Category: Distance
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Shortest International Bridge
I remember the story of the the alleged World’s Shortest International Bridge making the rounds of the Intertubes a few years ago. I ignored it intentionally, and not so much because of what I thought about its claim. Actually, I had no way to confirm or dispute it so it didn’t really matter to me.…
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Thelma and Louise Route Map
What would possibly possess the Twelve Mile Circle to examine a 20-year-old chick flick practically frame-by-frame for most of a weekend? Blame it on a skewed sense of curiosity fanned by random search engine queries I’d observed in my web logs. I’d mentioned the movie Thelma and Louise only once on 12MC, and only as…
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The Dreadful Road Trip
I’m told that one could see the smoke rising from the Pentagon from my home on September 11, 2001, barely two miles away. My coworkers in Crystal City, immediately to the south, felt our office building shake (explaining their added nervousness during the recent earthquake). I wouldn’t know. I was stranded more than 800 miles…
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The Loneliest Road in the USA
What is the “Loneliest Road in America?” Life Magazine claimed that it was the stretch of U.S. Route 50 running through Nevada, in a 1986 article. I don’t know if anyone still claims that today, or if it was even true twenty-five years ago. Additionally, there are probably far lonelier roads in Australia and Canada…
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Utah Adventure, Part 3
The latest installment is about salt. It’s hard to talk about northern Utah without eventually turning our attention to salt. The vast white expanse on the left half of this satellite image is a gigantic salt patch. This forms the Great Salt Lake Desert. The smaller greenish-blue area in the upper-right is the salt water…
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Utah Adventure, Part 1
The hunt for geo-oddities in northern Utah is well underway. The family will want to visit more recognizable sights so I’ll have to mix in a few “normal” tourist activities along the way. I have to maintain a careful balance. Thus I need just enough to keep them entertained while giving me an opportunity to…
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Nearly Willow
Many months ago I explored the Worst State Capital Locations and received a number of thoughtful and insightful comments. I examined conditions from various perspectives including the most inconveniently located state capital for an individual traveling from the largest city. Juneau, Alaska won that part of the competition hands-down. Residents from Anchorage face a daunting…
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Iron Butt Rally
I’d had a vague notion of the premise behind the Iron Butt Association, a loose organization of people addicted to extremely long-distance motorcycle rides. But the basic membership, the absolutely easiest level, requires a documented ride of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) within 24 hours. They call it the SaddleSore 1000. Rides quickly increase in difficulty…
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Ireland’s Narrow Little Neck
I looked at the Emerald Isle and noticed an anomaly. Northern Ireland comes very close to separating the tip of the Republic of Ireland from the remainder of its body. The neck constricts to perhaps as few as ten kilometres at its narrowest point between the border and the sea. It’s even shorter if we…
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Dr. Howder Road
It looks like I’ll need to write an article today seeing how the world didn’t end last night. Thankfully I hedged my bets and started my research well in advance. Otherwise I’d be struggling with a suitable topic this morning. Calling Dr. Howder I’ve start with a question: Who was Dr. Howder and why does…