Bridge Walk, St. Ignace and Mackinaw City, Michigan

About this bridge, I have one thing that I must say

It is the once a year chance to stride across the longest suspension bridge in the USA  

For more information, visit: http://www.mackinacbridge.org/annual-bridge-walk-7/

Photos courtesy of MDOT Photography Unit

Holt & Balcom Logging Camp, Lakewood, Wisconsin

Come here and perhaps you might end up staying the night

At Wisconsin's oldest logging camp on its original site

For more information, visit: http://www.holt-balcomloggingcamp.com/

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum, Knoxville, Iowa

Let the fact about this museum be unfurled 

It is the only museum dedicated to preserve the history of "big car" and sprint racing in the world 

The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum, which is located on Iowa Highway 14 near Iowa Highways 5 & 92, is nearing its twenty-fifth full year of operation in 2016.  The $1.7-million facility, situated on the Marion County Fairgrounds in Knoxville, officially opened on January 4, 1992.  The educational museum is open seven days a week, year-round, with the following hours:  10 am – 6 pm, Monday through Friday; Noon – 5 pm, Saturday; and Noon – 5 pm, Sunday.  Admission is four dollars per adult, three dollars per student or senior citizen, with children under the age of five being free. Group discounts are also available. 

The first floor of the four-story structure features the Donald Lamberti National Sprint Car Museum, a museum store and the administrative offices.  The museum currently has twenty-five (25) restored ‘big cars’, supermodifieds and sprint cars on loan.  The 8,000-square-foot exhibit space also contains displays of trophies, paintings, photos, plaques, helmets and other memorabilia of the sport of sprint car racing.

The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum’s “Salute to Champion Doug Wolfgang” special exhibition, featuring seven of his actual race cars, is on display through November 15.  This special exhibition, which follows similar ones honoring Tony Stewart (2011), Jeff Gordon (2012), Mario Andretti (2013) and Steve Kinser (2014), features an exclusive line of apparel in the on-line museum store at www.sprintcarstuff.com.
 

The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame presented by the Pella Rolscreen Foundation is located on the second floor.  The Hall of Fame honors outstanding achievers in the sport of ‘big car’ and sprint car racing, including those in the driver, owner/mechanic and promoter/sanctioning official/media member categories.  The entire nomination and election process is carried out by a 72-member National Induction Committee, which consists of media members, historians and representatives of the major oldtimers organizations from across the United States.  The twenty-seventh National Sprint Car Hall of Fame induction weekend takes place on June 4-5, 2016, with the NSCHoF induction banquet to be held on Saturday afternoon on the Marion County Fairgrounds.  

 

Also located on the museum’s second floor are a Library & Research Center and a 40-seat Theater, made possible by a gift from U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, an Altria company.  In addition, the second floor contains a catering kitchen, an administrative office, a large conference and banquet facility, and a 150-seat Clubhouse overlooking the half-mile Knoxville Raceway dirt track.

The top two floors of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum facility provide outstanding views from turn number two of the legendary oval.  The twenty skyboxes offer 400 patrons a unique setting in which to view the weekly sprint car racing action at Knoxville Raceway.  
 

On-going funding has come from admissions, the museum store and its on-line web site, the leasing of the suites, and a series of grass-roots donor programs.  Some of the more successful museum-benefit fundraising programs have included the “A Brick at a Time” program, the annual and lifetime membership programs, large biennial sprint car raffles, auctions, and golf tournaments.  2015 marks the continuation of the successful “Hall of Fame Night at the Races” series around the country, featuring the museum’s United traveling cargo trailer pulled by the Karl Chevrolet pick-up truck.  This year the foundation participated in seven “Museum Madness” events in seven states, in conjunction with the brand-new National Sprint League (NSL).

 

In September of 2011, the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum Foundation launched a 3-5 year campaign entitled “Expand the Dream.  Donald F. Lamberti, founder and chairman emeritus of Casey’s General Stores, is serving as “Expand the Dream” chairman.  Mr. Lamberti’s explanation of the campaign describes it best: 

 

“Expand the Dream is the first step of ‘second generation growth’ for the NSCHoF&M.  A new Staging and Storage facility will help us keep and preserve the significant racing treasures we know to be coming our way.  A larger endowment will ensure we have the operating strength to stage new exhibits and begin new programs.”

 

The facility expansion will give museum staff the space it needs to store sprint car racing treasures, prepare bigger and better displays, and rotate more items through the museum annually.  Growth of the endowment will hasten the creation of new programs to reach more sprint car fans.  A special incentive, in the form of a significant state income tax credit exists for those living in Iowa and making a commitment to the endowment.

 

For further information on the 501(c)(3) non-profit museum foundation, please contact:

 

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum
One Sprint Capital Place - P.O. Box 542
Knoxville, Iowa 50138

641-842-6176;
641-842-6177 (FAX);
sprintcarhof@sprintcarhof.com
http://www.sprintcarhof.com

 

Inland Aquatics, Terre Haute, Indiana

About this aquarium, I only have one thing to say

It is the largest public coral reef display in the USA

From the business
Specialties
We offer fish that live, aquariums that work, and water features that make your life easier, not harder.
We have the largest selection of tank-raised marine ornamentals on the planet.  All of our wild-collected salt water fish are held for a minimum of 2-6 weeks, depending on species, before we offer them for sale, ensuring that we sell the most robust fish in the industry.
A lot of our stuff is raised right here in the building.  Our facility is over 13,000 sq ft. and we have nearly 40,000 gallons of salt systems alone.
Inland Aquatics has been around since 1993 and is responsible for introducing refugia, deep sand beds, detritivores and Algal Turf Scrubbing to the hobby.  
Our systems utilize ATScrubbers, which grow algae, remove wastes, oxygenate the system, and eliminate the need for monthly water exchanges!
Our staff members are aquarists with lots of experience and our general manager is a marine biologist.
Come check us out.  You won't be disappointed.

History
Established in 1993.
Inland Aquatics was one of what was to be dozens of mariculture facilities, based on the paradigm outlined in Dr. Walter Adey's "Dynamic Aquaria".  Algal Turf Scrubbing allowed us to operate inland and it was hoped that the plankton-friendly systems would allow us to overcome the "first food bottleneck" and raise dozens of new ornamental marine species.
Long story short... it didn't work.  Nevertheless, our systems were incredibly healthy and we set out to revolutionize the aquarium hobby by introducing concepts such as refugiums, deep oolitic sand beds, Detritivore Kits, and Algal Turf Scrubbing to hobbyists.
Because we intended to breed new species, we spent an incredible amount of time and other resources attempting to obtain viable broodstock.  This led to our discovery of Post Traumatic Shipping Disorder (PTSD) and the HUGE number of marine fish that are doomed to die many days or weeks after import.  This is why we hold marine species for so long.

Meet the Manager
Morgan L, Manager
Morgan graduated from IU with an Honors Degree in Biology.  Did independent research into he breeding behavior and teritorriality of cichlids and sticklebacks.
His plans to study at Texas A&M at Galveston were put on hold when he learned of the research of Dr. Walter Adey of the Smitsonian Institute of Natural History.
What was originally intended to be a small live-rock culturing project "in the basement" that would require minimal oversight, "on the weekends" quickly grew into the 13,000 sq foot facility that is now known as "Inland Aquatics."

For more information, visit: http://www.inlandaquatics.com/

Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Alpena, Michigan

If you're a diver, make sure you put on your specs

For the lake bottom harbors more than 80 shipwrecks

For more information, visit: http://thunderbay.noaa.gov/

A diver contemplates the practical bow of the Lucinda Van Valkenburg (1862–1887), a wooden schooner struck by the iron propeller Lehigh in May 1887. As a typical Great Lakes canal schooner, the Van Valkenburg’s bow was less sharp than ocean-going vessels whose design valued speed over cargo space. The centerboard trunk is just visible in the background—another construction feature adapted by Great Lakes shipwrights. The Van Valkenburg lies at a relatively shallow 60 feet; its masts stood out of the water when it first wrecked. 

Photo: NOAA, Thunder Bay NMS.

The sheer size of the “fast-steel flyer” Norman(1890–1895) is evident in this striking photomosaic created by sanctuary archaeologists. The steel bulk freighter, with a net tonnage of 1,870, hauled thousands of tons of material in its short, five-year career. With the hull broken just forward of the boiler house and the ship listing hard to port, the wreck of the Norman, which claimed the lives of three sailors, is an intense dive experience. 

Photo: NOAA, Thunder Bay NMS.

One of the ways sanctuary researchers work to preserve historic shipwrecks is through creating stunning photomosaics, like this one of the schooner Defiance (1848–1854). Future generations of recreational divers, explorers, and archaeologists are depending on us to leave historic shipwrecks intact. Enjoy diving the shipwrecks of Thunder Bay, but always respect the past. Removing or disturbing artifacts is illegal.

Photo: NOAA, Thunder Bay NMS.

A diver practice good buoyancy as they hover over the bow of the schooner E.B. Allen (1864–1871). With its heavy-duty windlass still on deck and anchor chains and rudder still in place, the Allen presents a vivid image of a typical nineteenth-century Great Lakes schooner. 

Photo: NOAA, Thunder Bay NMS

Just below the surface of Lake Huron, a diver photographs the most recent shipwreck within current sanctuary boundaries—the German freighter Nordmeer (1954–1966). The site’s shallow depth (for many years, part of the vessel stood out of the water), and enormous size (almost 500 feet long), divers can enjoy lengthy bottom times as they explore the twisted steel hull.

Photo: NOAA, Thunder Bay NMS

Perrine Bridge, Twin Falls, Idaho

It is best to view Idaho's most spectacular canyon bridge with a companion

It stretches 1,500 feet across the majestic Snake River Canyon

For more information, visit: http://www.visitidaho.org/attraction/outdoor-recreation/perrine-bridge/

http://idahoptv.org/buildingbig/bridges/perrinebridge.html

http://tandembase.com/

http://www.livability.com/id/twin-falls

http://www.visitsouthidaho.com/

Pictures courtesy of the Twin Falls Area Chamber of Commerce