Places pickininparsons Wants to Go

Anne Rice, one of the most influential writers in gothic literature, is buried alongside her husband in a New Orleans cemetery.

Sway your way across Virginia’s longest river on a rickety wooden bridge.

This dig site outside D.C. is known for its exceptionally high density of baby dinosaur fossils and dinosaur eggs.

Outsider art meets paleontology at this roadside reptile repository.

In the parking lot of a fast food restaurant, a statue memorializing a prolific bull elephant.

A collection of oddities including Dr. Kevorkian's suicide device, the Thanatron.

This Old Testament garden features 100 plants from biblical times.

A T. Rex statue dressed as Mister Rogers honors the children’s-television pioneer.

A cult archaeology conspiracy theory claims these West Virginia petroglyphs were written by Irish monks in Ogham.

This small West Virginia park is a land trust holdout against mountaintop removal mining.

This statue in Talcott, West Virginia, is an enduring symbol of American grit.

Costa Rican accommodation resembles a crash site, but with a nice balcony.

A hidden wonder displaying insects large and small.

This abandoned hospital is one of the most haunted places in Costa Rica.

Lankaster is a research and conservation center specializing in orchids and tropical plants, located near the city of Cartago.

One of the last active volcanoes on the Eastern seaboard.

West Virginia’s largest bog is home to rare carnivorous plants.

This former fire tower found new life as a communications hub complete with a scenic overlook.

Take a steam-powered ride straight out of the past on this Appalachian rail line.

This rural community has attracted both scientists and techno-refugees due to its federally-mandated lack of technology.

The world's largest fully steerable radio telescope.

Near-constant high winds deform the trees on Spruce Knob, the highest point in West Virginia.

A beautiful hidden gem in central West Virginia.

A melancholy guardian doubles as a judicious godmother to this small town cemetery.