Linda A. Tancs's Blog: The Long and Short of It, page 86

The Dismal Swamp

By Linda Tancs

Legend has it that New Jersey’s Dismal Swamp got its name from nearby Dismal Brook. That may be true, but don’t let the dreary name deceive you. It’s actually a wildlife preserve spanning parts of suburban Edison, Metuchen and South Plainfield, one of the last remaining wetlands in a highly urbanized environment. Designated a “priority wetland” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, it also features upland deciduous forests with mature trees and more than 165 bird species like green herons, yellow-billed cuckoos, eastern phoebes and songbirds. That’s far from dismal, which is why the name of the preserve was recently changed to the Peter J. Barnes III Wildlife Preserve. It’s been renamed to honor an elected official who helped form the Dismal Swamp Preservation Commission to save the wetlands.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

An Elizabethan Adventure

By Linda Tancs

Longleat House is a stately manor in Wiltshire, England. Ancestral home of the Marquesses of Bath, it’s one of the finest examples of high Elizabethan architecture in the country. As one might expect of such a dwelling, it’s filled with exquisite art, an extensive library, an ornate Great Hall and a soaring staircase. What you might not expect is a safari park. That’s right—the grounds include a drive-through safari featuring lions, tigers, monkeys, a rescued elephant and an African Village offering up-close access and walk-throughs. Additionally, you’ll find native deer, which have occupied the estate since the 16th century.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Guardian of the Flooded Village

By Linda Tancs

A 350-year-old Scots pine grows on the rocky headland of a reservoir called Vír in the Czech Republic. It’s known as “Guardian of the Flooded Village,” referring to the village of Chudobín, which was submerged after construction of the dam. The striking pose of this memento of the lost village earned it first place in Europe’s “Tree of the Year” contest. The contest is organized annually by a consortium of European environmental groups looking for trees with the most interesting stories.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

A Zoo Down the Jersey Shore

By Linda Tancs

Visitors to Cape May County, New Jersey, flock to its famous shores. But there’s a different sort of flock worth seeing, like bison and bongo, oryx and ibis. These are just a few of the animals at Cape May County Park & Zoo at Cape May Court House, New Jersey. The grounds boast 85 acres hosting about 550 animals representing more than 250 species. Open year round except Christmas Day, entry is free. For some special, behind-the-scenes access, you can opt to pay for a camel, giraffe or reptile encounter or a private, guided tour of the facility.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Grandeur in Belfast

By Linda Tancs

Barnett Demesne is a historic estate-turned-public park in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It features a stunning Georgian mansion, Malone House, last owned by William Barnett, for whom the park is named. The estate grounds remain relatively unchanged since the 1820s and comprise marshland, meadows and woodland. Go now and you might catch some of the 70 species of wildflowers growing in the meadows. The grounds are popular with walkers and cyclists.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

The City of Gnomes

By Linda Tancs

Garden gnomes are regarded as symbols of good luck. Produced in Germany in the early 1800s, they were commonly referred to in German fairy tales. Their popularity reportedly increased when they reached English gardens in the 1840s, where groundskeeping is an art form. No less popular today, they’re ubiquitous in gardens and lawns around the world. So it should come as no surprise that these ornaments have their own community. You’ll find it at Gnomesville in Australia’s Ferguson Valley. The precise location is off the roundabout linking Wellington Mill Road and Ferguson Road. No one knows why the city of gnomes appeared but, apparently, a custom has developed whereby gnome owners may leave one at the site provided that they indicate its place of origin. Currently, the site boasts over 5,000 ornaments hailing from places like New York, England, Ireland and Spain. Needless to say, it’s quite a tourist attraction and offers a picnic area.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Wild Cats in Poland

By Linda Tancs

Located in the southernmost portion of Poland, Bieszczady National Park is one of the country’s largest national parks. It holds the distinction of being part of the first UNESCO biosphere reserve to be located in three countries, complemented by sections in Ukraine and Slovakia. It might be better known, though, as a home to the once highly-endangered Eurasian lynx, as evidenced by the wildcat’s likeness as the park’s logo. One of Europe’s largest predators, the lynx finds a safe haven in this park thanks to its extensive mountain forests. You might spot a European wildcat or two as well.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Early Brick in England

By Linda Tancs

Brick was fashionable and new in the 15th century. So it’s not surprising that it would become the building material of choice for Herstmonceux Castle in Hailsham, England. The 15th-century, moated castle is one of the earliest examples of a brick-built building in the country. In addition to guided tours of the castle, you can enjoy 300 acres of serenity in managed woodland with beautiful themed and formal gardens. But now, during August bank holiday, that serenity is broken by the Medieval Festival, billed as the largest of its kind in the U.K. Activities include jousting, banquets, twice daily battles, living history encampments, falconry and archery.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Hawaiian History in Canada

By Linda Tancs

Canada’s Gulf Islands are scattered across the Salish Sea between Vancouver and Southern Vancouver Island. Much of that natural oasis comprises Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, a place teeming with trails leading to mountaintop viewpoints, lighthouses and reminders of First Nations and pioneer pasts. Part of that pioneering past involves Hawaiians who homesteaded there. In fact, by the 1870s Hawaiians began settling in the Gulf Islands after the U.S. Government began passing legislation preventing them from becoming American citizens or owning land. In British Columbia they continued their work in the maritime fur trade and became landowners, farmers and fishermen. Part of that Hawaiian history is preserved on Russell Island at the Mahoi house, where descendants of Maria Mahoi (the sole heir to the island in 1901) share family stories about Kanaka (Hawaiian) settlement.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.

Maryland’s Ties to Yorkshire

By Linda Tancs

George Calvert found favor with England’s James I. The King made him Baron Baltimore and granted him a charter to found a colony in America, which became the State of Maryland. Meanwhile, Calvert built North Yorkshire’s Kiplin Hall in the early 1620s as a hunting lodge. And so began the ties between Maryland and a British manor house that many Marylanders regard as their birthplace. The Jacobean house displays furniture, portraits, paintings and the personal belongings of the four families who have owned it over the past 400 years. You can thank residents of Maryland for its preservation, considering their funding of renovations following the hall’s abandonment in the 1950s after the death of the last owner. Enjoy the historic rooms (which you can freely roam) as well as long walks around the man-made lake, parkland and woodland paths.

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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.