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FROM COAST TO COAST,
AMERICA IS A LAND OF AMAZING DESTINATIONS...
FROM NATIVE AMERICAN SITES THAT HAVE ENDURED FOR CENTURIES...
TO GEOLOGICAL ONES THAT DATE TO THE AGE OF DINOSAURS.
PARTS OF THE COUNTRY HAVE SEEN
ENGINEERING FEATS FEW THOUGHT POSSIBLE...
AND SPACE FLIGHTS THAT DIDN'T EVEN SEEM PROBABLE.
THE LAND HAS INSPIRED WRITERS AND PAINTERS...
INVENTORS AND POETS...
MOVED BY BEAUTY, NECESSITY,
OR SOMETIMES JUST THEIR OWN EGO.
THESE ARE PLACES, BOTH NEAR AND FAR,
WITH STORIES THAT JUST MIGHT SURPRISE YOU.
ON A DIRT ROAD IN THE MIDDLE OF THE COUNTRY,
SOMETHING REMARKABLE EMERGES OUT OF NOWHERE--
CHALK FORMATIONS STRETCHING 70 FEET HIGH.
THESE ARE THE MONUMENT ROCKS
IN THE REMOTE PLAINS OF WESTERN KANSAS.
AROUND 80 MILLION YEARS AGO,
IN THE LAST AGE OF THE DINOSAURS,
THIS WAS THE BOTTOM OF A GREAT INLAND SEA--
HOME TO FISH, SHARKS
AND A FEROCIOUS MARINE REPTILE CALLED THE MOSOSAUR.
AS THE ANIMALS DIED,
THEIR SKELETONS SANK TO THE SEA FLOOR
DECOMPOSING INTO THIS SOFT LIMESTONE, OR CHALK.
WHEN THE SEA RETREATED, THE TOWERS FORMED.
THEY'RE HARD TO FIND TODAY--
THEY SIT ON AN UNMARKED ROAD
ABOUT 30 MILES FROM THE CLOSEST TOWN.
BUT THE TOWERS WERE AN IMPORTANT PART OF HISTORY.
THIS NEARBY OUTCROPPING CALLED CASTLE ROCK
WAS A LANDMARK FOR STAGECOACH DRIVERS
AND PIONEERS HEADING WEST.
BUT THE FORMATIONS WON'T BE AROUND FOREVER:
WITH EACH PASSING YEAR, A LITTLE MORE OF THE TOWERS DISAPPEAR--
IN THE WINDS AND RAIN OF THE KANSAS PLAINS.
ANOTHER FAR MORE RECOGNIZED CANYON BECAME AN AMERICAN WONDER
THANKS TO THE FORESIGHT OF TEDDY ROOSEVELT
AND A MAN NAMED JOHN MUIR.
IN THE EARLY 1900s, FEW PEOPLE HAD EXPLORED
THE GRAND CANYON IN NORTHERN ARIZONA.
TRAIN SERVICE DIDN'T START HERE UNTIL 1901.
BUT IN THE SPRING OF 1903,
ROOSEVELT HALTED A POLITICAL TRIP TO VISIT IT
ALONG WITH YOSEMITE AND YELLOWSTONE.
MUIR, A NATURALIST WHO FOUNDED THE SIERRA CLUB,
SERVED AS ROOSEVELT'S GUIDE FOR PART OF THAT TRIP.
THEIR PASSIONATE TALKS ABOUT THE AMERICAN WILDERNESS
ULTIMATELY HELPED SHAPE ONE OF ROOSEVELT'S GREATEST LEGACIES--
CONSERVATION.
THE PRESIDENT KNEW IT WOULD TAKE YEARS FOR CONGRESS
TO APPROVE THE GRAND CANYON AS A NATIONAL PARK.
SO IN 1908, HE CUT THROUGH THE RED TAPE
BY DESIGNATING IT A NATIONAL MONUMENT--
SOMETHING THAT DIDN'T NEED CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL.
THAT POWER CAME FROM THE RECENTLY PASSED ANTIQUITIES ACT
WHICH WAS INTENDED TO PRESERVE
PREHISTORIC NATIVE AMERICAN RUINS AND ARTIFACTS.
THE MOVE PROTECTED 800,000 ACRES OF THE CANYON...
BUT STILL ALLOWED PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT
AND HUNTING IN SOME PARTS.
IN 1919, PRESIDENT WOODROW WILSON
SIGNED LEGISLATION THAT TURNED THE GRAND CANYON
INTO A NATIONAL PARK.
IT FINALLY WAS A PLACE THAT, AS ROOSEVELT SAID,
COULD BE A SITE OF GRANDEUR
FOR "YOUR CHILDREN, YOUR CHILDREN'S CHILDREN
AND ALL WHO COME AFTER YOU."
ROOSEVELT WAS ALSO KEY
IN PROTECTING ANOTHER ARIZONA TREASURE--
MONTEZUMA CASTLE.
LOCATED IN THE CENTER OF THE STATE,
THE 12th CENTURY BUILDING IS ONE OF THE BEST PRESERVED
PREHISTORIC CLIFF DWELLINGS IN NORTH AMERICA.
WHITE SETTLERS, WHO ERRONEOUSLY THOUGHT THE AZTECS BUILT THIS
AND ALL OTHER SOUTHWESTERN RUINS,
NAMED IT AFTER ONE OF THEIR PROMINENT RULERS.
TURNS OUT IT WAS ACTUALLY AN ANCIENT PEOPLE
CALLED THE SINAGUA.
BUT THE NAME STUCK.
ARCHEOLOGISTS THINK THE INHABITANTS REACHED THE BUILDING
WITH A SERIES OF LADDERS THAT THEY THEN PULLED UP
TO PREVENT ENEMY TRIBES FROM ENTERING.
THE SAME CAVE THAT PROTECTED THEM
HAS PRESERVED THIS ARCHITECTURAL SITE
FOR MORE THAN NINE CENTURIES.
FURTHER WEST IN PHOENIX IS AN EVENT
THAT'S MANAGED TO WEATHER TWO WORLD WARS,
THE GREAT DEPRESSION, AND SOME NATURAL DISASTERS.
THE ARIZONA STATE FAIR IS AMONG THE OLDEST IN THE COUNTRY,
DATING BACK TO 1884--
28 YEARS BEFORE ARIZONA EVEN BECAME A STATE.
THE VERY FIRST FAIR WAS SHORT-LIVED.
A FLOOD DESTROYED ITS SITE IN 1891.
FOURTEEN YEARS LATER, A DETERMINED CITIZENS GROUP
REVIVED IT BY PURCHASING THIS SITE.
TODAY, MORE THAN A MILLION PEOPLE COME OUT EACH FALL
FOR THE DIZZYING RIDES AND UNUSUAL FOODS--
WHICH INCLUDE FRIED ALLIGATOR TAIL
AND DONUT BURGERS.
IN CENTRAL COLORADO, A ONE-OF-A-KIND THEME PARK
IS CENTERED AROUND A MAJOR ENGINEERING FEAT--
THE ROYAL GORGE BRIDGE.
IN THE 1920s, A TEXAN NAMED LON PIPER
WAS MESMERIZED BY THE NATURAL BEAUTY
OF THIS ARIZONA RIVER CANYON.
PIPER DREAMT OF BUILDING A BRIDGE HERE
TO GIVE VISITORS AN UNMATCHED VIEW--
AND PEOPLE IN NEARBY CAÑON CITY BACKED HIM,
HOPING IT WOULD GENERATE SOME INCOME.
DESPITE THE INHERENT CHALLENGES,
WORKERS COMPLETED IT IN SIX MONTHS.
WHEN THE BRIDGE OPENED IN 1929,
IT WAS THE HIGHEST SUSPENSION BRIDGE IN THE WORLD--
A TITLE IT HELD FOR 72 YEARS.
CHINA FINALLY BUILT A TALLER ONE IN 2001.
TODAY, IT'S HOME TO A HOST OF RIDES--
MOST OF WHICH INVOLVE
SWINGING 956 FEET OVER THE ARKANSAS RIVER.
ABOUT THE SAME TIME THE BRIDGE OPENED...
A NEARBY ATTRACTION WAS GAINING STEAM.
THIS IS THE COG RAILWAY ON PIKE'S PEAK
JUST OUTSIDE COLORADO SPRINGS.
IT WAS THE BRAINCHILD OF A MAN FAMOUS FOR HIS MATTRESSES.
ZALMON SIMMONS-- AN INVENTOR AND FOUNDER
OF THE BEAUTYREST MATTRESS COMPANY--
NEEDED TO GET TO THE TOP OF PIKE'S PEAK
TO CHECK ON ONE OF HIS LATEST CREATIONS:
INSULATORS FOR TELEGRAPH WIRES.
AFTER AN EXHAUSTING TWO-DAY MULE RIDE,
HE DECIDED THERE HAD TO BE A BETTER WAY.
SOON, THE WORLD'S HIGHEST COG RAILWAY WAS RUNNING.
THE TRAIN CLIMBS 8.9 MILES THROUGH COLORADO BLUE SPRUCE
AND ABOVE THE TIMBERLINE, WHERE WILD ELK ROAM FREE.
ABOUT THE SAME TIME THE TRAIN WAS GETTING UP AND RUNNING,
A COLLEGE PROFESSOR NAMED KATHERINE LEE BATES
VISITED THE SUMMIT BY CARRIAGE AND MULE.
HER VISIT INSPIRED HER
TO WRITE THE POEM "AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL"--
WHICH LATER BECAME THE LYRICS TO THE POPULAR ANTHEM.
["AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL" PLAYING]
A MUCH DIFFERENT ANTHEM TOOK AMERICA BY STORM...
THANKS TO RED ROCKS JUST OUTSIDE DENVER.
ON A COLD MISTY NIGHT IN 1983,
THIS IS WHERE A YOUNG BAND NAMED U2
GAVE THEIR BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE OF "SUNDAY BLOODY SUNDAY."
OVER THE YEARS, THE NATURAL AND PERFECT ACOUSTICS HERE
HAVE ATTRACTED ROCK STARS AND OPERA STARS ALIKE.
THEIR SOUNDS REVERBERATE OFF TWO 300-FOOT MONOLITHS--
BOTH TALLER THAN NIAGARA FALLS.
GRADUAL EARTH MOVEMENTS RAISED THESE GIANTS
FROM THE PREHISTORIC OCEAN FLOOR MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO.
POWERFUL GEOLOGICAL FORCES
ALSO LEFT A REMARKABLE FOSSIL RECORD HERE--
THE 868-ACRE PARK FEATURES DINOSAUR TRACKS
ALONG WITH FOSSILS FROM MARINE REPTILES
THAT SWAM HERE WHEN IT WAS COVERED BY AN ANCIENT SEA.
MUCH OF COLORADO USED TO BE UNDERWATER...
INCLUDING THIS SURREAL SITE IN SOUTHERN COLORADO.
THIS IS GREAT SAND DUNES NATIONAL PARK
AT THE BASE OF THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS.
SCIENTISTS BELIEVE THE 750-FOOT DUNES
STARTED FORMING ABOUT 440,000 YEARS AGO
WHEN THE ANCIENT LAKE ALAMOSA BEGAN TO DISAPPEAR.
WINDS FROM THE SURROUNDING MOUNTAINS
BLEW THE SAND AND SEDIMENT LEFT BEHIND--
FORMING THE DUNES.
THE EARLIEST VISITORS WERE NOMADIC PEOPLE
HUNTING MAMMOTH AND BISON--
THEIR SPEAR POINTS HAVE BEEN FOUND HERE.
OVER THE CENTURIES, THE DUNES HAVE SERVED
AS A LANDMARK FOR EARLY EXPLORERS...
A MINING SPOT FOR MEN SEEKING GOLD...
AND NOW AS A PLAYGROUND FOR PEOPLE OF ALL AGES...
BUT COLORADO'S BIGGEST AND ARGUABLY BEST DESTINATION...
IS THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS.
NESTLED AT ITS NORTHERN END IS ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK--
WHICH EXISTS LARGELY BECAUSE OF A TEENAGE BOY.
IN 1884, A SICKLY 14-YEAR-OLD NAMED ENOS MILLS
LEFT KANSAS FOR COLORADO,
HOPING THE CLIMATE WOULD IMPROVE HIS HEALTH.
HIS MOTHER, WHO'D LIVED HERE,
OFTEN TOLD HIM INCREDIBLE STORIES ABOUT THE MOUNTAINS.
HE CLIMBED LONG'S PEAK AT 15-- AND FELL IN LOVE.
IN THE YEARS THAT FOLLOWED,
HE PUSHED FOR A NATIONAL PARK, FINALLY SUCCEEDING IN 1915.
IN ALL, THAT ONCE SICK BOY
CLIMBED LONG'S PEAK MORE THAN 300 TIMES--
BOTH ALONE AND AS A GUIDE--
AND BECAME ONE OF THE WORLD'S BEST KNOWN NATURALISTS.
FROM THE COLORADO ROCKIES COMES A POWERFUL RIVER
THAT COULD ONLY BE TAMED BY AN EQUALLY MIGHTY DAM.
IN A REMARKABLE FEAT OF INGENUITY AND ENGINEERING,
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT BUILT THE HOOVER DAM
TO TAME THE COLORADO RIVER,
WHICH DEVASTATED LAND BY FLOODING IN THE SPRING,
THEN DRYING UP IN THE WINTER.
CONGRESS ALSO HOPED THEY COULD HARNESS
SOME OF THE RIVER'S POWER
FOR ELECTRICITY, IRRIGATION AND DRINKING WATER.
5,200 MEN WORKED AROUND THE CLOCK,
COMPLETING THE DAM TWO YEARS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE--
AND $15 MILLION UNDER BUDGET.
HEAD ARCHITECT GORDON KAUFMAN SET ABOUT CREATING SOMETHING
THAT WOULD COMPLEMENT THE ENGINEERS' DESIGN.
HIS TEAM PUT ASIDE ORNAMENTAL PLANS
DRAFTED BY PREVIOUS ARCHITECTS,
INSTEAD CREATING A MODERN ART-DECO STYLE.
THE FOUR LARGE INTAKE TOWERS SIT IN LAKE MEAD,
THE MASSIVE RESERVOIR THAT PROVIDES WATER
TO MUCH OF THE SOUTHWEST.
THE TOWERS DRIVE THE WATER INTO MASSIVE TURBINES,
WHICH GENERATE HYDROELECTRIC POWER--
A CLEAN, RENEWABLE SOURCE OF ENERGY
THAT PROVIDES POWER TO 29 MILLION AMERICANS
IN CALIFORNIA, NEVADA AND ARIZONA.
WATER IS ALSO A DRIVING FORCE
IN THE NORTHERN REACHES OF THE MIDWEST,
ALONG THE MICHIGAN COAST.
THE STATE IS SURROUNDED BY FOUR GREAT LAKES--
ERIE TO THE SOUTHEAST...
HURON IN THE NORTHEAST...
SUPERIOR TO THE NORTH...
AND MICHIGAN TO THE WEST.
AND THAT COASTLINE IS HOME TO MORE LIGHTHOUSES
THAN ANY OTHER STATE--
WITH A HISTORY THAT DATES BACK TO 1825.
FEW ARE STILL IN SERVICE,
REPLACED BY MORE MODERN NAVIGATIONAL SYSTEMS.
TODAY, MANY ARE MUSEUMS, HOMES, AND B&Bs--
GIVING PEOPLE A TASTE OF HISTORY,
AND SOMETIMES EVEN A CREATIVE WAY TO MAKE A FUTURE.
SOME OF THE SHIPS GUIDED BY THOSE LIGHTHOUSES
ENDED UP HERE--
AT AN AMAZING SITE CALLED THE SOO LOCKS--
THE ONLY PASSAGE BETWEEN THE LOWER GREAT LAKES
AND LAKE SUPERIOR.
BUILT IN THE 1800s, THE LOCKS SIT
AT THE NORTHERNMOST POINT OF MICHIGAN'S UPPER PENINSULA
IN THE TINY TOWN OF SAULT SAINTE MARIE--
OFTEN CALLED "THE SOO."
THEY STRADDLE THE U.S.-CANADIAN BORDER,
WHERE RAPIDS ONCE MADE SHIP PASSAGE IMPOSSIBLE.
NORTHBOUND SHIPS RISE AS IF ON AN ELEVATOR--
21 FEET FROM LAKE HURON TO LAKE SUPERIOR.
WHEN THEY COMPLETE THE PASSAGE,
THE SHIPS ARE IN ANOTHER SAULT SAINTE MARIE--
IN ONTARIO, CANADA.
THE TOWN WAS SPLIT AS A RESULT OF THE WAR OF 1812.
ANOTHER OF MICHIGAN'S ENGINEERING MARVELS
IS ALSO ON THE UPPER PENINSULA: THE MACKINAC BRIDGE.
IT OPENED IN 1957, AFTER YEARS OF DEBATE
OVER HOW TO CONNECT MICHIGAN'S TWO PENINSULAS.
ONE FARFETCHED IDEA INVOLVED A FLOATING TUNNEL.
ITS CHIEF ENGINEER, DAVID STEINMAN,
FACED THREE MAIN OBSTACLES:
HIGH WINDS, DEEP WATER, AND THE PRESSURE OF ICE ACCUMULATION.
HE CAME UP WITH INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR EACH--
SETTING STANDARDS STILL USED IN BRIDGE BUILDING WORLDWIDE.
MICHIGAN'S LOWER PENINSULA IS HOME TO A SITE
THAT'S CAPTIVATED PEOPLE FOR CENTURIES--
SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL LAKESHORE--
A 35-MILE STRETCH OF SAND AND TWO NEIGHBORING ISLANDS.
THIS AREA GOT ITS UNIQUE NAME FROM A NATIVE AMERICAN LEGEND.
THE STORY GOES THAT A FOREST FIRE
DROVE A MOTHER BEAR AND HER TWO CUBS
FROM THE WISCONSIN SHORELINE INTO LAKE MICHIGAN.
WHEN THE MOTHER MADE IT ACROSS,
SHE CLIMBED A CLIFF TO SEARCH FOR HER CUBS,
BUT THEY'D DROWNED JUST OFFSHORE.
THE GREAT INDIAN SPIRIT MANITOU WAS SO MOVED,
HE LET HER FALL ASLEEP HERE,
CREATING A SOLITARY DUNE IN HER HONOR.
TODAY, FAMILIES FLOCK TO THE DUNES YEAR ROUND,
TO HIKE, SWIM AND PLAY--
WITH SOME EVEN ATTEMPTING THE DUNE CLIMB--
A 450-FOOT TREK FROM BOTTOM TO TOP.
IN NORTHWESTERN NEW MEXICO IS AN AMAZING ARCHEOLOGICAL SITE
WHERE AN ANCIENT PEOPLE ONCE THRIVED.
THESE RUINS WERE PART OF A NETWORK OF VILLAGES
BUILT BY THE ANCESTRAL PUEBLO PEOPLE
CALLED THE ANASAZIS.
AFTER CENTURIES OF LIVING IN VULNERABLE PIT HOUSES,
THEY STARTED EXPERIMENTING WITH STONE AND MUD MORTAR
IN THE NINTH CENTURY...
EVENTUALLY BUILDING THESE "GREAT HOUSES."
THE LARGEST HELD MULTIPLE FAMILIES,
WITH HUNDREDS OF INTERLINKED ROOMS.
A NETWORK OF ROADS AND SETTLEMENTS
CONNECTED THE PEOPLE UNTIL THE 12th CENTURY,
WHEN DROUGHT LIKELY DROVE THEM AWAY.
SOME MIGRATED TO THE NEARBY FRIJOLE CANYON--
HOME TO THE BANDELIER NATIONAL MONUMENT.
ANCESTRAL PUEBLO PEOPLE ARRIVED HERE IN THE 11th CENTURY
AND STAYED FOR APPROXIMATELY 400 YEARS,
CONSTRUCTING THEIR HOMES WITH SOFT VOLCANIC ROCK.
IN THE 1500s,
FACED WITH OVERPOPULATION AND A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT,
THE PEOPLE MOVED AGAIN--
TOWARD TAOS, NEW MEXICO,
WHERE MANY DESCENDANTS STILL LIVE TODAY.
THAT AREA IS ALSO HOME TO THE MUCH REVERED
SAN FRANCISCO DE ASIS MISSION CHURCH.
ITS SCULPTURAL LINES HAVE BEEN CELEBRATED FOR CENTURIES,
BUT THE ACTUAL ARCHITECT ISN'T KNOWN.
SPANISH COLONISTS WHO SETTLED HERE
STARTED BUILDING THE CHURCH IN 1772--
A PROCESS THAT TOOK MORE THAN FOUR DECADES.
THE ADOBE BUILDING WAS A FAVORITE SUBJECT
OF PHOTOGRAPHERS PAUL STRAND AND ANSEL ADAMS,
ALONG WITH PAINTER GEORGIA O'KEEFE,
WHO RETURNED TO IT AGAIN AND AGAIN.
60 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE CHURCH
IS ANOTHER SITE THAT INSPIRED O'KEEFE AND MANY OTHERS:
GHOST RANCH, HOME TO KITCHEN MESA.
THE HILL AND SURROUNDING 21,000 ACRES HAVE BEEN PRESERVED
THANKS TO AN ENVIRONMENTALIST NAMED ARTHUR PACK.
HE BOUGHT THIS RANCH IN 1936
AND LET O'KEEFE RENT A SUMMER COTTAGE HERE.
IN 1955, MUCH TO O'KEEFE'S DISMAY,
PACK DONATED THE ENTIRE THING TO THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
ITS LEADERS CONTINUED PACK'S MISSION TO PRESERVE THE LAND...
WHICH IS ALSO HOME TO DINOSAUR FOSSILS...
NAVAJO RELICS...
AND THE FLAT-TOPPED MOUNTAIN PEDERNAL--
ANOTHER BELOVED SUBJECT OF O'KEEFE'S.
A FAMOUS SOUTHERN FIGURE
ALSO FOUND INSPIRATION IN HIS SURROUNDINGS...
IN OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI.
NOVELIST WILLIAM FAULKNER GREW UP IN THIS SMALL TOWN
AND, IN HIS WRITING, IMMORTALIZED BOTH THE AREA
AND ITS SOCIAL ISSUES.
THE LAFAYETTE COUNTY COURTHOUSE
APPEARS IN HIS BOOK "REQUIEM FOR A NUN,"
FAMOUS FOR THE LINE
"THE PAST IS NEVER DEAD. IT'S NOT EVEN PAST."
FAULKNER BOUGHT THIS HOME JUST OUTSIDE OXFORD IN 1930--
THE YEAR AFTER "THE SOUND AND THE FURY"
WAS PUBLISHED.
HE NAMED IT "ROWAN OAK" AFTER A SCOTTISH LEGEND
ABOUT THE PROTECTIVE POWER OF ROWAN TREES.
FAULKNER REMAINED LARGELY UNKNOWN UNTIL 1949,
WHEN HE WON THE NOBEL PRIZE FOR LITERATURE--
FOLLOWED FIVE YEARS LATER BY THE PULITZER.
THE SOUTH IS ALSO HOME
TO SOME OF AMERICA'S MOST LEGENDARY LAND:
THE SWAMPS OF LOUISIANA.
STRETCHING FROM THE BIG EASY ALL THE WAY TO TEXAS,
THIS RICH ECOSYSTEM WAS VITAL TO THE EARLY CAJUNS,
WHO SURVIVED BY HUNTING, FISHING AND TRAPPING...
THOUGH THEY ALSO SAW THE BAYOUS
AS A SOURCE OF DANGER AND EVIL SPIRITS.
TODAY, THE SWAMPS ARE HOME TO FLOCKS OF WHITE EGRETS...
THOUSANDS OF AMERICAN ALLIGATORS...
AND FORESTS OF BALD CYPRESS,
WHICH FEND OFF ROT WITH THE OIL IN THEIR TRUNKS.
A FEW HOURS WEST OF NEW ORLEANS, NATURE ALSO TAKES CENTER STAGE
AT BIRD CITY...
A NESTING SPOT FOR 20,000 BIRDS
INCLUDING SNOWY AND GREAT EGRETS,
BLUE HERONS, WOOD DUCKS AND GEESE.
THE PRESERVE CAME ABOUT IN A RATHER UNUSUAL WAY.
IN 1895, EDWARD "NED" McILHENNY,
THE SON OF TABASCO FOUNDER EDMUND McILHENNY,
WAS CONCERNED THAT THE HIGH DEMAND
FOR FEATHERED WOMEN'S HATS
WAS DRIVING LOUISIANA'S SNOWY EGRET TO EXTINCTION.
NED WADED INTO THE SWAMP, CAUGHT EIGHT YOUNG EGRETS
AND RAISED THEM HIMSELF IN A ROOKERY NEXT TO HIS HOUSE.
IT WAS LOUISIANA'S FIRST WILDLIFE PRESERVE.
1,100 MILES NORTHEAST OF LOUISIANA
IS THE NATION'S FIRST CAPITAL-- PHILADELPHIA.
ON JULY 4, 1776, THE FOUNDING FATHERS
ADOPTED THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
HERE AT INDEPENDENCE HALL.
FOUR DAYS LATER,
THE FAMOUS LIBERTY BELL RANG OUT FROM THIS STEEPLE,
CALLING CITIZENS TO HEAR THE DECLARATION READ.
TODAY, A REPLICA CALLED THE CENTENNIAL BELL HANGS HERE,
WHILE THE LIBERTY BELL IS ON DISPLAY ACROSS THE GREEN.
NINE OF THE 56 SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
LIVED IN PENNSYLVANIA--
INCLUDING A KEY FIGURE IN AMERICAN HISTORY,
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.
TODAY, HIS HOME AND PRINT SHOP
ARE MARKED BY THESE SIMPLE FRAME GIRDERS.
THE ORIGINAL HOME WAS TORN DOWN IN THE 19th CENTURY--
BUT ARCHEOLOGISTS HAVE UNCOVERED WALL FOUNDATIONS,
WELLS AND MORE.
FRANKLIN SPENT HIS LAST YEARS HERE,
UNTIL HIS DEATH AT THE AGE OF 84.
20,000 MOURNERS CAME TO HIS FUNERAL IN THE CITY HE LOVED.
THE SOUTHERN STATE OF ALABAMA IS HOME TO A SURPRISING SITE.
THIS IS THE U.S. SPACE AND ROCKET CENTER IN HUNTSVILLE,
BIRTHPLACE OF THE SATURN FIVE--
THE TYPE OF ROCKET THAT PUT THE FIRST MAN ON THE MOON.
BUT AMERICA MIGHT NOT HAVE DEVELOPED THAT TECHNOLOGY
WITHOUT WORLD WAR TWO.
DR. WERNHER VON BRAUN DESIGNED ROCKETS FOR THE NAZIS
UNTIL HE SURRENDERED TO THE AMERICANS,
WHO USED HIS EXPERTISE
TO DEVELOP BALLISTIC MISSILES IN HUNTSVILLE.
AFTER THE COLD WAR WITH RUSSIA BEGAN,
THE SPACE RACE STARTED,
WITH EACH COUNTRY TRYING TO PROVE ITS SUPERIORITY.
NASA WAS BORN IN 1958,
ESTABLISHING THE MARSHALL SPACE CENTER HERE TWO YEARS LATER.
SOON, VON BRAUN AND HIS TEAM BEGAN DEVELOPING SATURN ROCKETS,
ULTIMATELY TESTING 32 DESIGNS.
EACH ONE WORKED.
FINALLY, IN 1969, POWERED BY A SATURN FIVE,
NEIL ARMSTRONG, BUZZ ALDRIN AND MICHAEL COLLINS LIFTED OFF.
TODAY, A CRATER IS NAMED AFTER VON BRAUN--
ONE YOU CAN SEE VERY CLEARLY...
FROM A MOUNTAINTOP MORE THAN 4,000 MILES AWAY
ON THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII.
THIS IS THE W.M. KECK OBSERVATORY
ON THE SUMMIT OF MAUNA KEA--
A DORMANT VOLCANO SO REMOTE
IT'S ONE OF THE BEST PLACES ON EARTH TO STUDY OUTER SPACE.
ELEVEN NATIONS HAVE TELESCOPES HERE,
WHERE THEY'VE MADE KEY DISCOVERIES
ABOUT THE FORMATION OF STARS AND THE ORIGIN OF BLACK HOLES.
THE VOLCANO SITS NEAR THE CENTER OF THE BIG ISLAND...
AND ON ITS SOUTHERN END
IS THE MOST ACTIVE VOLCANO IN THE WORLD: KILAUEA,
PART OF HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK.
IT'S BEEN EMITTING STEAM AND LAVA SINCE 1983
IN WHAT ARE CALLED "QUIET ERUPTIONS"--
MEANING GASES ESCAPE SLOWLY INSTEAD OF IN ONE VIOLENT BURST.
THE NATURAL FORCES AT WORK HERE HELP SCIENTISTS STUDY
HOW LAND MASSES MAY HAVE BEEN FORMED MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO...
AND ARE STILL BEING FORMED TODAY...
AS COOLING LAVA EXPANDS HAWAII'S COASTLINE BIT BY BIT.
HAWAII ITSELF WAS BORN AROUND 40 MILLION YEARS AGO,
FROM SEA VOLCANOES AND THE SHIFTING EARTH--
WHICH HELPED MOLD THIS SPECTACULAR SCENERY
ON THE MAUI COAST.
THE EIGHT ISLANDS WERE ANNEXED BY THE UNITED STATES
AFTER DECADES OF FIGHTING
BETWEEN NATIVE HAWAIIANS AND AMERICAN BUSINESSMEN
OVER WHO SHOULD GOVERN THEM.
THE LAST MONARCH OF THE ISLANDS WAS OVERTHROWN IN 1893,
BUT MANY IN CONGRESS OPPOSED ANNEXATION...
UNTIL THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR IN 1898,
WHEN THE STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF PEARL HARBOR BECAME CLEAR.
TWO YEARS LATER, HAWAII BECAME A U.S. TERRITORY--
AND IN 1959 IT BECAME A STATE.
OVER THE YEARS, ITS UNIQUE LOCATION--
THOUSANDS OF MILES FROM ANY CONTINENT--
HAS HELPED PROTECT THE DIVERSE AND STUNNING LANDSCAPE.
ANOTHER PRISTINE SET OF ISLANDS WAS CREATED
BY A FAR DIFFERENT GEOLOGICAL FORCE.
THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO,
MELTING GLACIERS HELPED CARVE OUT THE SAN JUAN ISLANDS,
LOCATED NORTH OF WASHINGTON'S PUGET SOUND.
THEY SIT IN THE STATE'S FAR NORTHWEST CORNER
WHERE FOUR ARE REACHABLE BY FERRY,
AND THE REST ONLY BY PRIVATE BOAT.
THANKS TO THEIR REMOTENESS, MANY PARTS OF THE ISLANDS EXIST
LARGELY AS THEY HAVE FOR CENTURIES--
AS A PLAYGROUND FOR SEA LIONS, BALD EAGLES AND OTHER WILDLIFE.
100 MILES SOUTH OF THE ISLANDS IS A MUCH-PRAISED SITE:
SEATTLE'S OLYMPIC SCULPTURE PARK.
FOR DECADES, THIS WAS A DRAB PETROLEUM FACILITY.
THEN, IN 1999, THE SEATTLE ART MUSEUM BOUGHT THE LAND--
THE LAST STRETCH OF UNDEVELOPED PROPERTY ON THE WATERFRONT.
OVER THE NEXT EIGHT YEARS,
THE MUSEUM AND THE TRUST FOR PUBLIC LAND
TRANSFORMED IT INTO AN OASIS OF ART AND GREEN SPACE.
AT ITS CENTER, A 2,200-FOOT PATH
THROUGH THE FOUR MAIN ECOSYSTEMS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST:
AN EVERGREEN FOREST, A GRASS-FILLED MEADOW,
AN ASPEN GROVE, AND A SALTWATER SHORE.
INTERSPERSED IN THE PARK ARE SEVERAL SCULPTURES,
INCLUDING ALEXANDER CALDER'S "THE EAGLE,"
WHICH HE CREATED IN 1971, AT THE APEX OF HIS CAREER.
THE INSPIRATION FOR THE PARK
CAME FROM THE MOUNTAINS THAT SIT ACROSS THE PUGET SOUND--
THIS IS THE OLYMPIC RANGE IN OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK.
THE BRITISH MARINER WHO NAMED THE MOUNTAIN RANGE
WAS SO AWED BY THEM, HE THOUGHT GREEK GODS COULD LIVE HERE.
COVERING AN AREA BIGGER THAN RHODE ISLAND,
THE PARK IS ACTUALLY MADE UP OF RAINFORESTS, BEACHES, GLACIERS--
AND THE OLYMPIC MOUNTAIN RANGE.
THE HIGHEST PEAK, MOUNT OLYMPUS, IS COVERED WITH GLACIERS,
INCLUDING THE SPECTACULAR BLUE GLACIER.
THE PARK ALSO PROTECTS SOME
OF THE MOST PRISTINE TEMPERATE RAINFORESTS IN THE U.S.
AND 73 MILES OF UNINTERRUPTED COASTLINE.
ACROSS THE COUNTRY...
A FAR DIFFERENT COASTLINE WITH A REMARKABLE NATURAL RESOURCE--
SOUTH FLORIDA'S EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK.
THE MASSIVE AND COMPLEX ECOSYSTEM
IS ACTUALLY A SLOW-MOVING, 40-MILE-WIDE RIVER,
HOME TO MANY ENDANGERED PLANTS AND ANIMALS.
IT'S ALSO THE ONLY PLACE IN THE WORLD
WHERE ALLIGATORS AND CROCODILES CO-EXIST.
THE NEXT SPOT IS AS FAR SOUTH
AS YOU CAN GET IN THE U.S. BY CAR--
THANKS TO THE ENGINEERING MARVEL OF THE OVERSEAS HIGHWAY.
FROM MIAMI, IT TAKES YOU ACROSS THE STRETCH OF ISLANDS
THAT MAKE UP THE FLORIDA KEYS...
AND ENDS 128 MILES LATER ON IN KEY WEST.
THIS TOWN IS FAMOUS FOR ITS BARS AND LAID-BACK ATTITUDE,
BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE TO IT THAN THAT.
THE 2,900 SQUARE NAUTICAL MILES SURROUNDING THE KEYS
ARE A NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY--
HOME TO THOUSANDS OF SPECIES OF WILDLIFE,
DOZENS OF SHIPWRECKS, AND ONE OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST REEFS.
KEY WEST WAS ALSO HOME TO ERNEST HEMINGWAY IN THE 1930s.
THE NOBEL PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR
LIVED WITH HIS FAMILY IN THIS SPANISH COLONIAL
WHERE HE WROTE THE NOVEL "FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS,"
AMONG OTHERS.
YOU CAN STILL FIND DESCENDANTS OF HIS SIX-TOED CAT, SNOWBALL,
ON THE PROPERTY.
THE SAME YEAR HEMINGWAY PUBLISHED HIS FIRST NOVEL,
AMERICA WAS TAKING ON THIS--
THE FIRST MODERN NATIONAL HIGHWAY--
KNOWN AS ROUTE 66.
IN THE 1920s, THE UNITED STATES WAS CHANGING RAPIDLY--
IN LARGE PART BECAUSE
OF THE INCREASINGLY AFFORDABLE AUTOMOBILE.
BUT ROADS IN THE COUNTRY WERE A MESS.
IN 1921, THE GOVERNMENT SET ABOUT CREATING A HIGHWAY--
WITH WIDER LANES AND FEWER CURVES--
THAT COULD CONNECT URBAN AND RURAL AREAS.
OFFICIALLY COMMISSIONED IN 1926,
ROUTE 66 RELIED LARGELY ON EXISTING ROADS--
AND WASN'T EVEN FULLY PAVED UNTIL 1938.
BUT ITS ROUTE FROM CHICAGO THROUGH ST. LOUIS
AND TO LOS ANGELES
SOON STARTED CHANGING LIVES...
ALLOWING FARMERS TO MORE EASILY TRANSPORT GOODS...
JUMP STARTING THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY...
AND CREATING MOM AND POP BUSINESSES ALONG THE WAY.
ROUTE 66 ENDED HERE, IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA--
HOME OF BIG SUR AND THE PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY.
THIS DRAMATIC 90-MILE SECTION,
WHERE THE SANTA LUCIA MOUNTAINS MEET THE SEA,
IS FILLED WITH SHEER CLIFFS AND WATERFALLS.
AND HIGHWAY ONE IS THE ONLY WAY THROUGH IT.
THIS ROAD WAS THE DREAM
OF A DOCTOR AND ENTREPRENEUR NAMED JOHN ROBERTS,
WHO TRAVERSED THIS ROCKY TERRAIN ON HORSEBACK TO REACH PATIENTS.
IN 1894, AFTER A TRIP TO REACH SHIPWRECK VICTIMS
TOOK HIM FOUR GRUELING HOURS,
ROBERTS FINALLY PHOTOGRAPHED THIS STRETCH
BETWEEN SAN SIMEON AND CARMEL,
BECOMING THE LAND'S FIRST SURVEYOR.
IT TOOK YEARS TO SECURE FUNDING...
BUT IN 1919, CONSTRUCTION BEGAN.
ONE STRETCH HEADS OVER ANOTHER MODERN MARVEL--
BIXBY CREEK BRIDGE--
ONE OF THE HIGHEST SINGLE-ARCH BRIDGES IN THE WORLD.
AS THE HIGHWAY TWISTS NORTH,
IT TAKES YOU TO WHAT GOLF ENTHUSIASTS WOULD CERTAINLY CALL
AN AMAZING DESTINATION--
PEBBLE BEACH.
IN THE EARLY 1900s, A MAN NAMED SAMUEL F.B. MORSE--
NAMED AFTER HIS GREAT UNCLE, INVENTOR OF THE MORSE CODE--
WAS TOLD BY HIS DEVELOPER BOSSES
TO MAKE THE CALIFORNIA PENINSULA PROFITABLE.
AT THE TIME, THEY WERE HAVING A HARD TIME SELLING LOTS HERE,
AND WANTED TO UNLOAD THEM ALL FOR $1.3 MILLION.
MORSE DECIDED TO PUT IN A GOLF COURSE...
AND GOT TWO AMATEURS TO DESIGN IT WITH HIM FOR FREE.
WHEN IT WAS DONE, MORSE BOUGHT THE LAND HIMSELF--
THEN OWNED AND OPERATED IT FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.
HIS FAMILY EVENTUALLY SOLD IT FOR $72 MILLION.
UP THE COAST IN SAN FRANCISCO
IS GREEN SPACE OF A DIFFERENT KIND--
GOLDEN GATE PARK.
BUT 150 YEARS AGO, THIS LAND WASN'T EVEN GREEN:
IT WAS ALL SAND AND ROLLING DUNES
WITH BARELY ANY TREES.
THE PARK'S PLANNERS CHANGED THAT
WHEN THEY PLANTED A STRAIN OF GRASS
THAT ANCHORED THE SANDY SOIL.
IN THE WESTERN END OF THE PARK
IS ONE OF THE PARK'S NEWEST ADDITIONS--
THE NEW GREEN HOME
OF THE CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF THE SCIENCES.
THE MASSIVE $500 MILLION FACILITY
INCLUDES A NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM,
A PLANETARIUM, AN AQUARIUM AND A RAINFOREST.
FOR A TRUE SENSE OF AMERICA'S AMAZING WILDERNESS,
FEW STATES CAN COMPETE WITH OREGON.
IN THE FOOTHILLS OF THE OCHOCO MOUNTAINS,
UP THE CROOKED RIVER,
IS THE ROCK CLIMBING MECCA OF SMITH ROCK STATE PARK.
MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO, A MASSIVE VOLCANIC ERUPTION
SPEWED HOT ASH, LAVA, AND CHUNKS OF ROCK HERE--
WHICH COOLED AND WEATHERED INTO THESE GREAT STONE PINNACLES.
THE SOFT ROCK-- OR WELDED TUFF--
IS PART OF THE DRAW FOR ROCK CLIMBERS,
WHO STARTED FLOCKING HERE IN THE 1960s.
BUT NO ONE KNOWS EXACTLY WHO DISCOVERED THE PARK.
IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN A FORMER SHERIFF NAMED JOHN SMITH
TRAVELING HERE IN 1867...
OR IT COULD HAVE BEEN PRIVATE VOKE SMITH,
A U.S. CAVALRY MEMBER WHO FELL TO HIS DEATH HERE
FIGHTING NATIVE AMERICANS IN 1863.
CLIMBERS DO AGREE THIS IS ONE OF THE PREMIER PLACES IN THE WORLD
FOR THEIR SPORT...
PARTICULARLY THIS OUTCROPPING CALLED MONKEY FACE,
WHICH IS AMONG THE HARDEST ASCENTS IN THE WORLD.
OREGON IS ALSO HOME TO THE COLUMBIA RIVER HIGHWAY,
THE FIRST PLANNED SCENIC HIGHWAY IN THE COUNTRY.
IT WAS THE DREAM OF AN INDUSTRIALIST NAMED SAM HILL,
WHO BELIEVED A GOOD ROAD WOULD HELP THE AREA PROSPER.
HILL'S OWN FARM FAILED, BUT THE HIGHWAY DIDN'T.
COMPLETED IN 1922, IT WAS HAILED AS AN ENGINEERING MASTERPIECE
FOR ITS INTEGRATION INTO THE SURROUNDING LANDSCAPE.
HILL WENT ON TO HELP BUILD THE PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY.
TODAY, KITE SURFERS AND TOURISTS
CAN ENJOY ALL THE RIVER HAS TO OFFER....
THANKS TO ONE MAN'S DOGGED DETERMINATION.
A LUMBER BARON NAMED SIMON BENSON
WAS ALSO A PROPONENT OF THE ROAD...
AND ONE-TIME OWNER OF THIS-- MULTNOMAH FALLS--
WHICH SITS JUST OFF THE HIGHWAY.
A NATIVE AMERICAN LEGEND SAYS THE WATERFALL WAS CREATED
TO WIN THE LOVE OF A YOUNG PRINCESS
WHO WANTED A HIDDEN PLACE TO BATHE.
BENSON, A PASSIONATE PHILANTHROPIST,
BELIEVED THE SITE WAS SO SPECTACULAR,
IT OUGHT TO BE ENJOYED BY EVERYONE.
SO IN THE EARLY 1900s, HE BOUGHT THE WATERFALL,
ALONG WITH 400 ADDITIONAL ACRES,
THEN DONATED THE WHOLE LOT TO THE CITY OF PORTLAND.
THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE FALLS
WAS BUILT BY AND NAMED FOR BENSON.
TODAY, THE WATERFALL IS AMONG OREGON'S MOST VISITED SITES.
THIS PART OF OREGON WAS BREATHTAKING
TO TWO OF ITS EARLIEST VISITORS--
LEWIS AND CLARK.
THEY TRAVERSED THE STATE WITH A SMALL PARTY OF MEN
AND A WOMAN NAMED SACAGAWEA--
EMERGING AT THE PACIFIC IN 1805.
THEY'D STARTED THEIR EXPLORATION OF THE UNCHARTED WEST
FROM ST. LOUIS A YEAR AND A HALF EARLIER.
TODAY, THE CAMP THEY SET UP IN THESE EVERGREENS,
WHICH THEY NAMED FORT CLATSOP,
IS PART OF LEWIS AND CLARK NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK.
FROM HERE, THE INTREPID EXPLORERS
CONTINUED TO TRAVEL THE OREGON COAST--
AT ONE POINT CLIMBING
THE THOUSAND-FOOT PEAK OF TILLAMOOK HEAD
ON AN EXPEDITION TO FIND WHALE BLUBBER.
IT WAS A LONG, DIFFICULT CLIMB, BUT FROM THE TOP, CLARK SAID,
"I BEHOLD THE GRANDEST AND MOST PLEASING PROSPECT
WHICH MY EYES EVER SURVEYED."
THAT SAME SENSE OF WONDER HAS HELPED DEFINE AMERICA...
MOTIVATING SOME MEN TO CONQUER THE COUNTRY'S HIGHEST PEAKS...
AND OTHERS TO TRAVEL BEYOND THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE,
ALL THE WAY TO THE MOON.
IT'S DRIVEN ENGINEERS TO BUILD BRIDGES
IN WHAT SEEMED LIKE IMPOSSIBLE PLACES...
AND HELPED ARTISTS CREATE
SOME OF THE COUNTRY'S MOST CELEBRATED WORKS...
REMARKABLE PEOPLE AND PLACES
IN A COUNTRY THAT CONTINUES TO INSPIRE.