papago Park and Botanical Desert Garden. Papago Park online at: www.phoenix.gov/parks/ trails/locations/papago-park/trail-map.

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Botanical Desert Garden, 1201 N. Galvin Pkwy., Phoenix, AZ 85008.

Online information at www.dbg.org.

Zilker Metropolitan Park, 2100 Barton Springs Road, Austin, TX 78704. Website: www.austinparks.org/ zilker-metro-park.

United States National Arboretum, 3501 New York Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002. Phone: 202/245-4523. www.usna.usda.gov.

White River State Park, 801 Washington Street, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Phone: 317/233-2434. www.whiteriverstatepark.org.

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Henry’s Attic

By Ford R. Bryan, edited by Sarah Evans, 2006, Wayne State University Press, Detroit, Michigan. $31.99, softcover, 432 pages, black & white, illustrated with photographs. ISBN 978-0-8143-2642-8.

Many young folks are fortunate to experience a trip to our nation’s capital.

I was not among those lucky kids, but my family did take my brother and me on a trip to Greenfield Village in Michigan.

This, I would argue, can have as much educational relevance as a trip to D.C. Greenfield Village is a part of the complex outside Detroit, Michigan, comprising the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation and the Edison Institute. The museum was founded by Henry Ford, who collected items he felt to be at the leading edge of innovation.

The 12-acre site, now a National Historic Landmark, contains thousands of items, both innovative and representative of twentieth-century life in America. Flipping through the many pages of Henry’s Attic is a virtual tour of the vast array of exhibits at “The Henry Ford,” as it is known—with the added advantage that a write-up is included illuminating the item’s history, its relative importance to science, technology, or society, and its path to the museum. Often included is background on the originator and the connection to Henry Ford. The items covered in the book include everything from significant buildings such as Thomas Edison’s reconstructed Menlo Park Invention Factory compound and the Wright Brothers’ bicycle shop to automobiles, locomotives, and aircraft, to washing machines, to telegraph equipment, to a turn-of-the-century popcorn vending wagon.

There are good technology museums around the country, but the Henry FordGreenfield Village-Edison Institute is the one that could, arguably, be considered the mother of them all. Henry’s Attic is a visit in and of itself.

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LIBRARY

Traveler” roast beef on cornbread with gravy sandwich at the Paris Coffee Shop in Fort Worth, Texas, and many more. The pages glow with gastronomic possibilities. You might even want to get out on the road just to try a few of these places!

The Lincoln Highway Across Indiana Road Food

By Jane Stern and Michael Stern, 2017, Clarkson-Potter, New York, NY. $23.99, softcover, 464 pages, black and white with regional maps. ISBN 978-0-451-49619-5.

It’s a good bet that most of us have a small local eatery—be it a diner, sandwich shop, bakery, or deli—that we consider special, or at least a go-to place.

Qualifications? Reliable. Not fancy.

Comfort food. Interesting and/or authentic ethnic food. Maybe even convenience. But when traveling we all too often yield to the temptation to bop into a fast food restaurant for a quick mealon-the-go. Okay, that’s a given. But there is an alternative to food that is at best quick and filling, especially if you are not in a big rush to get where you are going.

Road Food lists over a thousand “local hot spots” and “hidden gems” dotted across the country. The eateries listed are there because they are favorites and gems to the folks in the area. The book goes a long way to taking the hit-or-miss out of bypassing fast food for a local restaurant.

In fact, with a bit of planning you can make Road Food listings mini destinations along your route.

With some forty food and restaurant books to their credit, the Sterns have proven themselves well-versed in the art of assessing, describing, and cataloging dining experiences. Descriptions of menu items include the regional favorite “Michigan” hot dogs in upstate New York, the Finnish egg-custard-like pancakes at Suomi Home Bakery & Restaurant on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the “Arkansas

By Jan Shupert-Arick for the Lincoln Highway Association, 2009, Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina. $21.99, softcover, 128 pages, black & white, illustrated with photographs.

ISBN 978-0-7385-6108-8.

Arcadia Publishing has accomplished the commendable feat of documenting in print the history of thousands of America’s towns, large and small. Many of the towns on the Lincoln Highway are beneficiaries of their own Arcadia “Images” book, but the highway itself is featured in books about the segments passing through Indiana, Illinois, and the Chicagoland area.

Why The Lincoln Highway Across Indiana? The highway was the brainchild of Indiana native Carl Fisher. To quote the first line of chapter one, “Few people possess the vision that Carl Fisher provided in the early days of the automobile industry.” As drivers, we can thank Carl Fisher (at least in part) for the smooth roads we travel on today. And the Lincoln Highway, as it passes through Indiana, passes through a region in which automobiling has deep roots. Marques such as Studebaker, Packard, Deusenberg, Stutz, Cord, and Auburn were all Indiana products. And a large segment of the RV industry along with the RV and Motorhome Hall of Fame and Museum is in Elkhart. Indiana was a major center of the automobile industry in the early twentieth century, when the highway was—no other way to put it—a very big deal. Much of what exists today along the route is automobilerelated: diners, garages, showrooms, and service stations, many with DNA from automobiling’s earliest days.

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Nestled against the Wasatch Mountains, colorful Park City, Utah, awaits its soon-to-arrive blanket of white. Our story on Park City begins on page 10 of this issue.

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