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Osage

Joined Atlas Obscura in 2018

The trip that bit me with the travel bug: I did my first real traveling when I went on my first cross-country road trip in the summer of 1961 at the age of six in a brand-new red Pontiac Catalina convertible with my brother & parents. We began in Columbus Ohio and traveled to see my grandparents in Santa Barbara California, by way of Yosemite, & the Painted Desert, traveling a lot on old Route 66. While passing through Yuma Arizona we were caught in a flash hailstorm that came out of the blue and only lasted 20-30 seconds yet left 1.5 inches of hail just a bit smaller than a golf ball in a layer all over the road. Being in a convertible, my dad had to do some quick thinking and swerved into a gas station that had a 'wing' triangular-shaped roof canopy supported by steel poles over the gasoline pumps. Only my father's quick thinking and the fact that there was an open space at one of the pumps, saved the convertible top, the front and rear windows and our vacation trip. Other cars around us were not so lucky - I saw many that had cracked or broken windshields as Dad pulled back out onto the road. Still today, I clearly hear in my mind, the loud popping sounds of the hailstones breaking under the tires as he pulled out. It was not long before the clouds disappeared entirely, the sun came out in full fury and the hailstones were history; small rivulets of clear water headed for the sides of the road. Within minutes there was no sign of them, including no moisture left on the pavement! While in California we saw the redwoods and visited relatives in Bakersfield and Shell Beach. In New Mexico we stayed one night in an air-conditioned concrete[!] tipi at a small motel. I recall my uncle Raymond who was the sheriff of Santa Barbara County at the time [or at least that's what he told us kids], taking my brother and me on a ride in his police car while on duty and he even pulled over someone with lights & siren! I have a few B&W photos from that CA trip that have survived all these years. Funny, the ride home was not as memorable, maybe because we were all tired and grouchy and I just wanted to be home again sleeping in my own bed! Hey, I was six years old! I've loved to travel, especially to wild and natural places, all of my life.

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Places Edited by Osage

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282

Places edited

Places this traveler has helped edit.

The stone.

Simrishamn, Sweden

Simrislundsristningen (Simrislund Carvings)

These Bronze Age rock carvings are among the oldest in the region.

Barnburgh Crags

Barnburgh, England

Barnburgh Crags

Mysterious stone faces line a hidden path great for seeing wildflowers, bird watching, and rock climbing.

Perla 2

Stomoplo, Bulgaria

Perla 2

Not far from a popular beach, an unfinished, abandoned mansion for Bulgaria's last communist dictator.

The Auld Wives Lifts

Glasgow, Scotland

Auld Wives Lifts

Three large boulders covered in mysterious carvings and graffiti.

Cairn at centre of wheel

Vulcan County, Alberta

Iniskim Umaapi (Majorville Medicine Wheel)

This remote 4,500 year old medicine wheel is one of the last of its kind.

Grave of Thomas Wiltberger Evans

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Grave of Thomas Wiltberger Evans

The corporeal remains of Napoleon III's dentist rest under this 15-story obelisk.

The waterfall of the Peschiera stream.

Cropani, Italy

Bosco Magnano Waterfall

The pristine waters crossing this forest form a hidden waterfall among the dense vegetation.

Akiyoshido Cave

Mine, Japan

Akiyoshido Cave

Approximately 300 million years ago, a massive coral reef existed in what is now the largest limestone cave in Japan.

Ardnacrusha Power Station

Ballykeelaun, Ireland

Ardnacrusha Power Station

At the time of its construction, this hydroelectric power plant was the largest in the world.

Replica of the Planque relief depicting a smoking deity.

Tokyo, Japan

Tobacco & Salt Museum

This museum is dedicated to the cultural history of tobacco and salt, once monopolized in Japan.

Backyard.

Taxco, Mexico

Casa Figueroa

This "cursed house" features secret rooms, hidden vaults, and dark escape tunnels.

The reredorter.

Somerset, England

Muchelney Abbey

The ruined abbey includes a rare surviving example of a monastic latrine.

Mystery Craters.

South Kolan, Australia

Mystery Craters

The 25-million-year-old cavities have perplexed people for decades.

Xaman-Há Ruins

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Xaman-Há Ruins

Few of the many visitors to this resort town know of its hidden Maya ruins.

Music Box Village.

New Orleans, Louisiana

Music Box Village

An otherworldly musical haven in The Big Easy.

Boca de Potrerillos

Mexico

Boca de Potrerillos

A mysterious, ancient collection of pre-Hispanic petroglyphs hidden deep in the Mexican desert.

Cloth displaying the bloodstains of King Gustavus Adolphus.

Stockholm, Sweden

The Royal Armoury

A king's bloodstained shirt is among the gruesome collection of artifacts displayed below Stockholm's Royal Palace.

Confederation Bridge

Bayfield, Prince Edward Island

Confederation Bridge

This engineering marvel is the longest bridge in Canada and one of the longest spans in the world.

Art Deco butter churn sculpture

Raleigh, North Carolina

Pine State Creamery Butter Churn

A giant concrete churn carries the legacy of American resilience, unity, and greed.

Canopy walkway at Lekki Conservation Center.

Lekki, Nigeria

Lekki Conservation Center

This Nigerian nature reserve is home to the longest canopy walkway in Africa.

ALMA.

San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA)

One of the world's most advanced radio observatories sprawls across the Atacama Desert.

Dinosaurs on the facade.

Mexico City, Mexico

Museo de Geología (Museum of the Institute of Geology)

The museum houses "the most studied meteorite in history," among other geological oddities.

The crossroads.

Neece, Texas

'Cast Away' Crossroads

It's where the final scene of the beloved Tom Hanks movie was filmed.

Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad

Peninsula, Ohio

Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad

A throwback train ride transports passengers through one of the lesser-known national parks in the country.

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