Uncovering The Corners Of The World

Next one our Route 66 road trip is Missouri where the road extends for more than 280 miles in the state. Our first stop is in Cuba, Missouri, to see The World’s 2nd Largest Rocking Chair, but the only largest rocking chair on Route 66. Next, we calculate time using Missouri’s Stonehenge before cooling off at Grand Falls in Joplin, MO. Music credit to 'McCarthy' by Blue Dot Sessions

Route 66, also called the Mother Road, weaves 2,400 miles with gusty winds on open-fields, scorching deserts covered in lava beds, and ends on pier lined with palm trees as tall as skyscrapers. To embark on the ultimate Route 66 road trip, we start in Illinois where the road begins. Along the way, we test our reflexes at Arcadia: America’s Playable Arcade Museum, take some photos of the World’s La...

Amongst Costa Rica’s abundant wildlife, there is one particular animal people can’t wait to see. Collin Sugg shares with us the curious creatures that you might cross paths with in Costa Rica, and digs into the history of some of San José’s landmarks including the National Theater, an opera house built in 1897 to accommodate a legendary opera singer. He also leaves us with some tips to consider be...

Why are Starbucks coffee beans grown in Costa Rica? What is the proper technique for tasting coffee according to Starbucks? What are some cultural differences between the US and Costa Rica? These are just some of the questions that my good friend and fellow podcaster, Collin Sugg (along with his cat Tom Barnaby) answers this week as he retells his trip to Costa Rica. This episode is divided into t...

The Daniel Hess Carpet Sweeper from 1860 is one of 100s of vacuum cleaners that line the walls of the Museum of Clean, our first stop this week. Next we cool off from the heat by descending towards Shoshone Ice Caves that may be haunted. Our last stop this week is at Shoshone Falls - the “Niagara of the West.”

Ironically, potatoes are not native to Idaho. To understand everything there is to know about potatoes in Idaho we start our trip by staying a night at the Big Idaho Potato Hotel and then learn about the potato industry at the Idaho Potato Museum and Potato Station Cafe. We end our road trip this week in Cottonwood, ID, to visit a non-potato attraction.

Happy New Year 2024! We start the new year by maneuvering a 30,000 lb wheel loader (excavator) at a heavy-equipment playground on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada. Next, while on the "Loneliest Road in America," we cross the border to the Republic of Molossia. Then we stop by the Stokes Castle, a three-story granite tower in the Nevada desert.

In the hottest and driest area in the United States, we visit a mining town that used to transport a chemical across rough roads from Furnace Creek to Mojave. Next, we visit Berlin-Ichthyosaur (Ick-theo-saur) State Park to see a ghost town that is also the site of 225-million-year-old marine reptile fossils. Lastly, we grab a drink at the Ponderosa Saloon before we head downstairs to explore its u...

What better way to celebrate Halloween than in city (in Minnesota) that claims to be the first in the United States to host a Halloween celebration? In Death Valley National Park, we find a ghost town with some eerie sculptures and a haunted tale. Lastly, we visit the filming location of the 1998 movie Halloweentown.

Tug-of-war might be a friendly backyard game, but it is an intense annual competition in Port Byron, IL, and LeClaire, IA. These two small towns stop all river traffic to pull a 2,700-foot rope across the Mississippi River. Besides cheering on our favorite team (or state) at Tug Fest, we look for the 30-foot-bicyclist statue in Port Byron, IL, and then count the matchsticks in the Harry Potter’s H...

The "World's Largest Indoor Carousel," a 200-foot tall blue whale, and a mechanically operated 80-piece orchestra ensemble are a few of the surprises that we find in the House on the Rock this week while in Wisconsin Dells. Next, we sail down the Wisconsin River and stop to see a dog recreate the "Leaping the Chasm" photo, before diving into Lake Delton on the Original Wisc...

Roanoke Island's first English settlers vanished without an explanation. On Roanoke Island, we stopped by the Fort Raleigh Visitor Center to read about the "Lost Colony," Native Americans, and the Freedman's Colony. In Manteo, North Carolina, we peer out of the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse, a replica of the 1877 lighthouse. At the Roanoke Island Maritime Museum, we observe staff re...

(Part 2 of "The Alaskan Excursion with Collin Sugg") Are there ghosts in Skagway, AK? Who won the Lumberjack Competition in Ketchikan? How can you get to Juneau? Fellow podcaster Collin Sugg explains the darker side of Skagway and narrates the Lumberjack Competition between the US and Canadian teams. He leaves some tips and advice for those planning to take a cruise to Alaska.

Fellow podcaster and returning guest Collin Sugg walked me through his first ever cruise trip to Alaska. His sightseeing excursion started in Seattle, Washington, where he stopped by the Space Needle, the pop culture museum, and a stained glass garden. Before arriving in Alaska, Collin recommends some of the activities to try while at sea.

A dream castle with a heartbreaking ending resides on Heart Island, our first stop this week in New York. Next, we discover the life of the "conservation" President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, at the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site. Finally, we hike the Gorge Trail at Taughannock Falls to view a waterfall that is taller than Niagara Falls.

A thick white fog wraps around the Appalachian Mountains as we drive towards the Great Smokey National Park this week. Before we enter the park, we examine rods and lures at the Fly Fishing Museum of the Southern Appalachians. Next we taste various flavors of honey in Robbinsville, North Carolina. Lastly, we explore one of Great Smokey Mountains National Park hidden attractions — a lost town subme...

Connecting the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina/Tennessee is the Blue Ridge Parkway. We drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway, a two-lane road that zigzags through the Appalachian Mountains. Along the way, we climb to the highest point on the parkway, before stopping at an overlook to search for the Glassmine Falls. Then we tour the Mab...

Following the Nine-Mile Canyon road to the Book Cliffs, we look for a rugged canyon wall covered with more than 10,000 intricate petroglyphs. Next, we race across a salt desert and try to set the fastest land-speed records. Lastly, about a five-hour drive from the salt flats takes us to Moab, Utah, where we stop at an underrated national park to view its diverse spectacular landscape.

She crunches numbers by day, and dances the night away at local speakeasies. My friend, Natalia, joins me on this week’s episode of Uncovering the Corners of the World podcast to share her recent trip to Virginia, Maryland, and Washington DC, where she jokes about reliving the scene from the movie “National Treasure” in real life, shares what an exhilarating night she had out on the town, and leav...

On a lake that is between 3.5 and 8 times saltier than the ocean, we travel to the Antelope Island, an island layered with mysteries. We hitch a ride on the first transcontinental railroad grade at the Golden Spike National Historic Park. In Circleville, we stop by the home of the notorious Wild West Outlaw Butch Cassidy.

This week, we drive to the Chief Joseph Ranch, a cattle ranch and a filming location for a Western TV drama series. Next, we walk through a silver, lead, and zinc mine in a city that was the largest supplier of copper. Lastly, we analyze dinosaur fossils at Makoshika State Park.

Joining me for part 2 of the “Hollywood of the South” tour is Cassidy Stephenson, a video game writer and film enthusiast. In this episode, she continues her Vampire Diaries and Stranger Things tour. She also shares her itinerary for an upcoming trip to Japan. *Be sure to listen to episode 66. “Hollywood of the South” Tour with Cassidy Stephenson Pt.1.

Where exactly was The Vampire Diaries or Stranger Things filmed and where can you find the original houses of Confederate Generals? Video game writer and film enthusiast (and my best friend) Cassidy Stephenson joins me on this episode to share her most recent trip to Georgia searching for recognizable landmarks from the TV show The Vampire Diaries and Stranger Things. *Be on the lookout for episod...

Between the Northern Rocky Mountains that run through Montana, we find a garden with 1,000 Buddha statues. In Dillion, we travel back to the "Old West," to explore a ghost town known for its gold and lawlessness. At one of Montana's famous national parks, we hike to a hidden passageway that cuts through the Ptmarigan Wall.

Try the sweet sticky maple syrup with us this week at the New England Maple Syrup Museum. In Woodstock, we discover who the first conservationists were at the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park. At the Billings Farm, we learn what life was like for a farmer in the 1890s.