The 100 Best Affordable Vacations (19 page)

 The top U.S. states for cattle farming (by number of cows) are, in order, Texas, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and California.

 The world’s largest cattle ranch, Anna Creek Station in South Australia, is bigger than Israel.

 A 1,000-pound cow produces about 80 pounds of manure per day (according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture).

Elko, a place that seems like a long way from anywhere, was chosen for the gathering for just that reason, explains Ryan T. Bell, a cowboy, author, and frequent contributor to
Western Horseman
magazine. “This is the epicenter of ranching—of buckaroo culture and Basque immigration, and that’s about as cowboy as it gets.” The festival is set in the winter months because that’s the off-season for cowboys. “If it were in the summertime, there ain’t no working cowboy that would take time to go to this event,” he explains.

BUCKIN’ BRONCOS

If your heart is set on bucking broncos and barrel races, consider these rodeos:

 
Calgary Stampede
. Held each July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the Calgary Stampede is one of the continent’s best known cowboy events. The one-million-dollar purse draws top contestants in bull riding, barrel racing, steer wrestling, and wild-pony racing. If that’s not enough to get your pulse beating, check out the chuck wagon races. Musical acts, a grandstand show, and a carnival midway are all part of the action, along with diet-defying food favorites like deep-fried jellybeans and pizza on a stick. Standing room tickets start at $12 per show, $15 in the evening. If you’re staying several days, check out the ticket packages. Tip: Don’t miss the free line-dance lessons each Friday night at Ranchman’s (9615 MacLeod Trail S, 403-253-1100,
www.ranchmans.com
).
Calgary Stampede, 800-661-1260,
http://calgarystampede.com
.

 
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
. Headliners such as Gene Autry, Elvis Presley, and Kenny Chesney have all taken the stage at this 75-plus-year-old event held each March in Houston, Texas. Along with rodeo events like mutton busting, a calf scramble, and Xtreme bull riding, the 20-day show includes a barbecue contest, trail rides, horse show, and livestock exhibitions and auction; some events take place the week before the main rodeo. Tickets start at $16.
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, 832-667-1000,
www.rodeohouston.com
.

 
Oklahoma State Prison Rodeo
. In one of the nation’s most unusual cowboy events, inmates at the state penitentiary in McAlester, Oklahoma, compete in a two-day extravaganza of steer wrestling, bareback riding, and calf-roping contests. August.
Oklahoma State Prison Rodeo, McAlester, 918-423-2550,
www.mcalester.org
.

Elko—that’s what the cowboys call the festival—“still feels very homemade. It doesn’t have much pomp and circumstance,” says Bell. Even the well-known poets just sit in the audience, get up and deliver their rhymes, and then sit back down. Poets may read their own work, but often they perform classics—works by the late Badger Clark and by living poets including Wally McRae, Ross Knox, and Joel Nelson.

Then it’s a scurry to jump a shuttle—eight venues are scattered around town—before ending the day in the
Stockman’s Hotel and Casino
(340 Commercial St., 775-738-5141,
www.elkocasinos.com
) or the
Pioneer Saloon
(Pioneer Hotel, 501 Railroad St.), dancing, kicking back brew, and, of course, telling the tales of life on the range.

Most poetry events are held in the evenings, which leaves days free for checking out wildlife and Western art exhibits at the
Northeastern Nevada Museum
(1515 Idaho St., 775-738-3418,
www.museumelko.org
, closed Mon., $5), snowsledding and snowmobile tours in the Ruby Mountains, a drive to
Lamoille Canyon,
and a visit to the 1875
Sherman Station homestead
(14th & Idaho Sts., 775-738-7135).

Lodging during the Poetry Gathering starts at around $50 per night. Chain motels are probably your best bet; in January, camping is out of the question even for hearty souls. Popular budget options include the
Thunderbird Motel
(345 Idaho St., 775-738-7115) and Stockman’s (see opposite)—which is sure to be rowdy.

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

Elko Convention & Visitors Authority,
700 Moren Way, Elko, NV 89801, 800-248-3556,
www.elkocva.com
.

Western Folklife Center,
501 Railroad St., Elko, 775-738-7508,
www.westernfolklife.org
.

sail into history aboard the
victory chimes

ROCKLAND, MAINE

I love the poetry of motion, the challenge of it. And the nature. I just love it.

—
JOHN DICKEY, AVID SAILOR AND GUEST ABOARD THE
VICTORY CHIMES

20 |
When launched in 1900, she was America’s largest commercial sailing vessel built to haul cargo along the eastern seaboard. The
Victory Chimes
has seen a few upgrades since then—including electricity and indoor plumbing. And she’s swapped cargo: Instead of hauling lumber and rum barrels, the
Chimes
now transports vacationers on three-to six-day summer sails among the 3,000 islands of Maine’s Penobscot Bay.

On a fine day you’ll find yourself traveling courtesy of the same lusty winds that brought the pilgrims to the New World. Though the
Chimes
carries a yawl boat—a motorized mini-tug that gets it in and out of harbors and through the islands on still days—the real power comes from the sails hoisted from her triple masts. On a foggy day—and in Maine, there are plenty of them—you’ll sail through the mists, trusting your fate to the elements (and the well-schooled captain, who has radar on board).

Don’t go looking for the spa, the pool, or the gourmet restaurant. “It’s a bit like camping,” says the captain, Kip Files. The tight cabins offer just enough space for sleeping and storing a small duffle, and enough light for reading. Except in the “honeymoon” suite, the toilets are down a hall or up a wide wooden ladder. The showers are in their own cozy cabins off the deck.

HISTORY OF THE
VICTORY CHIMES

Built in Bethel, Delaware, in 1900, the
Victory Chimes
originally was dubbed
Edwin
&
Maude,
after the children of her first captain. In her early decades, the ship carried lumber and fertilizer. During World War II, she was drafted into service to check offshore magnetic antisubmarine devices—a role difficult for a metal ship, but fitting for this wooden vessel. By the time the war ended, faster steam-powered ships took over the merchant transport trade; in the 1950s the ship was rechristened the
Victory Chimes
and moved to Maine as a windjammer ship.