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Best of May 2004

Most Scenic Drive
Michigan Route 22 north from Traverse City to Northport, MI. Groves of cherry blossoms in bloom to the left, Grand Traverse Bay to our right.

Best Day Hike
Miner’s Falls Trail at Pictured Rocks NL. Wildflowers in bloom, cascading falls at the end. Subtle, peaceful charm. Best Weather Day nearly every day this month, except for the nights we happened to be camping.

Most Effective Billboard Slogan
You Gotta Eat (Rally Burger), first seen at the Indianapolis Race Track, Speedway, IN.

Funniest Billboard
Overzealous face of a thoroughbred with the slogan,“Pick Me! Pick Me!” (Hoosier Park Track), northeast of Indianapolis, IN.

Most Curious Billboard
www.americaneedsdirt.com.

Strangest Billboard Endorsement
James Joyce Truck Sales, near Terre Haute, IN.

Best American Kabuki
Indians mascot was just too freaky.

Most Vitriol Inducing Site
Sallie Mae Corporate Complex, northeast of Indianapolis, IN. Anyone with student loans will know.

Most Interesting Name for a Roadside Attraction
Golgotha Fun Park, Cave City, KY.

Most Talked About Natural Phenomenon
the Cicadas are coming! Ohio and Kentucky.

Most Beautiful View
Niagara Falls, NY.

Best Opportunity to Test Michael’s “Jacket of the Year” (Worst Weather Day)
Days 5 and 6 on Isle Royale, MI. Check for our stories later.

Liveliest City Center (Towns)
Covington, KY.

Dullest City Center (Towns)
Buffalo, NY. Yawn.

Cheapest Ballgame Ticket
Free. Incredible Box seats along the third base dugout, Jacobs Field, Cleveland, OH. Thanks Jack and Diane!!

Most Expensive Ballgame Ticket
$18. So-so seats. Expensive concessions (beer more expensive than at Yankee Stadium!) Dud of a game. The Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati, OH.

Ugliest Park Site Surroundings
Hopewell Culture NHP. Not one, but two huge penitentiary complexes flanking either side.

Most Beautiful Park Site Surroundings
Sleeping Bear Dunes NL, MI.

Friendliest People
Kentucky, with special hellos to new friends in Covington, KY. We had just finished dinner at an outdoor bar and were ready to catch the bus back to Cincinnati when John and Kathy moved over to our table, started chatting and convinced us to stick around. Within minutes we were welcomed into their circle of friends, which grew exponentially through the night. They convinced us to miss the bus 15 more times and were kind enough to give us a lift back to our Ohio hotel. You guys rock.

Michael’s friend from Kentucky (who is actually currently living in Spain) emailed to apologize that he was not home to welcome us to his beloved state. Now that’s friendly.

Ugliest Capitol Building
Columbus, OH. Where’s the dome?

Most Beautiful Capitol Building
Lansing, MI. Thanks to a recent refurbishment. And we got a commemorative coin.

Biggest Disappointment
First Ladies NHS, Canton, OH

Most Pleasant Surprise
Tie
* James A. Garfield NHS, Mentor, OH
* The lovely town of Grand Marais, MN

Best Sporting Experience
Second Day of Qualifying for the Indy 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, IN.

Best Long Hike
Day 3 on Isle Royale, MI. 0 people. 6 moose. Clear views of Thunder Bay (Canada) to the north across Lake Superior.

Highest Price for Gas
$2.05 at two Holiday gas stations, Duluth, MN and Admiral Petroleum, Marquette, MN.
Note: lest Holiday gas get a bad rep, they were at least 5 cents cheaper than all of their competitors.

Lowest Price for Gas
$1.79 Sheetz, Erie, PA

Most Out of the Way Site
Isle Royale, MI

Best Pizza
Sausage and Mozzarella Flatbread at the Duluth Athletic Club, downtown Duluth, MN. Real marinara sauce.

Best Local Cuisine
Buffalo wings at the Anchor Bar, Buffalo, NY.

Best Waiter/Waitress
Divine at the Friday Night Fish Fry at the Vierling Restaurant, Marquette, MI.

Best Bartender(s)
Highbeck Bar Columbus, OH. We were treated like locals and pulled into friendly political discussion before we even sat on the barstools and before we even told them we were sent to them by a former regular.

Worst Acting in a National Park Service Film
Re-enactment of British Siege on Fort Stanwix NM, Rome, NY.

Most Unexpected Local Pronunciation
Houghton, MI, pronounced by locals as HO-tn. Make your mouth as round as you can while saying the first syllable to get the correct effect.

Ashland, WI • Bloomington, IN • Brecksville, OH • Buffalo, NY • Calumet, MI • Canastota, NY • Canton, OH • Chillicothe, OH • Cincinnati, OH • Circleville, OH • Clermont, KY • Cleveland Heights, OH • Cleveland, OH • Columbus, OH • Covington, KY • Dayton, OH • Duluth, MN • East Lansing, MI • Empire, MI • Frankfort, KY • Grand Marais, MN • Hodgenville, KY • Houghton, MI • Indianapolis, IN • Jeffersonville, IN • Lansing, MI • Lincoln City, IN • Loretto, KY • Louisville, KY • Mackinaw City, MI • Mammoth Cave, KY • Marquette, MI • Mentor, OH • Niagara Falls, NY • Peninsula, OH • Put-in-Bay, OH • Rome, NY • Seneca Falls, NY • Speedway, IN • St. Ignace, MI • Syracuse, NY • Toledo, OH • Traverse City, MI • Vincennes, IN •

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace NHS • Apostle Islands NL • Cuyahoga Valley NP • David A. Berger NMEM • Dayton Aviation Heritage NHP • Father Marquette NMEM • First Ladies NHS • Fort Stanwix NM • George Rogers Clark NHP • Hopewell Culture NHP • Isle Royale NP • James A. Garfield NHS • Keewanaw NHP • Lincoln Boyhood NMEM • Mammoth Cave NP • Ohio & Erie Canal NHC • Perry’s Victory & International Peace Memorial • Pictured Rocks NL • Pro Football Hall of Fame • Sleeping Bear Dunes NL • Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural NHS • William Howard Taft NHS • Women’s Rights NHP •

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