Twelve Mile Circle – An Appreciation of Unusual Places

Category: Roads

  • But It Used to be Jackass Junction

    Yeehaw Junction, Florida: right near… nothing; in the middle of… nothing. It’s nearly an hour inland from the sea. It’s also an hour south of Orlando. So it’s nowhere near the two most common reasons anyone would ever visit Florida. Set among drainage canals and swamp, Yeehaw Junction exists as little more than a rest…

  • Goodbye, Map

    Admired objects are supposed to be handled with dignity. A good example is a national flag. It’s accorded a certain respect as it fades, rips or otherwise reaches the end of its useful life. In the United States there’s even a federal law that requires such things. The flag “should be destroyed in a dignified…

  • Rambling Along the Taylor-Rose Segment

    I derive inspiration from odd places. Recently I stumbled across a simple notation on a chart, no more than a throwaway comment really, and it fascinated me. I noticed a brief history of Highway 183 on the US Highways website,(1) “Since 1930; original route North Platte, NE – Dresden, KS, extended north to Vivian, SD…

  • Throw the Dart

    The previous topic was rather serious. So today I will take a more lighthearted approach. Several years ago there was a reoccurring story on one of the news stations where the reporter would take a dart and throw it at a map of the United States. Then he would travel to the spot and find…

  • 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…

  • Wisconsin’s Great River Road, Day 1

    My recent discussion of the Great River Road was a bit of a setup. We took a short journey along Wisconsin’s portion of the road, and into Iowa over the weekend. The scenery along the bluffs of the Mississippi River could only be described as spectacular; soaring cliffs towering over the ever-changing nature of the…

  • The Great River Road

    The Great River Road is a bit of a misnomer for it isn’t a single road. Rather many different roads commingle along a common theme, tracing a route along the Mississippi River. This scenic designation runs contiguously through ten of the United States. By extension it also enters two Canadian Provinces, a total length of…

  • 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…

  • Split in Two: St. Martin Parish

    St. Martin Parish, Louisiana poses an odd situation (map). Neighboring Iberia Parish jabs straight through the middle of St. Martin and cleaves it into two completely different portions separated by several miles. The St. Martin Parish Clerk of the Court explains that, “In 1868, Iberia Parish was formed from parts of St. Martin and St.…

  • Four Corners

    Four Corners is a unique spot in the United States. It’s the only U.S. location where four states join together with a common boundary – a quadripoint. Thus, a visitor can touch Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona simultaneously. Maps of the area show this situation clearly and anyone can get there by automobile with…