Innehållsförteckning för January 2022 från Country Extra

Even as a child, I was always fascinated with cultural enigmas such as Machu Picchu—a lost city deep in the Peruvian Andes encountered in 1911 by American explorer Hiram Bingham. That fascination still holds true today during many of my travels in the Southwest. For me, Chaco Canyon, which is now part of Chaco Culture National Historical Park, is the U.S. equivalent of Machu Picchu. Located in the northwestern corner of New Mexico, between Albuquerque and Farmington, the park is an architectural relic that offers engineering marvels and sacred spaces, as well as a profound mystery surrounding its original purpose. After all, it is isolated in the most unlikely of high-desert terrains. Like Machu Picchu, Chaco Canyon is remote. A 21-mile dirt road is the only way to access the…

AS A BOY SCOUT I loved going on our troop’s annual pilgrimage to Galena, Illinois, and the home of President Ulysses S. Grant. From strolling through Grant Park and meeting folks in period costume to taking in views of the Mississippi River, there was and is so much to do and see in Galena. As we descended on Main Street, the Scouts learned about the president who made Galena famous and visited the downtown’s many historic buildings, which house everything from quaint shops (ice cream, books, art, clothing and artisan goods) to restaurants (farm-to-table, bistros and diners). With more than 85 percent of the community listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it’s no surprise that Galena holds the past close to its heart. Galena mesmerized me then and…

ANZA-BORREGO DESERT STATE PARK CALIFORNIA With highs in the 70s, Anza-Borrego is a winter oasis for anyone craving warmth and blooming wildflowers. GULF SHORES ALABAMA Shell hunters comb the sandy beaches of Alabama's Gulf Coast as the sun sets on a perfect winter day. JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK CALIFORNIA Morning twilight bathes a grove of Joshua trees in a soft glow. SANIBEL ISLAND FLORIDA These white pelicans—the original snowbirds—spend their winters on Sanibel Island's sunny beaches. BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK TEXAS Wild, beautiful and remote, the Chisos Mountains are entirely within the boundaries of the park. In higher elevations, the sunshine is warm and temps are mild. KEY WEST FLORIDA The beach at Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park is popular for picnics, snorkeling, fishing and sunbathing. CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA…

GET READY TO BE INSPIRED at the Indiana Military Museum in Vincennes, Indiana. Founded in 1984 by Jim R. Osborne, a longtime collector of military artifacts, the museum is committed to the preservation and interpretation of America’s military history. While visiting, my husband, Tim, and I learned about the American Revolution, the Civil War, the world wars, and the wars in Vietnam and Afghanistan. The museum also includes a display about women in the military, honoring those who served in the world wars. Nurse Edith Shain, the woman believed to be kissing a sailor in Times Square in the iconic V-J Day photograph, donated her nurse’s cap. Two buildings, with more planned, house uniforms and artifacts from famous military personnel, such as former President and General of the Army Dwight…

In 1986, my girlfriend Sharon and I traveled to tiny Ajo, Arizona, a city near Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, hoping to see Halley’s comet. At a local cafe, we met Ron, the owner of a vintage Ford Model A, who offered to give us a ride into the cactus valley. Sharon and I sat in the rumble seat as we bumped along the dirt road, the sun melting into the horizon. The next day at 3 a.m., Sharon and I drove to the desert to behold the comet. Now, many years later, that trip is still clear in my memory. The warm hospitality of the local Ajo folks and seeing Halley’s comet were extraordinary, but rambling in the rumble seat of Ron’s vintage Ford during a sunset ride in…

WHEN WINTER COMES , I long for a place knee-deep in snow, like North Carolina’s Beech Mountain. Winter at this wonderland in the Blue Ridge Mountains means snowboarding, skiing and sledding—my favorite. It is warming up by the fire pit in Alpine Village at Beech Mountain Resort and creating my own foodie tour by visiting locally owned restaurants. It’s crunching over snow shimmering in the sunlight and knowing this is what the season should be. Kathy Witt Burlington, KY…

Iowa wasn’t on my top 10 list of places to see, but I went to visit last winter because my son’s in-laws live in—and love—the state. After flying into Sioux City, I headed toward Okoboji, a lovely little town in Iowa’s Great Lakes region. The drive north was quiet and peaceful, through wide-open flatlands that stretched for miles, with only the occasional farmhouse breaking up the landscape. Iowa’s Great Lakes, a chain of natural glacial lakes in the northwest part of the Hawkeye State, are a lush, green summer playground where residents and visitors boat, fish and lounge in the sun. Most of the action takes place on Big Spirit, East Okoboji and West Okoboji lakes. But in the frigid months, only locals and a few outsiders know the secrets…

On the morning two days after Christmas 2020, I crept out of my motel room in Hurricane, Utah. The point of the journey—a solo road trip from my home in Idaho Falls, Idaho, to two Arizona national parks—was an attempt at coming to terms with my grandmother’s terminal cancer diagnosis. She was 90 years old, and the doctors didn’t mince words—two to three months left to live without intervention. Six months after her diagnosis and eight weeks prior to Christmas, she’d started going blind. With each day, her eyesight faded. So, it seemed, did her will to continue fighting what she knew would ultimately be a losing battle. As I passed Utah’s southern border into Arizona’s northern desert, I tried to stop thinking about death and started calculating mileage. To…

WISCONSIN The best snow sculptors in the country bring their tools to Winterfest in Lake Geneva to compete in the nation’s only snow sculpting championship, Feb. 2-6. After watching the artists at work, take a downtown ice sculpture tour or hovercraft ride, or tag along on a cocoa crawl. Warm up later with a bonfire on the beach and s’mores. visitlakegeneva.com/ winterfest COLORADO Aspen toasts the snow and Nordic traditions during the Winterskol celebration, Jan. 13-16, with ice sculptures, a soup competition, a dog fashion show and more. aspenchamber.org NEW YORK Saranac Lake’s first Winter Carnival was held in 1897 as a way to get tuberculosis patients out and about during the coldest months. Fast-forward 125 years, and the carnival is a 10-day festival featuring an ice palace, parades, a…

LAKE WENATCHEE STATE PARK LEAVENWORTH, WA Below-zero temps and inches of snow tend to bring even more people to Lake Wenatchee. “It’s gorgeous there,” writes reader Brian Munoz, who took the photo at right of Emerald Island on a -1 degree day. “There are so many things to do around that lake in winter.” Cross-country skiing, winter camping and snowshoeing are popular pastimes. Brian has even seen hearty kayakers paddling on the icy waters. parks.state.wa.us SIZE: 489-acre park WATERFRONT: 2,623 feet along glacier-fed Lake Wenatchee TRAILS: 30 miles for skiing and 10 miles for snowshoeing…

PENNSYLVANIA Stargazers get a 360-degree celestial view at Cherry Springs State Park. Visit the night sky viewing area located north of Route 44 for parking and information. Register to attend photo workshops or twice-yearly star parties. cherryspringsstatepark.com TEXAS According to the National Park Service, Big Bend National Park has the lowest light pollution of all national parks in the lower 48 states. Visit in winter for dramatic views of stars, planets and meteorites. nps.gov/bibe HAWAII Perched atop a 13,803-foot volcano on the Big Island, Maunakea is considered one of the best places on the planet for stargazing. Visit the Onizuka Center for nightly stargazing programs. ifa.hawaii.edu/info/vis/ visiting-mauna-kea…

Snow, sparkling in the sunlight, covered just about everything. It was so serene. In summer, my family heads to the North Woods, a region that includes a 1/2 million acres of public forest in northern Wisconsin. We spend our days on the water—boating, tubing, skiing and fishing. When the sun goes down, we treat ourselves to a scoop or two at the local ice cream parlor and then stare up at a sky so dark you can actually see the stars. I always wondered what my favorite place would be like during the cold months. So my husband, Dan, and I headed up to the small North Woods town of Eagle River one January not too long ago for a frosty weekend getaway. Summer is glorious here, but winter is…