News from the offbeat tourist attraction landscape of Roadside America.
Sightings Vol. 14, No. 3 - April 3, 2018
Sightings

Disorientation Vacation

Some roadside attractions, the really out-there ones, relish gobbling up and dissolving visitors in the stomach acid of sensory experience. A chaos-driven art collective in New Mexico converted an abandoned bowling alley into a sci-fi multiverse of video hamsters and musical lasers -- the House of Eternal Return. Weird. Meanwhile, in the hills of Tennessee, Chris Katsner singlehandedly transformed his grandpappy's farm into Backyard Terrors Dinosaur Park, a warren of thunder lizards. And -- of course -- a giant walk-in cannibal clown head.

House of Eternal Return

Backyard Terrors Dinosaur Park

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Secret Farmhouse of the Redwood Coast

Secret Farmhouse.

It looks like an ordinary barn -- if a barn had cinderblock walls, steel windows, and gun ports. It’s the U.S. military's Secret Station B-71. Story

 

Buffalo Bill Kill Statue

Buffalo Bill Kill Statue.

William Cody didn't get his "Buffalo Bill" nickname because he liked them. He earned it by killing them. And for a few hours, on the spot marked by this massive statue, Bill made it a particularly bad day to be a buffalo. Story

 

The Babson Boulders

>The Babson Boulders.

Before Roger Babson died he had his beliefs carved into big rocks along a wooded trail. "Help Mother." "Be On Time." "Get A Job." He also tried to pick a fight with Gravity. Story

 

Mare Island Shipyard Museum

Mare Island Shipyard Museum.

The U.S. Navy's first west coast installation that supported the Pacific fleet -- from wooden sloops-of-war to nuclear missile subs. Museum has a working periscope, a River Rat, a Man of Balls, and a Wall of Hammers. Story

 

Hollywood Cars Museum

Hollywood Cars Museum.

Don't let the name fool you; this place is pure Las Vegas, with the glittery vehicles of Liberace, a Bonnie and Clyde Death Car, and a 40-foot limo with a heart-shaped hot tub. Story

 

Relics of the World's Largest Man

Relics of the World's Largest Man.

Most of Robert Wadlow's Size XXXXXL odds and ends were destroyed after his death by his average-size mom. A few mementoes survive in his hometown museum in Illinois. Story

 

World's Largest Overall

World's Largest Overalls.

While we're in the tall men's department, what about the "World's Largest Overall?" They've loomed at the Nebraska State Fairgrounds for years. Perhaps the most amazing thing is that no one there knows how big they are. And someone misplaced the tape measure. Story

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Trunkations Blog: Queen of the Air

Queen of the Air.

America’s first flying machine? The bullet-like iron-riveted “Queen of the Air” supposedly flew in 1860, powered by a mysterious motor, and resembles a Jules Verne lunar projectile. Story

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Barely outrunning the cannibal clown head,
The RoadsideAmerica.com Team

Spotted by Tipsters

Spotted by Tipsters

Buried under all those pins is the Shopping Center Tomb of Miss Dynamite, a dog with pen pals including Presidents and astronauts. A Kentucky discovery by tipster Peter Zillmann.

Latest Tips

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Apps & Tools

Roadside America iPhone app

Roadside America (iPhone)
v1.9.1 filters maps by Editor Rating and Been Theres, can export Saves and Been Theres for use on a 2nd device. Full app includes 12,000+ USA/Canada offbeat attractions, research targets, interactive Near Me maps. New places and "research targets" added frequently! Quirky categories, top-rated recommendations. Navigate with Waze, Google or Apple Maps.

$2.99 on the App Store (includes access to 1 of 7 regions); addtl. regions or "All Access" unlock is optional in-app purchase.
iPhone, iPod touch (iPad compatible)

*****

Roadside Presidents iPhone app

Roadside Presidents App for iPhone
Updated v1.6. U.S. Presidents, VPs, First Ladies, even dastardly assassins -- visit where they lived, worked, played, died! Updated for faster performance, with place maps, President 45, and turn-by-turn directions via Waze, Google or Apple Maps.

$2.99 iPhone, iPod touch, (iPad compatible). Available on the App Store.

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Roadside America My Sights Planner My Sights Route Planner - Save places you read about on Roadside America, create a trip, email it to friends or export a .cvs file to upload onto a GPS device (Garmin, TomTom, etc.). Learn more

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Main image: "Glowquarium" from the House of Eternal Return.