In Montana, researchers are trying to keep skiers, snowboarders, and others safer on backcountry slopes.In This Storyfrom the snowmobile, Doug Chabot knew that something was off. His uphill-equipped skis sunk deep into the snow, deeper than they should have. Weak snow, he noted, as he followed the track left by his partner’s skis. The two figures ascended the slope of Lionhead Ridge, a popular backcountry skiing area in southwest , just north of .It was November 24, and snow was falling. Little had come down over the past month; some patches were so thin that Chabot, an avalanche forecaster...…In Montana, researchers are trying to keep skiers, snowboarders, and others safer on backcountry slopes.In This Storyfrom the snowmobile, Doug Chabot knew that something was off. His uphill-equipped skis sunk deep into the snow, deeper than they should have. Weak snow, he noted, as he followed the track left by his partner’s skis. The two figures ascended the slope of Lionhead Ridge, a popular backcountry skiing area in southwest , just north of .It was November 24, and snow was falling. Little had come down over the past month; some patches were so thin that Chabot, an avalanche forecaster...WW…

a moment, if you will. They’re those flat pieces of semi-hard plastic formed into a sort of barbed U-shape—you know the ones. They can be found keeping bread bags all over the world closed and safe from spoilage, smartly designed to be used and reused. They’re all around us, constantly providing an amazing service, and yet still, they’re taken for granted. And it turns out they’re almost exclusively all produced by a single, family-owned company.Kwik Lok, based in Yakima, Washington, has been manufacturing these little tabs ever since their founder whittled the first one from a credit card....…a moment, if you will. They’re those flat pieces of semi-hard plastic formed into a sort of barbed U-shape—you know the ones. They can be found keeping bread bags all over the world closed and safe from spoilage, smartly designed to be used and reused. They’re all around us, constantly providing an amazing service, and yet still, they’re taken for granted. And it turns out they’re almost exclusively all produced by a single, family-owned company.Kwik Lok, based in Yakima, Washington, has been manufacturing these little tabs ever since their founder whittled the first one from a credit card....WW…

Top Places in Virginiabeloved pony in children’s literature is preserved in more than just books and movies. The body of the real-life Misty of Chincoteague is displayed for all to see. Her pinto coat still looks fluffy and shiny, and her lifeless eyes still hold hints of the sweetness that endeared her to children around the world.Marguerite Henry was inspired to write her book Misty of Chincoteague while spending a summer on the titular island in 1946. Henry was there to witness the annual pony swim and auction. This long-time tradition involved “Saltwater Cowboys” rounding up feral...…Top Places in Virginiabeloved pony in children’s literature is preserved in more than just books and movies. The body of the real-life Misty of Chincoteague is displayed for all to see. Her pinto coat still looks fluffy and shiny, and her lifeless eyes still hold hints of the sweetness that endeared her to children around the world.Marguerite Henry was inspired to write her book Misty of Chincoteague while spending a summer on the titular island in 1946. Henry was there to witness the annual pony swim and auction. This long-time tradition involved “Saltwater Cowboys” rounding up feral...WW…

A sickly, oil-spattered crab.In This Storyhe even saw the seafloor. It was 2017 and he had come down with a virus on a month-long research cruise; he was recuperating in his room to avoid infecting his colleagues at the Louisiana University Marine Consortium (LUMCON). From 6,000 feet below, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) was transmitting a live feed of the site of the Deepwater Horizon accident—the first images of it taken since 2010. Releasing some four million barrels of oil over 87 days, it was the largest accidental marine oil spill ever recorded, a seething, black apocalypse across...…A sickly, oil-spattered crab.In This Storyhe even saw the seafloor. It was 2017 and he had come down with a virus on a month-long research cruise; he was recuperating in his room to avoid infecting his colleagues at the Louisiana University Marine Consortium (LUMCON). From 6,000 feet below, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) was transmitting a live feed of the site of the Deepwater Horizon accident—the first images of it taken since 2010. Releasing some four million barrels of oil over 87 days, it was the largest accidental marine oil spill ever recorded, a seething, black apocalypse across...WW…

Tools and ingredients used thousands of years ago in Texas are still utilized today.In This Storylie the remains of a gravel floor and wall. While it may seem unassuming, it’s what’s left of the oldest-known house in North America. Just outside the home is a cooking site strewn with the ancient traces of meals cooked with fire. This is where the history of what can be called Texas Mexican food begins, and where it gets its character as comida casera, or home-cooked food.The house is one of the extraordinary findings at the Gault Archaeological Site. Between 1999 and 2002, researchers...…Tools and ingredients used thousands of years ago in Texas are still utilized today.In This Storylie the remains of a gravel floor and wall. While it may seem unassuming, it’s what’s left of the oldest-known house in North America. Just outside the home is a cooking site strewn with the ancient traces of meals cooked with fire. This is where the history of what can be called Texas Mexican food begins, and where it gets its character as comida casera, or home-cooked food.The house is one of the extraordinary findings at the Gault Archaeological Site. Between 1999 and 2002, researchers...WW…

Top Places in Connecticuttucked on the border of and there’s a sign reading “Food and Books.” And, of course, at any restaurant there’s going to be food, but be prepared for the books. With each purchase, customers are invited to take home any book in the restaurant’s impressive collection. They give away an estimated 1,000 to 2,000 books each week to hungry bookworms. The walls of the Traveler Restaurant in Union are lined with books. On the shelves edging the tables are westerns, cookbooks, pulpy paperbacks, children’s books, and romance novels. The vibe is decidedly comfortable diner...…Top Places in Connecticuttucked on the border of and there’s a sign reading “Food and Books.” And, of course, at any restaurant there’s going to be food, but be prepared for the books. With each purchase, customers are invited to take home any book in the restaurant’s impressive collection. They give away an estimated 1,000 to 2,000 books each week to hungry bookworms. The walls of the Traveler Restaurant in Union are lined with books. On the shelves edging the tables are westerns, cookbooks, pulpy paperbacks, children’s books, and romance novels. The vibe is decidedly comfortable diner...WW…

Top Places in Washingtonthe Kitsap Peninsula is playfully known as “Little Norway on the Fjord” has been the home to a Nordic population since its very founding.Pronounced “pauls-bow,” the town name’s strange spelling is the result of one of the town founders who, when filling out an application for township to the Postmaster general, had such bad handwriting that the postmaster misread his messy scrawl and the town has been officially “misspelled” ever since.A nordic village similar to  in dedication to recreation, Poulsbo is as Norwegian as one can get without traveling to the “the...…Top Places in Washingtonthe Kitsap Peninsula is playfully known as “Little Norway on the Fjord” has been the home to a Nordic population since its very founding.Pronounced “pauls-bow,” the town name’s strange spelling is the result of one of the town founders who, when filling out an application for township to the Postmaster general, had such bad handwriting that the postmaster misread his messy scrawl and the town has been officially “misspelled” ever since.A nordic village similar to  in dedication to recreation, Poulsbo is as Norwegian as one can get without traveling to the “the...WW…

Duchess "Charity" Quamino was renowned for her piety and her plum cake.In This StoryNewport, Rhode Island, the corner where Farewell and Warner streets cross is sacred ground. Here, inside the city’s oldest public cemetery, is the area known as , the country’s oldest and largest collection of burial markers of both free and enslaved Africans.During the summer months, when tourists flock to the seaport, lush green blades of grass surround the markers. And when cold winds replace the blustery summer breeze, the stones defiantly jut out from the snow. About 200 markers stand in this small...…Duchess "Charity" Quamino was renowned for her piety and her plum cake.In This StoryNewport, Rhode Island, the corner where Farewell and Warner streets cross is sacred ground. Here, inside the city’s oldest public cemetery, is the area known as , the country’s oldest and largest collection of burial markers of both free and enslaved Africans.During the summer months, when tourists flock to the seaport, lush green blades of grass surround the markers. And when cold winds replace the blustery summer breeze, the stones defiantly jut out from the snow. About 200 markers stand in this small...WW…

Longview bridge is in the foreground; Mt. St. Helens is beginning its eruption in the background.has a routine: Every time she’s in southeast Portland, she checks the big Goodwill there for film cameras with exposed, undeveloped film. She’ll take the film to , a shop with a love for older technology, and have it developed. “They are one of the best labs in the country for developing old, expired, or out-of-production film,” she writes in an email.In May, she found an Argus C2, which was manufactured in the late ’30s and early ’40s, with a roll of undeveloped film in it. It was Kodachrome...…Longview bridge is in the foreground; Mt. St. Helens is beginning its eruption in the background.has a routine: Every time she’s in southeast Portland, she checks the big Goodwill there for film cameras with exposed, undeveloped film. She’ll take the film to , a shop with a love for older technology, and have it developed. “They are one of the best labs in the country for developing old, expired, or out-of-production film,” she writes in an email.In May, she found an Argus C2, which was manufactured in the late ’30s and early ’40s, with a roll of undeveloped film in it. It was Kodachrome...WW…

There aren’t many places in the world that invoke pure joy like a theme park or amusement park—the rides, the food, the decor, they’re all screwy. But they don’t last forever. Some don’t really even get a chance to start. In many places both fun and funds run dry, leaving behind a unique kind of abandoned space, where you can almost hear the laughter and the screams in an uninhabited ruin. Just off Highway 12 in Onsted, Michigan, a collection of fiberglass prehistoric creatures still roam the forest. First opened in 1963, the Prehistoric Forest lured highway travelers in with its massive...…There aren’t many places in the world that invoke pure joy like a theme park or amusement park—the rides, the food, the decor, they’re all screwy. But they don’t last forever. Some don’t really even get a chance to start. In many places both fun and funds run dry, leaving behind a unique kind of abandoned space, where you can almost hear the laughter and the screams in an uninhabited ruin. Just off Highway 12 in Onsted, Michigan, a collection of fiberglass prehistoric creatures still roam the forest. First opened in 1963, the Prehistoric Forest lured highway travelers in with its massive...WW…