The real

stars are
miles fromLos
Angeles at
Joshua Tree
National Park.
66 SPIRIT MAY 2014 67 MAY 2014 SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEREMY LONG/TANDEM
BY KATHRYN O SHEAEVANS
THE EXPERI ENCE
OF A LI FETI ME
MAY BE RI GHT
AROUND THE
CORNERBUT
BEYOND THE
WELLTRAVELED
PATH. SO DON' T
FEAR DETOURS,
DELI GHT I N THEM.
HERE ARE 28
SPOTS WORTH
GOI NG THE
DI STANCE FOR.
THE EXPERI ENCE
OF A LI FETI ME
MAY BE RI GHT
AROUND THE
CORNERBUT
BEYOND THE
WELLTRAVELED
PATH. SO DON' T
FEAR DETOURS,
DELI GHT I N THEM.
HERE ARE 28
SPOTS WORTH
GOI NG THE
DI STANCE FOR.
68 SPIRIT MAY 2014 63
KICK BACK LIKE BOND, JAMES BOND
In 1952, Ian Fleming holed up in his Jamaican villa and
wrote Casino Royalethe first of 14 James Bond books
he would pen from whats now GoldenEye Hotel &
Resort (goldeneye.com; from $620). Ask for the 007
bedroom; Flemings writing desk still sits there, just in
case youre inspired to pen the next Great Spy Novel
instead of basking at the beach.
76 MILES E OF MONTEGOBAY INORACABESSA, JAMAICA
MAY 2014 SPIRIT
Here youll catch the
ferry to languorous
Lummi Island, where
the seven-room
Willows Inn (willows-
inn.com; from )
has earned pilgrimage
status among foodies
since chef Blaine
Wetzel, an alum of the
two-Michelin-starred
Noma in Copenhagen,
Denmark, took over in
2010. Wetzel describes
his menu as a story
about the land and
often serves those
salty jewels of the sea,
Shigoku oysters, on a
bed of chilled pebbles
and sorrel. In the
morning, make your
way to the tiny coastal
town of Bow, where
you can shuck your
own sweet Kumamo-
tos at Taylor Shellfish
Farms (taylorsamish.
com), run by the same
family since 1830.
Bring wine and crusty
French bread, claim a
waterside picnic table,
and call it cocktail
hour. For dinner, hit
the nearby Oyster
Bar (theoysterbar.
net), where Samish
Bays are baked with
boar bacon, sherry,
and chives. Or, pick
your favorites on a half
shell, including mild
Royal Miyagis from
South Puget Sound
and cucumber-fresh
Fanny Bays from
Vancouver Island.
S
hips did it first
To veer meant
to slacken the
lines and go
where the wind
took you In our
case, it means that after
enjoying your business
trip or resort vacation or
family visit, you take a
different tack; you go the
long way
Consider the veer des-
sert after the main course
Drive the back roads and
blue highways to discover
the hidden stop-ins
and weekend hideaways
to succeed your planned
business or pleasure
Weve picked out more
than two dozen spots to
get you started (we even
calculated their distances
from the nearest major
city) But a great veer
requires a certain trust
in serendipity So make
your bucket lists and
itineraries, but leave time
to poke around and chat
up the locals And when
you stumble upon some-
thing wonderful, congrat-
ulate yourself You havent
Googled or guidebooked
your way to it; you simply
slackened the lines and
veered
Jay Heinrichs
Take a Wild Ride
At the conservationist-run
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center
( fossilrimorg), youre the sa-
fari captain. A '-mile road
skirts open animal habitats
home to everything from
ostriches to aoudads, lending
a whole new meaning to the
words wildlife crossing.
76 MILES SWOF DALLAS INGLENROSE, TX
Eat Incredible Oysters
Start 89 miles N of Seattle in Bellingham, WA:
THE ART OF THE VEER
Lagoon
cottages
have private
verandas.
Olympia
oysters at
Taylor
Shellfish
Farms.
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Olympia
oysters at
Taylor
Shellfish
Farms.
70 SPIRIT MAY 2014 MAY 2014 SPIRIT 71
Amble Through Fascinating Flora
Affluent eccentric Harvey Ladew hired
local farmers to begin cultivating the !!
acres of Ladew Topiary Gardens (ladew
gardenscom) in 137. Now its home to 1CC-
plus ornately shaped shrubsincluding
sea horses, swans, and a fox running after
four houndsplus several themed garden
rooms. Hows that for carving out a legacy?
27 MILES NE OF BALTIMORE INMONKTON, MD
Bask on a Crowdless Beach
Pining for prime oceanfront access
without the sunseeking hordes? Try
Hollywood, quietly tucked between
Fort Lauderdale and Miami and backed
by a 2-mile boardwalk. Stay at the
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
(seminolehardrockhollywood.com), where
you can splash in a colossal lagoon-style
pool. Cabanas and a 182-foot waterslide
add to the appeal. Whee!
LIQUIDGOLD
SanDiegois your
launchpadfor
buddingbreweries.
LOST ABBEY
Inspired by the
monastic brewing
traditions of Bel-
gium, Lost Abbey
inSanMarcos
(miles Nof San
Diego) was the
ChampionBrewery
at the San
Diego International
Beer Competition
and Festival. One
reasonwhy: They
age many of their
brews informer
spirits barrels
before release.
lostabbey.com
CULTURE
BREWINGCO
Steps fromthe sand
inSolana Beach
(miles Nof San
Diego), this brewery
sports five nitrogen
taps that pour a
rotatingroster of
stouts, including
one thats tinged
withblack currant
andoakandanother
withhints of pep-
permint. culture
brewingco.com
NICKEL BEER
COMPANY
This -month-old
setup inJulian(
miles NE of San
Diego) churns
out suds witha
solid sense of
place. Stonewall
Stout, named for
the towns largest
former gold mine,
brims withnotes of
strong coffee, and
the seasonal Apple
Pie Ale (available
inAugust) is made
withJulians other
historical staple.
nickelbeerco.com
11MILESSOF FORTLAUDERDALEINHOLLYWOOD, FL
Play Lighthouse
Standing watch over central Oregons
craggy ocean cliffs since 1c4, the
Heceta Head Lighthouse (heceta
lighthousecom; from ) now has
a side gigplaying gracious host to
guests as a six-room B&B. Ask for the
Lightkeepers Room, and sink into
the claw-foot tub that looks out on the
slowly turning light, which guides
ships from as far as !1 miles away.
155MILES SWOF PORTLANDINYACHATS, OR
THE ART OF THE VEER
In the summer,
the lighthouse
is open for
daytime tours.
153 MILES NWOF LITTLE ROCKINPONCA, AR
FLOAT DOWN A FREEWHEELING RIVER
The countrys first national river, the Buffalo, flows
for 150 pristine miles in northwest Arkansas.
Explore its undammed waters in a canoe rented
from longtime local outfitter Buffalo Outdoor Center
(buffaloriver.com). Paddle for the day, or plan to
spend the nightyou can pitch a tent on a sandbar
or the shore. And dont forget your rod and reel: In the
summer, these waters brim with smallmouth bass.
Deer, elk, and
campers make
the shore their
home. P
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C
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A

In the summer,
the lighthouse
is open for
daytime tours.
72 SPIRIT MAY 2014 73 MAY 2014 SPIRIT
135 MILES E OF LOS ANGELES INLANDERS, CA
This riverside town
is so devoted to cre-
ativity that even the
local ice cream shop,
Zora Dora (zoradora.
com), serves flavors
neither Ben nor Jerry
would have thought
of. The real draw,
thoughand what
keeps art-world insid-
ers from around the
globe enthralledis
Dia:Beacon (diaart.
org), a modern art
museum housed in
a former Nabisco
factory. This year its
hosting the first Amer-
ican retrospective of
minimalist Carl Andre
since 1380. Works on
long-term view include
Richard Serras out-
sized steel sculptures
and Andy Warhols
Shadows, a series
of 102 paintings from
the late 70s. Tuck in at
The Roundhouse at
Beacon Falls (round
housebeacon.com;
8153), a new hotel
designed by the
Rockwell Group (of
Nobu and W Hotels
renown). In the a.m.,
join locals for their dai-
ly jolt at Bank Square
Coffeehouse (bank
squarecoffeehouse.
com), where baristas
have been known to
draw everything from
leaves to galaxies in
cappuccino foam.
Ogle Modern Art
Start 66 miles N of New York City in Beacon, NY:
78 MILES S OF CANCN, MEXICO
SWIM IN A SUBAQUATIC CAVE
The shimmering-blue underwater wells of the
Mayans, sacred sites for centuries, are
within reachif you know where to look. Book
a daylong snorkeling tour with family-owned
Edventure Tours (edventuretours.com.mx) to
explore the submerged caverns at Dos Ojos;
youll also stop by Yal-Ku Lagoon, sea turtlefilled
Akumal Bay, and the mysterious ruins of Tulum.
WRITTEN
INSTONE
Ancient text
messages exist,
andtheyre not too
far fromReno, NV.
GRIMES POINT
The etched basalt
boulders along this
national recreation
trail just outside
Fallon, Nevada
( miles E of Reno)
are easy to spot.
Look for wavy lines
and animal and
humanfigures in
the markingsall
created some
,years ago.
americantrails.org
LAGOMARSINO
CANYON
Infrastructureis nil,
androads are
rough, but atripto
this petroglyphsite
inStoreyCounty,
Nevada(miles E
of Reno) is worththe
trek. Youll findan
enormous collection
of rockart pan-
els,of them,
tobeexactalong
acliff that is saidto
bethesiteof ancient
huntingrituals.
nvrockart.org
KYBURZ FLAT
Want to see the
rumored remains
of primitive fertil-
ity ceremonies?
Petroglyphs called
cupules, the earliest
knownformof
prehistoric art, can
be spotted at
Kyburz Flat (
miles Wof Reno),
located inCalifornia
betweenTruckee
and Sierraville.
They werent
intended to be
Instagram-worthy,
but they are.
fs.usda.gov
THE ART OF THE VEER
An installation
by artist John
Chamberlain at
Dia:Beacon
Sleep in a Love Shack
The six vintage Airstreams
at Kates Lazy Desert (lazy
meadowcom; ) channel
the vibrant taste of their
owner, Kate Pierson of
the B-!s. Six miles from
Joshua Tree National
Park, theyre the perfect
little place to get together.
Dos Ojos (Two
Eyes) gets its
name from
its two main
entry points.
P
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An installation
by artist John
Chamberlain at
Dia:Beacon
75 71 SPIRIT MAY 2014 MAY 2014 SPIRIT
Go Bonkers in a Biodome
What turned into Pauly Shores
nightmare in the 1o movie Bio-
Dome is the dream of the scientists at
Biosphere (bscienceorg), who have
created a world under sealed glass
in the foothills of the Santa Catalina
Mountains. Here you can explore a
self-contained ocean, rainforest, and
fog desert, all in the name of
learning. Sure beats science class!
38 MILES NOF TUCSONINORACLE, AZ
Tennessees bluegrass
roots literally run deep
at Bluegrass Under-
ground (bluegrass
underground.com) in
McMinnville, a radio
show recorded 333
feet below Earths
surface. Book ahead
for seats to the Volca-
no Room, where PBS
records shows by the
likes of Ricky Skaggs
and Lucinda Williams,
and bring a jacket
the cave naturally
maintains a constant
56 degrees. Back in
the city, bunk up at
the Omni Nashville
Hotel (omnihotels.
com; 8223), whose
guitar-shaped lobby
houses Johnny Cashs
Lucchese boots
and Willie Nelsons
bandana. Twenty-
two miles south in
Franklin, Grays on
Main (graysonmain.
com), housedina13th-
centurypharmacy, is
atopvenuefor locals,
whogather in its sec-
Dig into Country Music
Start 84 miles SE of Nashville in McMinnville, TN:
ond-floor bote for
throwback cocktails
and bands from Music
City and beyond. One
last must on your
agenda: Sutton Ole
Time Music Hour
(granvilletn.com),
another radio broad-
castthis one record-
ed on Saturday nights
in an actual country
store in Granville, 67
miles east of Nashville,
and meant to relive the
early glory days of the
Grand Ole Opry.
And you thought
fairs were just
about fun rides.
Second only to
Texas in annual
atendance and
kicking of on
August 21, the
Minnesota State
Fair (mnstatefair.
org) is home to the
esteemed crop-
art competition:
All entered works
are crafed from
Minnesota-grown
seeds, stems, and
other plant parts.
Go Midcentury Modern
On 3C leafy acres, the three-bed-
room Penfield House (penfieldhouse
com; from ) was designed by
Frank Lloyd Wright for a man who
was o feet, c inches tallso expect
soaring ceilings and doorways,
along with the floor-to-ceiling
windows and detailed woodwork
that became Wright classics.
19 MILES NE OF CLEVELANDINWILLOUGHBY HILLS, OH
Scope Out
a State Fair
6 MILES E OF
MINNEAPOLIS IN
ST. PAUL, MN
THE ART OF THE VEER
Shovels &
Rope on stage
in the Volcano
Room.
45 MILES NWOF SANFRANCISCOINPOINT REYES, CA
FEAST ON FINE FROMAGE
The Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Companys
(pointreyescheese.com) reputation among
cheese enthusiasts is as distinct as its award-
winning wheels (Bay Blue gives Stilton a run for
its money, and Toma is sweet and buttery). On
the to-do list for your visit: Meet the herd, see
the milking barn, and have a multicourse tasting,
paired with local craft beer or wine.
Holstein cows
are raised
on the farm
from birth. P
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Shovels &
Rope on stage
in the Volcano
Room.