The Largest Island in A Lake on An Island in A Lake on An Island In the World

by Willy Volk on

If reading the title of this post didn’t give you the Vulcan mind meld, and you’re still with us, then good: let’s go.

Elbruz has compiled an interesting list of islands and lakes, and various mind-boggling permutations of islands and lakes. For example, they identify the largest lake, the largest island, the largest lake on an island, the largest island in a lake, and so on, until they get to the largest island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island.

Oh…my head!

Anyway, according to them, the largest island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island is Vulcan Point in Crater Lake on Vulcano Island in Lake Taal on Luzon. (Hint: don’t zoom in and out real fast, or you’re head’ll spin!) If maps aren’t your thing, and you want to see an actual image, check this out. Incidentally, the largest island in a lake on an island in a lake is the island in Mindemoya Lake on Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron.

Happily, both these islands are casino-free, so if you head there, don’t be surprised to find, um, nothing.

[Via Digg]

Zebra Map: A Map For Time Zones, Not For Zebras

by Willy Volk on

Got a travel blog and want to feature different time zones? The ZebraMap time zone map is a free, customizable map that you can use on its own or as part of a blog or web site. You can choose from twenty color schemes, add locations, and position the labels anywhere on the map. This map illustrates Bjork’s summer concert schedule.

You can also add hyperlinks to the labels, so people can click on the label “Roskilde, DK,” for example, and visit the concert’s site.

By the way, if you want to learn more about Roskilde — or any other summer concerts — be sure to check out Gadling’s Massively Huge 2007 Summer Music Festival Roundup. If you want to learn more about zebras, check out the African Wildlife Foundation.

Minnetrista: GPS Adventures for Geocaching Fans

by Kelly Amabile on

The latitude of Minnetrista, MN is 44.938N and the longitude is -93.717W. But plugging those coordinates into your GPS unit won’t get you to a new geocaching exhibit set to open at this Minnetrista. To get here, you must plug in coordinates for Muncie, IN (40.12N latitude and 085.23W longitude), home of this East Central Indiana museum and cultural center.

Geocaching enthusiasts may already be plotting summer excursions to this new exhibit sponsored by Groundspeak (the folks behind Geocaching.com), in partnership with Trimble and Minotaur Maze Exhibits. GPS Adventures is a hands-on presentation designed to teach people of all ages about navigation, GPS technology and geocaching. It features GPS stats, history, current uses and future possibilities; and simulates geocaching by leading museum visitors through a 2,500 square foot interactive maze. Subtitled, “From Tracking to Treasure Hunting”, the exhibit will premiere this coming Saturday, June 2nd during a geocaching event that will be held from 2 – 4 p.m at the museum.

If mapping trends and technologies interest you, be sure to check out another navigation-themed exhibit Gadling mentioned recently. Coordinates for its city location: 38.51N and 77.2W.

National Geographic Society: Museum at Explorers Hall

by Kelly Amabile on

Another cool thing to do at the headquarters of National Geographic is to visit the Museum at Explorers Hall, which offers free admission to a variety of rotating exhibits throughout the year.

Currently showing is Maps: Tools for Adventure, produced by the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis in collaboration with National Geographic. It’s a super cool interactive exhibit for explorers of all ages, but of course, kids will especially love it.

The exhibit features a variety of hands-on games and displays all about maps and the people who use them. There are special presentations about mapping basics, how maps are made and how they have been used by different folks throughout the years, like this one about pilot Amelia Earhart:

Other adventurous explorers featured in the exhibit include a wildlife biologist, Hawaiian wayfinder, shipwreck explorer, Egyptian archaeologist and several NASA scientists. Kids have to hit a GPS button to begin each video presentation. And as they move through the different presentations, children and adults learn about the latest mapping technologies and see how the use of maps has evolved from the days of Lewis & Clark to modern time:

There’s a fun companion website to the exhibit, as well as a geographic education awareness website called My Wonderful World that parents, teachers and kids can use to learn even more. The actual Maps exhibit at Explorers Hall runs through the end of July. (It moves on to Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry in November.)

Two other exhibits at the National Geographic headquarters — photo presentations on Uganda and Chad — will be on display through September. Be sure to navigate yourself to Explorers Hall sometime soon. All you need is a good map:

Fastcheck Arrival Guides: Excellent, Free City Guides

by Willy Volk on

Tired of paying for bound travel guides? Maybe you’re planning on hitting several cities in several different countries and travel guides don’t make sense? Just like getting stuff for free? No matter what your rationale, you should check out Fastcheck Arrival Guides.

Available in several languages and written by local journalists, Arrival Guides are city-specific guidebooks available in PDF-form for dozens of destinations, from Aarhus to Zurich. Complete with detailed maps and useful contact information, each Arrival Guide provides key information about eating, sleeping, drinking, and shopping. Moreover, the Guides detail cool events occurring throughout the year, to help you plan your trip.

I checked out the Miami guide, and I was impressed with the content. Of the 14 pages, 2 were full-page ads (don’t print ’em!), but the remaining 12 were full of good information. Bookmarked!

[Via Backpackers]