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Travel / United States

The 14-foot holiday tree at The Corning Museum of Glass contains 2,000 glass ornaments made by a team of glassmakers.

This One-of-a-Kind Christmas Tree Is Made of 2,000 Handmade Glass Ornaments

The Corning Museum in New York has a glittering holiday tradition of its own

Dawe says he loved having to work with the Renwick building’s 19th-century architectural details as a backdrop.

The Renwick Reopens

Artist Gabriel Dawe Made a Rainbow Out of 60 Miles of Thread

The artwork is an optical illusion that delights the senses; as if the artist embroidered the air

Opuntia cacti grow in the desert near Twentynine Palms, California. The area is home to plenty of dry plants and weeds—perfect for the city's annual Weed Show.

At This Unique Flower Show, Weeds Are the Stars

The women of this small desert town have found beauty in getting in the weeds

In this intricate mechanical bank, the user balances a coin on the miniature man's gun, which then shoots the coin into a slot in the tree.

One Man’s Obsession With Antique Toys Resulted in a Museum

The Portland, Oregon, attraction is more than just the stuff of Kidd’s play

Smithsonian Best Small Towns 2015

The 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2015

From sea to shining sea, our top picks for the most amazing American small towns to see this year

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The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

A look back at the fateful night 150 years ago that changed American history forever

Urban Explorations

Eight Modern Speakeasies With Real Roots in the 1920s

These speakeasies across the United States do justice to the Jazz Age

Geese lift off a lake in front of a sun pillar at Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge near Mound City, Missouri.

American South

The Best Places in America to See Fall Bird Migrations

All across the country, birds are making the trek south for the winter—here are some of the best places to witness their journey

Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia

Halloween

World’s Most Beautiful Cemeteries

A visit to these hauntingly beautiful cemeteries illuminates more than just mortality

Around half of the San Gabriel Mountains are now a national monument.

San Gabriel Mountains Designated A National Monument

President Obama grants federal protection to half of the California mountain range

Abandoned wooden houses line the main street in St. Elmo, Colorado.

Halloween

Need Some Alone Time? Check Out America’s Coolest Ghost Towns

Old mines, abandoned buildings, and the occasional curse: Ghost towns cover the United States, and they make for a fun detour

Balloons taking off during the Mass Ascension at the opening of the International Balloon Fiesta at Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

New Mexico’s Skies Burst With Color During World’s Largest Hot Air Balloon Festival

The 43rd Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta sends hundreds of hot air balloons soaring into the sky

Revelers celebrating Oktoberfest Brisbane

Best Places to Celebrate Oktoberfest Other Than Munich

If drinking beer and eating schnitzel alongside 6 million people doesn’t appeal to you, here are places to celebrate while avoiding Munich’s crowds

Pink Sands Beach, Harbour Island, The Bahamas

The World’s Most Colorful Beaches

From green sand to glass, here are some of the most eye-popping beaches around the world

Kitt Peak, an observatory located south of the Baboquivari Wilderness on the Tohono O'odham reservation in the early evening.

Baboquivari Peak Wilderness

Scenic desert, rock climbing, splendid vistas

Saint Elias Range

Wrangell – Saint Elias Wilderness

Caribou, glaciers, World Heritage Site

A foggy bog in Seney National Wildlife Refuge, Michigan

Seney National Wildlife Refuge

String bogs, sand dune islands and carnivorous plants

Wildflowers abound by the Absaroka Mountains, Wyoming

Teton Wilderness

The continental divide, wild rivers and grey wolves

Sailboats moor at Presque Isle Bay on Stockton Island in Lake Superior's Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin

Gaylord Nelson Wilderness

Pristine sandscapes, boreal forest and wild game

Hiker in Dolly Sods Wilderness Area

Dolly Sods Wilderness

Rocky plains, upland bogs and a variety of flora

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