The word "vacation" has certainly taken on a different meaning in the middle of a pandemic. Long-distance travel has turned into a huge ordeal, so it makes sense to seek out vacation spots that are closer to home. Meanwhile, everybody else is thinking the same thing. So getting away from it all may not actually result in getting away from it all...

The sunflowers are now in full bloom at Maintz Wildlife Preserve in Cape Girardeau County. In most years they tend to peak around July 4th, but this year they are slightly behind schedule...

Warning: The location featured here is more hazardous than the usual "Pavement Ends" destination. We're not responsible if you venture too close to the edge and get walloped by gravity. The precipice of a growing sinkhole is not your friend...

The region between Fredericktown and Perryville is a geographic oddity. Five counties -- Ste. Genevieve, Perry, Bollinger, Madison, and St. Francois -- converge in this area with weirdly-shaped boundaries. The peculiar W-shaped line between Ste. Genevieve and St. Francois County even led to a boundary dispute in 2002...

The azaleas are close to their peak at Pinecrest Azalea Garden near Oak Ridge. The spacious garden is a great place to get some fresh air while still maintaining social distancing. The proprietors have even provided picnic tables with paper towels and cleaning bottles...

Sick of being stuck at home where the only excitement today was when your cat coughed up a hairball? Tired of the constant political bickering about the pandemic on Facebook? Going outside for a mental health break is fine as long as you practice that social distancing we've heard so much about...

Note: The history stories that appear in the newspaper on Sundays are limited to 500 words. This is an unabridged version of the Jean Dale story which adds more background and includes hyperlinks to additional sources...

The 1850s brought a short-lived innovation to Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois: plank roads. By building roads with timber planks elevated above the ground, wagons could pass easily without getting stuck in the mud. In 1851, construction work started on the Ste. Genevieve, Iron Mountain and Pilot Knob Plank Road. This toll road, built with planks 8 feet long and 2 inches thick, provided an important connection between the mines at Arcadia Valley with the Mississippi River...

This year's Christmas Country Church Tour was larger than ever, featuring 38 stops across five counties. The event is now "interstate" since it includes the church in Kaskaskia, located in Illinois but accessed from Missouri...

New for 2019, the Shawnee National Forest in Illinois is offering a $5 permit to cut down the Christmas tree of your choice from forest lands. Some restrictions apply, of course...

Local historians are well acquainted with Joseph McFerron, the first clerk for the courts of the Cape Girardeau District, since he left behind a mountain of documents penned in his distinctive handwriting. He's also known for the 1807 duel in which he shot and killed William Ogle...

I've written previously about the stand of pale purple coneflowers at Cave Creek Glade Nature Preserve near Vienna, Illinois. This weekend I found another place to see coneflowers, this time in Missouri along Highway 21/72 at Royal Gorge in Iron County...

The Ghost Dance Canyon Trail at Dixon Springs State Park in Illinois is an excellent destination in all four seasons...

April showers are a good thing! Not only do they bring May flowers, but heavy rainstorms produce an abundance of waterfalls. Although the trails might be choked with mud, if you want to see waterfalls at their peak, then mud is a small price to pay...

The daffodils have bloomed and the magnolia and pear trees are at their best. We've finally made it to spring. Here are some ideas for places to visit in Cape Girardeau County to capture the all-too-brief spring colors. Boulevard Historic District...

Our recent windstorm seems to have done a number on a tree at Old Lorimier Cemetery in Cape Girardeau. A large branch from an ancient hackberry tree has fallen across several headstones...

This last weekend saw a large crowd descend on the Snake Road at LaRue-Pine Hills in Illinois to watch the snake migration. For those of us not interested in reptiles, the same area is currently offering another kind of wildlife viewing opportunity: bald eagles...

We may not always get a big snow in the winter, but it does seem that the "Polar Vortex" always makes at least one appearance. These Arctic blasts do offer one advantage: ice formations...

One of these days we'll finally get a decent snowfall instead of watching the systems miss us to the north or south. When that happens, here are some ideas for scenic places to visit to enjoy a winter wonderland...

Sharon Sanders recently posted several accounts of the destructive tornado that ripped through Cape Girardeau on Nov. 27, 1850. In the weeks following the disaster, newspapers across the country published stories about the tornado (or "hurricane"), although the details varied widely. ...