Twelve Mile Circle – An Appreciation of Unusual Places

Category: United Kingdom

  • Random Selection, UK

    Google Maps released a huge set of Street View images for the United Kingdom a few days ago as you’ve undoubtedly learned on all of the geo-blogs by now. This extends the level of coverage for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to upwards of 95% of the road infrastructure. I’m sure you’ve had an…

  • Northernmost England. Maybe.

    Berwick-upon-Tweed is the northernmost town in England. However, due to geography and history it also holds a lot in common with Scotland. First, notice it’s peculiar location along the River Tweed: specifically the northern side of the River Tweed. How did a little piece of England find its way to the opposite side of a…

  • Enclaves within Dhekelia

    Cyprus. One island split so many different ways. There’s the de facto partitioning between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. And there’s the United Nations buffer zone created along the ceasefire line. Finally, there’s the British Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. This isn’t about any of those divisions. Rather the three, well actually four, tiny…

  • Winnipeg’s Famous Namesake

    My young son went to day camp at the local nature center on Friday. The topic was bears and he was pleased to spring a “did you know” on us as we sat around the dinner table. So he proved once again that anyone can learn important lessons from a seven-year-old. His mastery of animal…

  • The Tiny One

    Which is the smallest of the following cities located within the United Kingdom: Cardiff, Edinburgh, Belfast or London? Most assuredly this is a trick question. Try not to over-think it. OK, I can see all of our readers in the UK raising their hands, saying “pick me, I know, I know.” Of course you do,…

  • England’s Desert

    England has a desert? When I think desert, I normally envision cacti, sand, camels and that sort of thing, but that’s an inaccurate and stereotypical point of view. A desert doesn’t require scorching heat. Antarctica qualifies as a desert. Some sources even claim that even England has a desert. It is located at Dungeness, a…

  • From Britain to Iceland by Automobile

    Certainly one of the more pressing questions of our time is whether someone can use an automobile to travel between Britain and Iceland. By “pressing” I mean of importance to me naturally, because the questions that press upon my mind are rather simplistic. Maybe you are feeling a little curious too. Can someone drive from…

  • Glasgow or Madrid?

    Think quickly: Which city is further west, Glasgow, Scotland or Madrid, Spain? If you’re a cynic like me you’d guess Madrid. Of course, you’d figure it was a trick question whether you “knew” the answer or not. You’d also be wrong. Glasgow is indeed further west than Madrid. However, if I substituted Edinburgh, Scotland for…

  • The Most Remote Town in Mainland Britain

    If you’re like me, maybe you’ve had a little too much of the Holidays, a little too much quality time with the in-laws. Perhaps now you’re ready for some solitude. It would need to be a quiet, out of the way place where nobody would think to look, but not so remote as to be…

  • Lowest Elevation in England

    When one considers elevations below sea level, England doesn’t normally come to mind. Maybe someone thinks of the Dead Sea or Death Valley or parts of the Netherlands as natural choices. But England? Indeed, England’s lowest elevation actually sits below sea level by almost three metres. This spot exists at Holme Fen (map) in Cambridgeshire.…