Hi, and welcome to the Z. Michelson Travel Podcast. I am Z. Michelson, and I hope you enjoy your time with us today. Well, I am running solo today. I don't have any guests, but I would be amiss if we didn't talk about some of the American islands that you can visit. You may or may not have heard of some of them, but a lot you heard of. Take, for instance, the Hawaiian Islands. Of course you heard of them. Catalina Island, which is off of California. I've been there several times. It's a lot of fun. There's no cars allowed on the island except for emergency services. You can get a golf cart there and drive around the island, and on the island is buffalo or bison. What happened was years ago, they were brought to the island for a movie that they were making. And I want to say way back when, like in the 1920s, 30s, or 40s. And they decided to leave the buffalo there. But it was such a great place for them. The buffalo just loved it. And they left them there and the buffalo flourished. So you may get to see them as you travel around the island on your little golf cart, but I digress. You may have also heard of Jekyll Island, which is in Georgia. So we have so many places in the United States to explore, and you don't even need a passport. Isn't that great? So why don't we get started and talk about eight American islands that you may or may not have heard about? Well, let's first travel to Rhode Island. We have Blound there. It's a great summertime fun getaway. Block Island has so much you can do there. They have a six-day music festival. Who doesn't like music, right? They also have their very own film festival. That sounds like a lot of fun. And if you're into lighthouses, well, they have a few of those too. What about bird watching? Bird watchers, you will love this place. You will not be disappointed. They have all this and more on Black Island. You know, I have been to a lot of the states in the U.S., but I have a few more states I need to get to, and Rhode Island is one. I haven't visited there, even though I lived on the East Coast for many, many years. So how about we travel across the United States right now? So we are going east to west, all the way to California. Now I already talked about Catalina Island, and we're not going to talk about Catalina in my eight tops. Now, I've lived in California for a little over 15 years, and I never realized Coronado Island was a real island. I just thought it was part of San Diego. And you know what? Technically it is. But Coronado Island is considered the crown jewel. It has received many accolades for the best beaches. Did you know that the sand there has a mineral in it? And the mineral is called mica. And this mineral causes the sand to sparkle when the sun hits it just right. Doesn't that sound beautiful? Now remember, California is known for land of sun and fun. So you can enjoy plenty of activities like biking, hiking, kayaking, and of course, let's not forget surfing. There is Hotel Del Caronado over there as well. Now, I don't know if you've seen the movie Some Like It Hot, but if you haven't, you really need to see it. It's a really funny picture. It stars Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon. If you haven't seen it, take time to see it. But the Hotel Del Coronado was the backdrop for the movie. Even though in the movie they said they were in Florida. But that's where they did the filming. So what are we up to? Oh yeah. Uh number three. We're zipping back across the United States to North Carolina. You can visit in any order you wish. But number three on my list right now that I found for you is Topsail Island in North Carolina. It is a 26-mile barrier island, uncrowded beaches, and three towns. Yes, I said three. They have North Topsail Beach along with Surf City. Gee, I wonder where that name came from. And then there is Topsail Beach. It has a marina and a fishing pier. And for a little added something, they have a museum there that honors the ladies of World War II. And they were known as the Wasps. They were our female pilots that were called to the line of duty. But if pirate treasure is more your thing, why don't you try your luck searching for Blackbeard's treasure? Who apparently frequented the island. But I'm guessing you want to know how the island got its name. Well that's real simple. It's because of the pirates. They would hide their ships behind the island, and all you can see of them was the top sail. So there you have it. That was number three. But remember, if you find Blackbeard's treasure, you heard it from me. But remember, what about 10% of the booty? Now moving to number four. The number four island, we're moving back across the United States and up way north. We're heading to Kodiak Island in Alaska. I have not been to Alaska and I really, really want to go. It's on my bucket list, but you've heard of Kodiak Bears? Well, bears really, really rule this place. Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge. They have about 3,500 bears. But it's not only the bears. If you like fishing, this is a great place to do it. And did you know that Kodiak Island is the second largest in the entire United States? Can you believe that? I would love to go to Alaska. Kodiak Island is on my list. I do like to fish. For those people who don't really know me too well, I do like fishing. It's a lot of fun. It's very relaxing. And boy, could you imagine the fresh salmon coming out of that water? Okay. Where does that put us? Yeah, that puts us to number five. Number five on my list. And that is called I Lahote Main. Now, I needed to learn how to pronounce this word because it's spelt I-S-L-E-A-U-H-A-U-T. I Lahote Maine. Now it is set off the coast of Stonington, Maine. It's home to only a small community of summer residents. And yeah, it can get really, really chilly there. So remember this. Even in the summer, it can be a little chilly. This island is more of a getaway from everything type of an island. Beautiful scenery. Arcadia National Park. So you can bike, you can hike. However, it's very, very, very remote. If you are looking for amenities, you will find only pit toilets. So if you want quiet and relaxation and communing with nature, this is the place for you. I Lahote, Maine. Again, it's beautiful, but it's isolated, but it's a great place to relax. Well, I'm getting a little chilly being from Alaska and now we're in Maine. I need to get back to some warm weather. What about you? So we will head south to a place called Dafusky, South Carolina. And Dafusky is spelt D-A-U-F-U-S-K-I-E. Dafuski. It's located between Hilton Head Island and Savannah, Georgia, so it's pretty pretty close to both of them. However, it's a fairly small island. It's only about five miles long and two and a half miles wide. But however, this tiny little island offers a wonderful, wonderful experience. But remember this there's no bridge to the mainland. So you have to take a ferry over. That's right, I said ferry. There's no bridge. There are a few paved roads there, and the scenery is very southern. You have the Spanish moss that hangs from the trees, and it gives you that real southern feel. But it also has gorgeous white sandy beaches. And believe it or not, for you golfers, they have a few golf courses there too. But I know I have a lot of friends that are into horseback riding, and this is the place to do that. You can ride a horse right on the beach. Right on the beach. Isn't that fun? Now you can get a bite to eat there. And fresh seafood tops the list. So you can enjoy fresh seafood, okra, and blackberries. And it's all on this fabulous little island in the Carolinas. Called Remember what I said it was called? It is called the Fusky South Carolina. Okay, so I'm moving right along. And I'm getting towards the bottom of my list. Um we're at number seven. Wow, this list is going fast. And I'm only telling you little bits and pieces about this. Because you know, everything that I'm telling you right now, you can find more information, of course, on our wonderful internets. Just type in the name and they'll bring up all sorts of information on these islands. So we're at number seven, and that is Sapalo Island, Georgia. Can you tell I'm getting further and further south? I need to be further south. So Sapalo Island is in Georgia, and it's located right off the coast, and you can get there only by sea or air. That's right. I said only by sea or air. So some of these islands, as you can hear, are very remote type of islands. They're great getaways. Now, Sapalow Island is a barrier island, of course. However, if you're traveling with a group of people, you can make arrangements to stay on the island at R.J. Reynolds Mansion. Sounds nice, doesn't it? It was built in 1810 by Thomas Boilding. This island is definitely a step back in time. You can bring snacks, bottled water, non-alcoholic beverages. However, I highly recommend you bring your sunscreen, your bug spray, and of course a hat. It's definitely a place to commune and learn about nature by walking on the beach or biking. And again, this is one of my favorites for bird watchers. You may want to bring your binoculars. Can you believe that? All of these islands are all definitely United States American islands. No passport needed. These are great. And if you're looking for these quick getaways, if you're nearby, or if you want to stay a little longer, like if you want to go up to Alaska and visit most of Alaska, make sure you stop at Kodiak Island, like I was talking about. Okay, guess what? I have finally reached the end of my list. And we are back in my home state of Florida. Yeah, I got a little cold going up north. This is number eight on my list, and it's called the Dry Tortugas. Now, some of you may or may not know tortuga means turtle in Spanish. The Dry Tortuga is a group of seven islands in the Gulf. And they're about 67 miles west of Key West. And yes, it's still part of the U.S. The islands were discovered by Ponce de Leon. I know he was looking feverishly for that fountain of youth. And we have a lot of places in Florida, the Fountain of Youth. I wonder if you'll find it on the Dry Tartugas. I don't know. I haven't been there yet, but I'm planning that next year. And the Dry Tartugas is a great weekend getaway. You can try seeing them by seaplane if you want, because you can see a whole lot above the water, because it's so beautiful blue down there. You would rather see it from above because you can see the the fish and everything in the water. You can see the dolphins, you can see everything. It's beautiful. However, I know some of you would prefer to dive into that water so you can snorkel and you can explore North America's only living coral reef. If you're into history and forts, you don't want to miss Fort Jefferson. So that is the dry Tortugas, and there's so much more there that you'll want to see. So there you have it. These are only some of the islands that you may or may have not known about in the United States. So how about you get out there and rediscover America a little bit? And remember, everything that we've talked about today on these islands, you can find on the internet. You can find out more. You can find out anything about staying at some of these islands, or if you're into camping, do these islands allow camping? So these are some of the things that you want to know. And I know that I'm going to start looking at some of these for my own travels. I thank you today for joining me for this little quick podcast on eight of these islands. And we know there are more out there. So maybe in next podcast, I'll get you some more. Again, thank you for listening to me today. This is Zee Michelson, wishing you all safe travels. And remember, always reach for those stars. And if you only get to the moon, at least you made the trip.