Hiking New Zealand’s Demon Trail

Unique home gifts, fluorescent rocks, and more.
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	December 01, 2022

True ‘Wildness’

New Zealand’s Demon Trail

What is ‘wildness’? It doesn’t have to be just in relation to animals or places—it can be a driving force, something that ebbs and flows. Dive into the tale of a young couple and their young daughter, who hiked the South Island’s Hollyford Track for a glimpse of an untamed world, one that’s home to the world’s best remnants of the original flora and fauna of an ancient megacontinent.

Unusual Gift Ideas

Unique Home Gifts

Finding gifts for the home can be tricky; everyone has their own particular style. But the Atlas Obscura community always appreciates quirky craftsmanship. From beautifully intricate architectural maps to a minimalist clock that literally lets you control time, there’s something here for every person, every aesthetic, and every home.

Helsingør, Denmark

The statue incarnation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale character the Little Mermaid is undoubtedly one of the most popular tourist attractions in Copenhagen. Unknown to most tourists, however, is that about 25 miles (40 km) north of the Danish capital, in the small coastal city of Helsingør, you find a modern male version of the classic bronze siren.

Sponsored by Defender

The Explorer’s Guide to Hudson Valley, New York

Here at Atlas Obscura, we’re all about finding wonder in your own backyard. No one knows this better than our co-founder, Dylan Thuras, who’s spent years finding natural wonders and curiosities near home. From a living antique aviation museum to a farm-to-table dinner at a Victorian castle resort, here are some of the best road trip stops to visit next time you’re in the Hudson Valley.

Places For Gift Ideas

Where to Find a Peculiar Gift

Are you looking for the one-of-a-kind gift for a loved one this year? There are plenty of unique places and odd shops that might hold the quirky present you might be looking for. From a store that’s an amateur geologist’s dream to a 45,000-square-foot warehouse filled with comics and action figures to a collection of circus memorabilia, here are some of our favorite places to find something weird for that person who has everything.

Shinnston, West Virginia

Charlie the Coal Miner

A 21-foot-tall statue looms along the West Fork River in Shinnston, West Virginia. Made of scrap metal with a functioning lighted miner helmet, the statue was commissioned in 1999 as a tribute to a coal miner who was killed in the mines in 1951.

The Atlas Obscura Podcast

Fluorescent Rocks of Sterling Hill

In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, we visit rocks that glow in otherworldly colors at this historic zinc mine in Ogdensburg, New Jersey.

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Grifter Histories

The Tale of the Parisian Fraudster

Meet Thérèse Humbert. Born in 1856, Thérèse rose from her peasant background and built herself an empire, acquired a castle, and owned a rather distasteful but expensive leech hat, all through invented schemes so torturously convoluted that no one could understand them enough to prove them wrong.

Pekin Noodle Parlor

The oldest continuously-operating Chinese restaurant in the United States, is unassuming, its flickering neon sign above the door a feeble indicator of its cultural significance. In 1911, Hum Yow and Tam Kwong Yee opened the Pekin Noodle Parlor to feed the growing community of Chinese immigrants. The Tam family has owned and operated the Parlor ever since. It’s currently run by Danny Wong who bought it from his great-uncle in the 1950s.

Atlas Obscura Courses

December Courses

'Tis the season to hunker down and learn! Our December lineup features courses exploring everything from Steampunk art and the techniques of lockpicking to designing keepsake games. Check out all of our end-of-year offerings below!

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