Southwest Michigan’s Sunset Junque Shop

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Just north of Michigan’s bustling Interstate 94, along Lake Michigan, is little stretch of old state road called the Blue Star Highway. The little road winds its way along the lake, curving past the picturesque resort town of South Haven, headed up on its way to the cities of Saugatuck and Douglas. Along this rambling road is Sunset Junque Shop, a chaotic, cluttered slice of American nostalgia and vintage paraphernalia waiting to be explored.

Located five miles north of South Haven, the junk shop offers an acre-sized yard bursting at the seams with the detritus of American pop culture. Neoclassical statues lean against old cabinets and fun house props; retro farm equipment and cases stocked with vintage postcards. For music-lovers, Sunset also offers a treasure trove of old vinyl LP’s from the 60’s through the 80’s. It’s a delightfully haphazard and ever-changing monument to American culture.

Whether you’re a antique lover, a casual collector or simply out for some adventure, Sunset Junque is a fun diversion from the monotony of the Interstate – a chance to slow down and step inside a little slice of America’s roadside past before jumping back into the blur of the highway. When you’ve had enough junk shopping, head back to Interstate 94 through the town of South Haven – filled with plenty of shopping, dining options, nice beaches and some great ice cream.

Hole N” the Rock in Utah, one-of-a-kind-roadside must see

by Jamie Rhein on

There’s Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota that pays tribute to one man’s vision of turning solid rock into the faces of U.S. presidents. And there’s Hole N” the Rock in Utah–one man’s vision to turn a rock into a home and a gift shop.

Not far south of Moab, Utah on U.S. 191, along gorgeous red rock cliffs that glow almost neon against the blue sky, you’ll see billboards that shout out statements like “Hole N” the Rock, Must See Attraction!!!” Curiosity builds. What is it? What is this “Hole N” the Rock? you might think. I know I did when the Hole N” the Rock came into view as my family and I tootled along the highway on our way to Montana from New Mexico on July 1. Because it was right off the highway, 12 miles south of Moab, it would have been an easy stop, however, we were there after closing.

I craned my neck to see what I could for future reference. Besides the obvious large white lettering on the side of the mountain that said “Hole N” The Rock,” inside the fence was a cacophony of statuary and hard to place items. It is difficult to see exactly what’s there when going 70 mph.

After reading up on this place, I’m thinking we missed out on a must see roadside attraction. Twice. TWICE. How could we have passed by it twice?

On our way back from Montana to New Mexico, with a side trip jaunt to Colorado in our plans, we sped past Hole N” The Rock after closing as well. Too bad. It seems like it might have more heart than Mount Rushmore–and I love Mount Rushmore.

Hole N” The Rock is not just a Hole N” The Rock. It’s a 14-room house and gift shop that was created as a roadside attraction from the 1940s through most of the 1950s by Albert Christensen. To make such an attraction, Albert carved out 50,000 feet of cubic sandstone.

Unfortunately, Albert died in 1957 before he totally finished his masterpiece that includes a carved face of Franklin D. Roosevelt above the home.

His wife Gladys kept Albert’s project going. Even though she died in 1974, the attraction continues to grow. A petting zoo was recently added.

Regardless of what you can buy in the gift shop, the tour of the home would be worth taking the time for, in my opinion. I’m always interested to see what passions people have to create such places. I can’t imagine one day Albert noticed that the sandstone was carvable and merely thought, “I have nothing else to do today. Maybe I’ll start making a house.”

If you are going to stop here for a look, timing is key. Hole N” The Rock closes at 5 p.m.–even in the summer. It is open all year. If you don’t have time to stop, still look for it. The place is in-your-face obvious.

Next time we are ever in the vicinity, we are stopping. I’m not letting the opportunity pass by one more time.

Guided tours of the house cost: Adults $5; Children, 5-10, $3.50; under 5, free.

The historic village of Long Grove, Illinois

by Scott Carmichael on

A mere 30 minutes from Downtown Chicago, the historic village of Long Grove is a perfect destination for anyone looking to get away from the hussle and bustle of the busy city. The village is about 6 miles off highway 94, and is situated between Buffalo Grove and Vernon Hills.

Long Grove is your typical historic village – a quaint “main street”, a gorgeous square and many cobblestone roads leading from store to store.

Several times a year, the village hosts very busy events like their strawberry and apple fests, but outside those dates, the village is nice and quiet, with plenty of (free) parking available.
Long Grove is not a day filling destination, but you can still easily spend a couple of hours wandering its streets. Some of the “must see” highlights of the village are:

The Long Grove Apple Haus

No trip to Long Grove is complete without picking up some fresh apple doughnuts and apple (or cherry) cider. The Apple Haus is where you’ll find an awesome assortment of apple pies, breads and other treats. During the Long Grove Apple fest, this store sells thousands and thousands of their doughnuts (yes, they are that good).

The Long Grove Apple Haus
230 Robert P. Coffin Rd.
Long Grove, Illinois 60047
(847) 634-0730

British Accents

Long Grove is home to a British Grocery store – it may be a rather odd location, but British Accents has an absolutely astounding assortment of anything British, including fresh Brit products like sausage rolls, real pork bangers and of course shelves full of sweet treats. They even have several coolers with British beverages (Lilt, Lucozade, Irn-Bru and many others). Bring a cooler bag, because any fans of British products will not be able to leave this store empty handed.

British Accents
116 Old McHenry Rd
Long Grove, IL 60047
(847) 913 0855

Seasons of Long Grove

Seasons of Long Grove is a beautiful old fashioned tea house. During the week, Seasons is closed for private parties, but on Saturday and Sunday you can enjoy their brunch and afternoon tea. Saturday lunch is from 11:00 am till 2:30pm, Afternoon tea (by reservation only) is on Saturday and Sunday at 2:00pm and Sunday brunch is from 10:00am till 2:00pm.

Seasons of Long Grove
314 Old Mchenry Rd
Long Grove, IL 60047-8862
(847) 634-9150

Long Grove Confectionery

Fans of locally produced candy will love the Long Grove Confectionery store. This Long Grove staple is where you’ll find delicious freshly dipped chocolate strawberries and some amazing English toffee. Several miles from their downtown Long Grove store is their large factory and factory outlet.

Long Grove Confectionery
220 Robert Parker Coffin Rd.
Long Grove, IL 60047
847.634.0080


Map of the village of Long Grove

America travel inspiration: Blue Highways

by Katie Hammel on

For many Americans, dream trips involve far-flung international destinations. Traveling thousands of miles from home to a foreign land just seems more exciting. You get to experience a new culture, sample unfamiliar cuisine, and of course, get that all-important passport stamp to add to your collection.

A trip within your own country just can’t compete with that. The food is the same, the history is shared, the language is (usually) easily understood and you don’t even have to exchange money. There’s nothing exciting or exotic about that. Or so you may think.

But travel around your own country with open eyes and an open mind and you may realize that the good old US of A isn’t as homogeneous as you thought. Approach your homeland with the same anthropological curiosity and cultural hunger than you do to foreign lands and you’ll see that there may be as much to learn about different regions in your own country as there is places on the other side of the world.

One of my favorite sources for inspiration to explore more of the U.S. is William Least Heat-Moon’s Blue Highways: A Journey into America. Down on his luck Heat-Moon takes off on an epic journey around the country, sticking only to the two-lane country roads called blue highways. Along the way, he finds solace in the road and in the characters he meets on his journey. He explores the cultural differences that can exist between people of the same country and paints a captivating picture of life in rural and small town America. If you’ve never had much interest in traveling the lesser-known routes of the U.S., just wait until you see the country through Heat-Moon’s eyes. I know that I can’t read the book without feeling an urge to hit the open road and discover my own America.

Find undiscovered America using your GPS

by Scott Carmichael on

By now, I’m guessing every single one of you has access to a GPS unit. Some may even own two of them. In the past decade, automotive and portable GPS units have dropped from about $800, to well under $100. Some even appear for under $50 every now and then. With prices that low, you really can’t afford to not own one.

Most of you probably use the device for the occasional journey in an area you are not used to, others use it for fun, and plot their daily commute on it. In this article, I’ll describe how you can use that GPS device, and turn it into a fantastic way to discover parts of the country you’d never know about without the use of a guidebook.
Every GPS unit comes with a “points of interest database” – this database contains things like banks, gas stations and restaurants. The categories on your device are usually fairly limited, but one advantage of most modern GPS devices is the ability to add your own custom POI files.

The process of adding custom points of interest is actually quite simple, and the majority of these files can be downloaded for free.

Adding a custom “POI file” starts with finding a source of good quality files. My personal favorite is poi-factory.com.

This site has 1000’s of community built POI files, with content varying from Waffle House locations, to a database containing over 2800 offbeat tourist attractions.

Before you can download a file from this site, you’ll need to register for a (free) account. Once registered, simply download the file to your computer and take note of where you saved it.

The next step involves loading the POI database onto your GPS device. Users of Garmin GPS units are in luck, because Garmin developed a free Point of interest database loader called “POI Loader“.

With POI Loader, you simply connect your GPS unit to your PC or Mac, start the program and tell it where you saved the file. Ten seconds later, the new custom POI file is on your device.

If you have a TomTom unit, you’ll need to go through a couple of extra steps, but the general process is about the same. Poi-factory has a great guide on their site for TomTom GPS owners, as well as Magellan owners.

Once loaded on your device, you can browse the database, but the real fun begins when you are on the road, and want to find something of interest around you. Simply browse to the list of locations, and let your GPS unit lead you to the weirdest and wackiest tourist attractions the nation has to offer.