Going on a staycation? Try going Off the Beaten Path with Reader's Digest

With so many of us staying local this summer, we finally have an excuse to explore our home states. A terrific guide to help you get inspired is Reader’s Digest Off the Beaten Path: A Travel Guide to More Than 1000 Scenic and Interesting Places Still Uncrowded and Inviting. The newly revised third edition of this vacation planner covers over 1,000 US destinations and includes information on how to get there and what you need to know before you take off.

Off the Beaten Path is a fun book to look through with its state maps and glossy, full color pictures. It covers everything from museums to national forests and state parks. Here in Colorado my family regularly visits the Routt National Forest, Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden – all listed in the book. And I’m sure my husband has visited several others during hunting season.

Still, there is much to be discovered: secret destinations, overlooked natural wonders, and out of the way museums. For example, did you know that Mount Airy, NC was the inspiration for Mayberry in The Andy Griffith Show? You can tour the town and have a pork chop sandwich (!) at The Snappy Lunch. There’s even a bronze statue of Andy and Opie at the Andy Griffith Playhouse. As a fan of the show, if I’m ever in North Carolina, that’s a day trip I’ll have to take.

Off the Beaten Path also features a list of seasonal events for every state, and 16 icons highlight each site's activities and features including wi-fi access, if it’s pet friendly, or if it has wheelchair accessible facilities.

California section excerpt

For those of you in northern California, here’s an excerpt of covering the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park and Museum at Hyde St. Pier in San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf:

For avid sailors and vicarious seafaring adventurers the Hyde Street Pier offers a fascinating sail back through time. On the Hyde Street Pier landlubbers can tour an impressive fleet of historic vessels, including the 1886 square-rigger Balclutha, the 1890 steam ferry Eureka, the 1907 steam tugboat Hercules, and the 1895 lumber schooner CA Thayer.

Visitors can also experience what life was like for submariners during World War II when they step aboard the USS Pampanito, a fully restored floating exhibit, now a national landmark, at Pier 45.

Continuing the journey, the park’s collection of small craft, both traditional and trailblazing, provide a lively introduction to boat building and the maritime trades.

Built as a project of the New Deal’s Works Progress Administration, the Aquatic Park Bathhouse is a work of art in itself. The  museum inside includes mast sections, jutting spars, and authentic ship figureheads are arranged among the colorful fish and gleaming tiles of renowned muralist Hilaire Hiler’s expressionist vision of Atlantis. Also, Mermaid, the one man sailboat that transported a daring solo adventurer cross the Pacific Ocean from Japan in 94 days, is displayed on the balcony.

Along with detailed ship models,intricate works of scrimshaw, and whaling guns, the museum features video presentations and interactive exhibits.

In addition, the park offers frequent historical re-creations, interpretive programs, and a visitors center with exhibits, including a “First Order” fresnel lighthouse lens. Visitors might catch a demonstration of rigging, a class in navigation or woodworking, or a rousing concert of sea chanteys.
There are also activities designed especially for kids. The voyage culminates at the Maritime Store, managed by the non-profit San Francisco Maritime National Park Association, offering a range of maritime-related books, games, and videos, ship plans and models, and a selection of maritime folk music.

Open year-round. Entrance fee for historic vessels.
www.nps.gov/safr
(415) 447-5000

Off the Beaten Path along with a GPS unit would make a great Father’s Day gift, too. Check it out!

For more information on Off the Beaten Path, go to the Reader's Digest site.

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Comments

[Terri]

I love the ideas for a staycation, thank you, I also like a mini virtualcation as seen here http://bit.ly/VrUH9 a beautiful waterfall in Colorado along with the relaxing sound of a waterfall.