Discovering 'In the Middle of Somewhere' in Alabama: An Inspiring Journey

In the Middle of Somewhere

My two friends texted me asking, "Where are you?" within an hour. I replied that I was in West Nebraska. They both responded, "So, you’re in the middle of nowhere." This reaction made me pause and reflect. I had flown into Denver and taken a small nine-seater plane to Alliance — a tiny place with an even tinier airport. Before receiving their message, I had browsed the Atlas Obscura map and found eight intriguing spots within an hour's drive that I wanted to explore. I felt a twinge of regret for not having enough time.

I texted back, "No, I’m in the middle of somewhere." A week later, I found myself in the northwest corner of Alabama, where the Tennessee River winds its way through, sharing that story with my colleagues from Atlas Obscura on the first morning of a work trip in Florence. Most of them had never set foot in Alabama before. We had crafted this itinerary around a corner of the state that most travelers don’t have on their default maps.

Must-See Destinations

The first stop was Ivy Green, the birthplace of Helen Keller in Tuscumbia. Next, we visited FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, where Aretha Franklin recorded "I Never Loved a Man" in just one day back in 1967. We enjoyed lunch beneath a rock face at Rattlesnake Saloon. That night, under the rain, we explored Dismals Canyon — one of the few places in the world where you can see Dismalites, bioluminescent larvae that transform the cave walls into a starry blue sky.

Almost every location on our itinerary was marked on the AO map. What unfolded is hard to summarize, but what I want to share are the emotions and stories surrounding those places. At Ivy Green, our guide Keller Johnson-Thompson — Helen Keller's granddaughter — spoke about Helen for thirty uninterrupted minutes. Alecia Dalessio told me she could listen for another thirty minutes. Dan Sobo bought bookmarks for his daughters with a quote from Helen Keller: "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart." The next morning, on the long bus ride, Dan quoted that line without a hint of hesitation.

Unexpected Discoveries

At Dismals Canyon, our guide Kevin Cheek led us through completely dark forests to a narrow crevice we had to squeeze through one by one, holding on tightly. Above us, fireflies twinkled, creating a green universe. Before we entered, Kevin asked for permission from the fairies. I wasn't sure if he was joking, but it didn’t matter. Jacquelyn Blackwell, a local from Florence, had been here hundreds of times, but this time she saw her hometown through fourteen new pairs of eyes and discovered things she had never done before.

Holyn Thigpen called her parents from the airport on the way home, sharing all her stories. Now, her parents are planning a similar trip. Sam O'Brien began contemplating his own journey. Daniel McDermon left feeling "a bit excited." Sara Ewell pointed out that the conversations we had on the bus and during our leisurely lunches could never happen over Zoom — and perhaps would never have occurred without this trip.

The Meaning of Exploration

Rachel Carson, in her 1965 book "The Sense of Wonder," argued that children approach the world with a freshness that adults have trained themselves to give up, and the way to reclaim that is to find a companion. Not a teacher, but a friend — someone who never lost the habit of asking, "What’s that?" The companion, she said, just keeps asking. That’s what we do at Atlas Obscura. That’s what Kevin did with us at Dismals Canyon. That’s what Keller did. That’s what Jacquelyn did for all of us in her hometown.

We chatted together on the bus, where someone who stood next to you ten minutes ago in a firefly cave is now sharing a family story. A contagious passion for exploration. My two friends told me I was in the middle of nowhere. They’re still looking at the conventional map. We rejected the conventional map. There’s no such thing as "the middle of nowhere" — only "the middle of somewhere." If you think otherwise, you just need to put on the glasses of exploration to see everything differently. The journey through 50 states is the argument for using those glasses. Just like the Atlas Obscura map. Just like the trip to Florence, Alabama last week, with fourteen people who had never been here before.

We’ve traveled through forty-six states. Only four remain: Idaho, Iowa, Washington, and Alaska.

Article adapted and edited from source: Atlas Obscura