Category: Elevation

  • Glorious Day for Flying

    I got so excited about my walk through Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood that I got a little ahead of myself in the story. I should probably back up a bit. Let’s start with the airline flight that brought me to this wonderful spot along the Charles River. A nor’easter blew through last week bringing bitter…

  • Independent Cities (the Water Tower Tour)

    An independent city in the United States is a rare form of government. In broad general terms, the county is the tertiary or local level of government.(1) An independent city belongs to no county and derives its authority directly from the State. This is true even if it happens to be surrounded entirely by a…

  • “Ya gotta be jokin’ – No we’re not!”

    “Ya gotta be jokin’ – No we’re not!” proclaims the Lake Eyre Yacht Club, the self-determined Worlds most exclusive Yacht Club, where only people who have actually skippered their own vessel on the lake surface can attain full membership. This becomes an extremely daunting task under the best of conditions. Additionally, conditions only allow it…

  • New Jersey Highpoint

    We mounted an expedition to the highest point of natural elevation in the entire state of New Jersey on the way back from our recent visit to Maine after being notified of its proximity to our intended route(1). This feature is found in the far northwestern corner of the state along the Kittatinny Mountain ridge…

  • Wisconsin’s Great River Road, Day 2

    Day 2 along Wisconsin’s portion of the Great River Road began in La Crosse. We kept the same leisurely pace as the previous day. Later in the day we strayed from a purely Wisconsin route just to liven things up a bit. We crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa using the Cassville Ferry traverse. From…

  • Mountaineering by Subway

    Let’s climb to the summit of a significant highpoint. This video approaches and then transitions to a panoramic view from the summit of the highest point of elevation in the District of Columbia. But that’s getting a little ahead of the story. Let me explain how I found myself here recently. Here is “Point Reno”…

  • Greatest Time Zone Jump

    People seem more interested in time zone anomalies than many other quirks I discuss. I know this because I get lots of random one-time visitors to the Twelve Mile Circle via search engines. Invariably they are searching these kinds of queries. I like them too, but I try not to overwhelm my regular readership with…

  • The Wisconsin Highpoint

    Highpointing makes me feel conflicted. I love highpoints conceptually and I have nothing but the greatest admiration for those who collect them. I’ve featured some of these people in the past and of course I’m not beyond partaking myself whether at the state or county level. Highpoints, quite simply, represent perfect fodder for discussion on…

  • Island Isolation doesn’t Require an Island

    Juneau is located in Alaska’s southeastern panhandle and serves as the state capital. No roads connect Juneau to the outside world even though it’s clearly part of mainland North America. Access is by sea or by air only. Rather than describe the situation it’s easier to show it. Notice how Juneau hugs a narrow seaside…

  • Hydrological Apex of North America

    Twelve Mile Circle has discussed watersheds and continental divides before. We’ve crossed the Great Divide in Colorado together. We’ve visited the Red River of the North in Fargo, North Dakota that drains to the Arctic Ocean. And we’ve even mentioned a small corner of Canada that drains into the Gulf of Mexico. So divides are…