Place Names – Less Beaten Paths of America

20Jun 2025 by David Kravetz

Bird Hunting in February 2025

Adventure, American Kestrel, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Eagles, Farmland, Kentucky, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Museums, Nature and Scenery, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Swans, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Wanderlust

At the end of February I went in search of Bald Eagles and whatever else I would see along the way. On February 26 I headed toward Stanford and Crab Orchard in search of some nesting eagles. Of course, if I saw things of interest along the way I was all over that stuff too. Then, two days later I headed to an area north of Frankfort after hearing about a swarm of eagles in a field that had been flooded. While there I also made my first visit to the Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery for my first time. You would think that someplace so close to Lexington would have hit some of my agendas in the past, but I never made it there before. [caption id="attachment_40347" align="alignnone" width="640"] Garrard County…

29May 2025 by David Kravetz

Another Indiana Road Trip – Sandhill Cranes in Seymour – Feb. 2025

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bridges, Indiana, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Lewis and Clark Sites, Nature and Scenery, Place Names, Roadsigns, Sandhill Cranes, Selfies, Unique Places, US Highway 31, US Highway 50, Wanderlust, Water Towers

I don't typically make two trips to Seymour, Indiana for Sandhill Crane viewing, but since they were still hanging around and I wanted a road trip of some sort, we (Miles and me) were off to Seymour to see more cranes! [caption id="attachment_40682" align="alignnone" width="640"] Sumoflam and Miles on the road to Seymour to see more cranes[/caption] Instead of Interstate 65, took US highways to go north so I could visit some places I hadn't yet been to. First stop along the way was at Ashland Park in Clarksville, Indiana. I always like to stop there for across the river photos of Louisville. [caption id="attachment_40321" align="alignnone" width="640"] Rosie the Riveter exclaims "We Can Do It!" with a view of Louisville across the Ohio River.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_40334" align="alignnone" width="640"] My favorite…

06Mar 2025 by David Kravetz

2024 in Review: Town Name Murals – My 500th Post

Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Family Travel, Graffiti Walls, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Murals, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Route 66, Selfies, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Wall Art, Wanderlust, West Virginia

[caption id="attachment_40088" align="alignnone" width="640"] Sumoflam in Fate, TX[/caption] First of all, this is my 500th blog post since beginning my blogging in 2008!! When I am traveling I am always going through the small towns and big ones on the lookout for large murals that welcome visitors to their towns and cities. This continued to be one of my objectives in travel in 2024. There is always a great variety of these from large to small. Unlike my regular mural posts, I don't spend any time looking for the artists of these signs. Just want to share the photos and the locations. Have a lot from Oklahoma and Texas since I took a couple of trips there. Let's go!! Enjoy the Ride. [caption id="attachment_40163" align="alignnone" width="640"] Welcome to Hillsboro, TX[/caption]…

05Feb 2025 by David Kravetz

2024 in Review: Roadside Attractions – Part 2 – Sculptures and Roadside Art

Adventure, Airlines, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Birds, Blue Heron, Books, Bucket List Trips, Eagles, Family Travel, Giant Things, Indiana, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Ohio, Oklahoma, Peacock, Pigs, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside America Books, Roadside Attractions, States and Provinces, Street Art, Texas, Travel Blogging, Unique Places

Not every roadside attraction is quirky or strange. Sometimes we can learn from them or gain some perspective in life. Sculptures are always an interesting subject and I saw plenty of them in 2024, from larger than life historical monuments to themed art in small towns. Also want to give a big shoutout to Roadside America for guidance on some of these locations. OKLAHOMA CENTENNIAL LAND RUN MONUMENT - OKLAHOMA CITY [caption id="attachment_39428" align="alignnone" width="640"] Centennial Land Run Monument - Oklahoma City[/caption] This monument has special significance to me as I had two great-grandfathers and a great-great-grandfather that participated in one of the four historic land runs in Oklahoma in the late 1800s. On September 16, 1893 my great-grandfather Pascal Hanks, his father Joseph W. Hanks (a first cousin to…

23Jan 2025 by David Kravetz

2024 in Review: Street Signs and Cemeteries

Adventure, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Offbeat Places, Oklahoma, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Signs and Billboards, Stop Signs, Tennessee, Texas, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places

This post is kind of a follow up to yesterday’s post on town names. There were so many town names that the post was longer than anticipated. Its always fun running across unique street and road names. And then there are the interesting cemetery names as well. Here are a few from my 2024 road trips: Okay Road - Pink, Oklahoma Okay Road in Pink, Oklahoma Garth Brooks Road - Yukon, Oklahoma Garth Brooks Road in Yukon, Oklahoma Mickey Mantle Dr. - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Mickey Mantle Dr. - Oklahoma City. Mickey Mantle was from nearby Commerce, Oklahoma Happy Valley Rd. - Happy Valley, Tennessee Happy Valley Road - Blount County, Tennessee Johnny Bench St. - Binger, Oklahoma Johnny Bench was from Binger, Oklahoma Easy St., Rogers, Arkansas There is…

22Jan 2025 by David Kravetz

2024 In Review: Unique Town Names

Adventure, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Black Bear, Books, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Church Signs, Cross Country Road Trips, Deer, Distilleries, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Ghost Signs, Ghost Towns, Graffiti Walls, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Parks, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Street Art, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Volunteer Fire Departments, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, West Virginia

As many of my followers know, in my travels, among all the things I see, I am always on the lookout for unique town/place names and fun street signs. Last year was no different. In fact, I was even fortunate enough to get to two of my Bucket List locations while traveling. Following are the places I visited in 2024 along with photos and, in some cases, the histories behind the names. NOWHERE, OKLAHOMA [caption id="attachment_39134" align="alignnone" width="640"] Nowhere Bait Shop - Nowhere, Oklahoma[/caption] A long time resident of my Unique Town Names bucket list has been Nowhere, Oklahoma. Who doesn’t want to take a selfie in the middle of Nowhere? [caption id="attachment_39139" align="alignnone" width="640"] Welcome to the Middle of Nowhere[/caption] I had a trip to Oklahoma in late November…

18Nov 2024 by David Kravetz

2023: Year in Travel and Other Stories – Part 4 – North Central Tennessee – August 2023

Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Books, Car Art, Eateries, Family Travel, Ice Cream Places, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Less Beaten Paths Books, Murals, Offbeat Places, People Shots, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Sasquatch Art, Selfies, Tennessee, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unique Places, US Highway 127, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Welcome Signs, Yard Art

[caption id="attachment_38779" align="alignnone" width="640"] Cookeville, Tennessee[/caption] In August 2023 we made another kayak/hiking trip to North Central Tennessee. While my wife kayaked, I visited an old high school friend in Cookeville, Tennessee. It also happened to be the weekend of the famed US 127 "World's Longest Yard Sale" which covers 690 miles through six states. I took advantage of grabbing a few shots. Sadly, my favorite motel, The Jordan Motel in Jamestown was both booked solid for that weekend and was also consumed by dozens of folks selling their wares in the yard sale. Cookeville is a fun little town. A few murals, some cool railroad stuff and a few other things that make it a cool place. [caption id="attachment_38780" align="alignnone" width="474"] Cookeville Proud Mural[/caption] [caption id="attachment_38773" align="alignnone" width="471"] Another Cookeville,…

15Nov 2024 by David Kravetz

2023: Year in Travel and Other Stories – Part 3 – June and July

Adventure, Antique Shops, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, Books, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Burger Joints, Cross Country Road Trips, Farmland, Geologic Formations, Kentucky, Landscapes, Less Beaten Paths Books, Murals, Museums, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Monuments, National Parks, Offbeat Places, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Tennessee, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 31, US Highway 70, Wanderlust, Waterfalls, Welcome Signs

The month of June 2023 kicked off a very busy couple of months of travel including some big road trips and a long-awaited and long overdue trip to Florida and the Gulf Coast (see post here). The month started off with a visit to Grayson Lake State Park in Kentucky and the area around it including Carter Caves State Park. We had visited both of these places in the past, so I am not posting much from that first week. However, in mid-June Julianne and a friend went kayaking near Magnolia, Kentucky While they did, I made my to Hodgenville, Kentucky and the Lincoln Heritage areas nearby. Hodgenville has a couple of nice Lincoln statues in the town square. And they have a fairly well known hole in the wall…

09Jul 2024 by David Kravetz

2023: Year in Travel and Other Stories – Part 2 – April and May

Adventure, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Books, Bridges, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Covered Bridges, Family Travel, Farmland, Flowers, Hiking Trails, Kentucky, Landscapes, Mountains, Murals, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Sheltowee Trace, Staycations, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Welcome Signs, Wildflowers

The second quarter of 2023 was not a super busy travel period for me. I was still recovering from my shoulder injury, but was thrilled to begin "breaking in" the new (to us) GX460. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="649"] Mural in McKee, KY[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="651"] Sheltowee Trace near McKee[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="651"] I was struck by the beauty of this old house in McKee, KY[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="651"] Nature on the Sheltowee Trace[/caption] Our first trip was once again associated with the Sheltowee Trace as we traveled to McKee, Kentucky. While Julianne hiked, I drove into the countryside and made a few new discoveries. After her hike we did our traditional Mexican Food restaurant visit, this time hitting up the El Dorado Restaurant in McKee. It was…

05Aug 2023 by David Kravetz

2023 Gulf Coast Road Trip: The Overview

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, BBQ Places, Beaches, Big Cities, Big John, Birds, Books, Bridges, Brown Pelican, Bucket List Trips, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Cities and Towns, City Skylines, Cross Country Road Trips, Eateries, Family Travel, Florida, Found Metal Sculptures, Georgia, Ghost Signs, Giant Things, Graffiti Walls, Highways and Roadways, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Muffler Man, Murals, Museums, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Monuments, Nature and Scenery, Offbeat Places, Peter Wolf Toth, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, Street Art, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Uniroyal Gal, US Highway 98, Wall Art, Wanderlust, Water Towers, Welcome Signs, Whispering Giants, Whispering Giants, Wood Stork, Yard Art

[caption id="attachment_37550" align="alignnone" width="640"] On our way for a fun road trip! Autumn in the front with me and Chelsea and Jorge in the back.[/caption] I was thrilled to finally get in a good road trip in July 2023. My last multi-day road trip took place back in October 2022 when I traveled Route 66 in Illinois to celebrate by 66th birthday. The July 2023 was taken south to the Gulf Coast, then along the coastal highways and eventually into New Orleans. From there were went on to Houston, Keller and Uncertain, all in Texas, before heading back to Kentucky. All in all, we traveled 3001 miles over an eight day period and traveled through ten different states. I say we as on this trip I was accompanied by my…

Category: Place Names