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A Rediscover 

 MERICA 



Alabama • Arizona • Georgia • Kentucky 



Mississippi • New l-lampsliire • New Mexico 



New Yorl< • Wisconsin • Wyoming 



Has there ever been a more lyrical description 

 of this country than the verses oMmerica the 

 Beautiful, written by Katherine Lee Bates in 

 1893? 



Today, ecotourism is reinforcing America's 

 pride in its natural assets. A nationwide preser- 

 vationist drive is keeping a richly varied envi- 

 ronment in a state of grace. Travelers are seek- 

 ing out those purple mountains and fruited 

 plains, not overseas but in their own home- 

 land-aided by well-planned travel itineraries, 

 economic air fares and attractive car rental 

 packages. 



They undoubtedly agree with Alexis de Toc- 

 queville, who in 1835 made the cogent com- 

 ment, that "America is a land of wonders, in 

 which everything is in constant motion and 

 every change seems an improvement." 

 A-2 



ALABAMA 



The Camellia State is home to a memorable 

 group of public and private parks, one of which 

 was founded with the immense profits from the 

 creation of a soft drink. Mobile's Bellingrath 

 Gardens is a 65-acre expanse of spring-bloom- 

 ing azaleas, autumn chrysanthemums, and 

 winter poinsettas. The gardens were estab- 

 lished in 1 917 on the family estate of million- 

 aire Walter D. Bellingrath, a founding father of 

 Coca Cola. 



Another "not to be missed" natural resource 

 is the Alabama Wildlife Center, open to the 

 public and nestled among ten wooded acres 

 within Oak Mountain State Park, near Birming- 

 ham. The Center has treated thousands of in- 

 jured wild birds and mammals and has re- 

 turned them successfully to the wild. Its 



Treetop Nature Trail is an elevated boardwalk 

 flanked by spacious tree houses on stilts 

 whose elevation allows recovering birds to fol- 

 low their natural instinct of being high off the 

 ground. 



The Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge and 

 Visitor Center, north of Bimiingham, is a pro- 

 tected wildlife refuge. Its innovative crop-shar- 

 ing programs with local farmers produce water- 

 fowl food on 4,000 acres; and its corn, 

 sorghum, millet, and soybean crops attract 

 geese, mallards, wigeon, pintail and black 

 ducks. 



The Sequoyah Caverns, in the northeastern 

 corner of the state, are noted for their clear 

 "Looking Glass Lakes." Above ground is a pro- 

 tected home for buffalo, white fallow deer, and 

 peacocks. 



