Off The Beaten Track On The East Coast There are many different cities in the United States which have little know secrets. New York has stones which are at Brighton Beach and Coney which have faces carved on them. One has what looks like the face of Jesus carved into it. If you go for a walk in Central Park, take a look at the lampposts and see if you notice anything different about them. Each one has a code on them. The coded indicates the closest cross streets with the first two numbers and the last two numbers indicate which side of the park the lamppost is closest to. There are many of us who are still fascinated by pinball and arcade machines, and while there are some places where you can still see them, one of the best places is located in Asbury Park, New Jersey. There is a museum there named the Silverball Museum Arcade and arcade lovers can go there and see the some 180 different machines on display there. Here is the good news, they are all playable. If you are fascinated by history and don’t mind being creeped out a little, you can go to New Haven, Connecticut. There you will find a church, not just any church but a church which is very unusual for this country. What makes the church so unusual is when you go down to the basement there are the headstones and graves of hundreds of remains from colonial times. The graves have a brick floor placed over them and the headstones stand out from the floor. It is not as grand, but remind me of some of the churches in Europe from the Middle Ages where you find carved tombs with the likeness of royalty and knights carved upon the graves right inside the church. Vermont is said to have a very unusual beach, named the Barking Beach. It is said the beach is located between the towns of Cumberland Head and South Hero. The story goes if you take two food bags and fill them with sand from the beach, close them up tightly and then bang them together, it will make the sound of a barking dog. Here is the caveat, this has to be done while on the beach because off the beach it doesn’t work. Yeah, I know, sounds crazy. Rhode Island is the smallest state in the United States, but you probably knew that already. One of the little know attractions which is said to be a really fun place to visit is the Umbrella Factory. It is located in Charlestown. It used to be an old farmhouse but was purchased by Robert Bankel in the 1960s and transformed. If you like emus, they are allowed to walk free here. There are many shops here where local craftsmen sell their wares. Beautiful fountains are on the property. The flower gardens also attract many people. Massachusetts also has its secrets. One is a very unusual waterpark. It is located on Cape Cod. The park is located near West Yarmouth. It is not the biggest water park and by no means the most famous, but it could be the most unusual. What accounts for this is the fact all of the attractions are made from inflatable material. Every ride is inflated and so are all the structures. Portland Maine has one of the most unusual museums in the country. It is the world’s only cryptozoology museum. Some of the objects there will blow your mind. The museum specializes in the study of unknown animals. You can also find animals which were just recently discovered to exist. There are not only replicas, but also specimen and artifacts, some of which relate to some famous historical creatures. Washington D.C. is riddled with secret places. There many places off the beaten path that most people take. One of these places dates back to 1805 and is the Municipal Fish Market. It is the oldest open air fish marked in the United States. As you show you will notice you can see the Potomac River. Almost every type of seafood is for sale at the market and some say it is fun to go to even if you are not buying fish. One of the most under explored place in Virginia is Natural Chimney’s Park. There are seven natural chimneys which are over 120 feet tall. They overlook the Shenandoah Valley. It is said many people are reminded of medieval castle turrets when they look at them. There is a very unique place in Pennsylvania. Lititz, in Lancaster County is the home of the World Sanctuary. It is a lifelong home to wolves who were rescued because they were abused, neglected or abandoned. Tours are conducted and you can even watch the wolves being fed. To go at night, you have to be at least 16 years old. There is a relatively unknown attraction in North Carolina, but you better like heights. It is the tallest USFS fire tower. Believe it or not, it is open to the public and if you would like, you can climb up, but not to the very top. The tower is the Fryingpan Tower, which is 70 feet tall. It went out of use in the early 1990s. It is near Mt. Pisgah in Pisgah National Forest and was built atop a mountain which is 5,340 feet high. The mountain is Fryingpan Mountain. When we talk about South Carolina, not many people know about Snow Lake on Snow Island in Florence County. First of all, it is said to be a premier fishing area, if you are into that. It is also historical. In the Revolutionary War one of the most famous soldiers was nicknamed the Swamp Fox. His real name was Francis Marion and this was their base camp. The island is on the National Historic Register. When one think of a town named Sleepy Hollow they usually think of New York where the most famous one is located, but there is a very interesting one in Georgia. It is located in Blairsville. It was designed by a former Disney artiest who created a magical land full of gnomes, fairies and their homes. Florida also has some almost secret places to visit. One such place is Dry Tortugas. It is composed of seven islands which are about 70 miles west of Key West. It is said to have great snorkeling. There is also a very interesting fort there. If you would like to combine fishing and history this is a place you have to visit.
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