Texas – Less Beaten Paths of America

18Feb 2025 by David Kravetz No Comments

2024 in Review: Roadside Attractions – Part 3 – Whimsical and Unique Roadside Attractions

Adventure, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Big Cities, Books, Car Art, Cross Country Road Trips, Dinosaurs, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Horse Art, Horses, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kansas, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Museums, Mythical Creatures, National Monuments, National Parks, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Route 66, Sculpture Parks, Selfies, Tennessee, Texas, Tourist Traps, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Unique Shops, West Virginia, Wood Carved Bears

MORE WHIMSY FOUND ON THE ROAD This is the final post for unique roadside attractions from 2024. This one is a hodge-podge of interesting attractions and even a few "seasonal" things that were whimsical and fun that I found along the roads of America. [caption id="attachment_39633" align="alignnone" width="452"] Goofing around with the Welcome Bear at Brizendine Brothers Nature Park in Greenville, Kentucky[/caption] Slack Plaza Sculptures - Charleston, West Virginia Two 16-foot-tall whimsical musicians (plus a smaller dog) were installed in Charleston's Slack Plaza in December 2021. Sculpted by Pittsburgh artist James Simon, they were created to show off West Virginia's Appalachian music history. [caption id="attachment_39370" align="alignnone" width="422"] Charleston Slack Plaza Banjo player and dog[/caption] [caption id="attachment_39362" align="alignnone" width="437"] Charleston Slack Plaza fiddle player[/caption] Brother Morgan - Giant Warhammer Figure -…

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…

29Jan 2025 by David Kravetz

2024 in Review: Roadside Attractions – Part 1 – The Big Stuff

Adventure, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, Cross Country Road Trips, Dinosaurs, Eateries, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Garth Brooks, Giant Things, Illinois, Indiana, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kansas, Kentucky, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Muffler Man, Murals, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Oklahoma, Quirky Things, Roadside America Books, Roadside Attractions, Sasquatch Art, Selfies, Street Art, Tennessee, Texas, Tourist Traps, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, West Virginia, Yard Art

At the beginning of 2024 I had hopes of traveling across the country to Washington State, but sadly, that didn't work out. Sickness, job losses and other challenges seriously reduced my travels. Despite all of that, I still was able to get some travel in. I had the opportunity to travel to or through eleven different states as I visited my sister in Texas and in Oklahoma. She also traveled with me on a couple of occasions. I also made trips to Ohio for family, a small trip to West Virginia and trips to Indiana and Missouri for my late 2024 job with Uranus Fudge Factory while it lasted. Along the way, as is my travel routine, I hit up numerous road side attractions and oddities. I had a few…

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…

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…

24Jun 2023 by David Kravetz

Planning a Road Trip Sumoflam Style: 2023

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, BBQ Places, Books, Bucket List Trips, Burger Joints, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Mississippi, Offbeat Places, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside America Books, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Unique Shops

If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there. - George Harrison As summer approaches we all get excited about travel of some sort. For me, it is a long road trip on back roads that I look forward to. There is so much to see in this great country of ours. And, despite my having been to all 50 states, there is so much I have yet to see and experience. I am going to share my travel planning secrets and methodologies in this post. Have traveled well over 2 million road miles in my 66 years -- including a few years as a tour guide and charter bus driver. In all of those miles I have learned a few things. And, of course, I…

29Apr 2023 by David Kravetz

Unique Town Names Redux 2023

Adventure, Alabama, Arkansas, Backroads Discoveries, Bike Trails, Books, California, Church Signs, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Indiana, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Louisiana, Maryland, Murals, Nebraska, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Selfies, Tennessee, Texas, Town Names, Unique Places, US Highway 77, US Highway 87, Volunteer Fire Departments, Water Towers, Welcome Signs

Back in 2017 I published the first book in my Less Beaten Paths of America travel book series. Titled "Unique Named Towns," I featured a number of towns and places that I had visited over the years. You can see (and even order) that book on Amazon if interested. Since then, I have continued to travel and come across the unique, fun and quirky places. This post is all about these great places. However, don't expect any fantastic scenery pictures in this post. Signs and selfies with signs aren't really anything to shout home about, but they do tell the story of how fun America can be. I am only adding a few for fun here. [caption id="attachment_26768" align="alignnone" width="358"] Less Beaten Paths books[/caption] In writing this, I want to…

16May 2022 by David Kravetz

Towns of America A to Z: The S Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Arizona, Arkansas, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Books, California, Canada, Cross Country Road Trips, Delaware, Distilleries, Family Travel, Flowers, Ghost Signs, Graffiti Walls, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Landscapes, Large Statues, Less Beaten Paths Books, Missouri, Mountains, Mountains, Murals, National and State Parks, Historic Sites and More, National Parks, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Offbeat Places, Ontario, Oregon, Place Names, Post Offices, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Route 66, Sandhill Cranes, Selfies, Signs and Billboards, States and Provinces, Street Art, Texas, Tourist Traps, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, Unique Shops, Volunteer Fire Departments, Washington, Welcome Signs, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Yard Art

Sadly, I didn't get all of these posted with the month of April, but I most certainly want to finish. I am like the guy in the 5K that shows up last....at least I will complete the race. So, the biggest list of town names in the alphabet is probably those that begin with the letter S. There are a load of towns and places, but I will limit them to a readable amount. I do have some fun names at the end. ENJOY THE READ! ENJOY THE RIDE! SANDWICH, NEW HAMPSHIRE [caption id="attachment_15115" align="alignnone" width="522"] Sandwich Historical Society - Sandwich, New Hampshire[/caption] [caption id="attachment_15107" align="alignnone" width="516"] Signposts in Sandwich, NH. No restaurants![/caption] Hungry? Maybe a sandwich? If so, don't visit Sandwich, New Hampshire as there is not a place…

25Apr 2022 by David Kravetz

Towns of America A to Z: The Q Towns #atozchallenge

A to Z Challenge, Adventure, Airlines, Antique Shops, Arizona, Back Roads, Backroads Discoveries, Bison, Books, Bridges, Buffalo, Buildings, Barns and Houses, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Junk Art, Junk-art Sculptures, Kentucky, Less Beaten Paths Books, Murals, Museums, Offbeat Places, Ohio, Place Names, Quirky Things, Roadside Attractions, Roadsigns, Signs and Billboards, Texas, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Unique Shops, US Highway 1, Welcome Signs

Tis will be one of the Quicker reads for y'all since there are not many places that begin with the letter Q and I have been to even less of them. However, I will queue up a few for your viewing enjoyment. Honestly, since I watch a lot of TV, and have a liking for Family Guy, I ALMOST included Quahog, Rhode Island in this post. This is the town where the Griffin family resides. Quahog (pronunced KO-hog) has about 800 people and even has a Zip Code of 00093. Ironically, there is town in Rhode Island called Quonochontaug (pronounced kwan-a-kan-tawg) located a couple of miles south of US 1 on the Atlantic Coast, but I have not been there (though I have been to Rhode Island). It is actually…

Category: Texas