Twelve Mile Circle – An Appreciation of Unusual Places

Tag: Virginia

  • All Ways – Every Cardinal Direction

    I put a little throwaway comment at the tail-end of my recent All Ways South article. There I demonstrated that someone could travel due south from Missouri into each of its eight neighboring states from at least one point along their shared borders. As I thought about it I noted, “Come to think of it,…

  • Loudoun Wine Adventure

    Fair warning. This article is going to resemble a travelogue more than a discussion of geo-oddities. I figure I can change the rules occasionally for self-indulgent reasons so I hope you don’t mind. Come back in a couple of days if you’re more a fan of the usual content on Twelve Mile Circle. The in-laws…

  • Railroad Ferry

    Ferries for trains? I thought it might be a late April Fool’s joke when I first encountered the possibility. They do exist. For the sake of accuracy I should note that operators do uncouple the railcars into shorter segments. The entire train doesn’t simply roll onto a ship in one long string. I’d love to…

  • Carnage, Slaughter and Mayhem

    I enjoy corresponding with Steve from Connecticut Museum Quest. We seem to have a similar appreciation for maps, odd coincidences and strangely-named places. I first came across Steve and his wonderfully-written CTMQ as I investigated the Southwick Jog more than three years ago. I think Mystic Seaport may be the only Connecticut museum I’ve ever…

  • You’re Invited – 12MC Happy Hour

    Finally, at long last, I get to announce definitive plans for a Twelve Mile Circle Happy Hour on the American Meridian Line, in the Washington, DC area. This has been a long time coming. We couldn’t meet just anywhere. It had to involve a genuine geo-oddity of sufficient stature befitting this group. Venue became critically…

  • Off Season

    I read an interesting article the other day about Chincoteague, a tiny town on Virginia’s eastern shore (map). It’s a place probably best known for its annual wild pony roundup. The ponies live on Assateague Island just a short distance away. So each year a local volunteer fire department and it’s “saltwater cowboys” swim the…

  • Jamestown Field Trip

    I had the pleasure of serving as a parent chaperone for my son’s school field trip to Jamestown last week. Admittedly, the thought of accompanying two busloads of children aged nine-to-ten sounded a bit daunting. And of course it definitely had its challenges at times. I thought it was going to unfold like an uglier…

  • My Little Poni

    I completed my annual business trip to Williamsburg, Virginia earlier this week. I’ve featured articles arising from these periodic visits in the past including A Colonial Capital, The Jamestown-Scotland Ferry and Revisiting the Swap. I felt like I’d mined that area rather extensively. I had no plans to report anything further. Something made me smile…

  • Better Sister Cities

    Sister Cities International’s mission promotes “peace through mutual respect, understanding, & cooperation — one individual, one community at a time.” I find that laudable although I wonder how they establish these relationships. Does it involve some sort of affinity perspective or does someone simply say, “hey, wanna be our sister city?” My hometown — Arlington,…

  • Circling the MDVAWV Tripoint

    I tagged along while my wife attended a work-related conference in West Virginia’s eastern panhandle. The in-laws watched the kids back home. That provided me with a rare couple of days to wander around the woods while my wife schmoozed with conference attendees. The area was amazingly rich in significant events that shaped a nation.…