Mark Shuman

Indianapolis, Indiana is a bull’s eye for sports tourism. Hoosier basketball hysteria, the roaring Indy 500, and the cinematic cycling classic “Breaking Away” are proof of Indiana’s longstanding love affair with sports.
On race day alone, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) attracts more than 300,000 fans to watch the fast-paced sport of auto racing. The IMS also welcomes guests 363 days a year and hosts tour groups of nearly any size on an array of tours, even giving the opportunity to tak...

Quirky and unique museums and attractions have been a part of America’s vacation culture since the invention of the automobile. There’s Route 66, with its giant rocking chair and neon-lit motels, and road trip stops at South Dakota’s Wall Drug or the Corn Palace. But the American West isn’t alone when it comes to the odd and unconventional—the Midwest, too, has its own quirks to share.
For example, in Middleton, Wisconsin, the National Mustard Museum showcases more than 6,000 mustards from al...

Story and photos
By MARK SHUMAN
Special to the Journal & Topics
The famous Horseshoe Bend Lookout of the Colorado River is among several landmarks on the Grand Circle not within national park boundaries.
Six national parks, two national monuments, four states, and a comedy show on the Las Vegas Strip, all within two weeks. The “Grand Circle” tour -- a fabled American road-trip -- is a guaranteed family memory factory and not as difficult as it sounds.
Four of us, including two col...
Show you...

Two hundred feet below ground level at Mammoth Cave National Park, Park Ranger Jerry Bransford shines his flashlight on the cave's wall and illuminates an inscription: "Mat 1850."
"Mat" was Jerry's great-great-grandfather Materson Bransford, one of three African-American enslaved guides who were the first to introduce tourists to the cave.
Our family lucked into Bransford's two-hour "Historic Tour" coming home from a road trip to Nashville and learned that slaves were key to the early explora...

Special to USA TODAY
Two hundred feet below ground level at Mammoth Cave National Park, Park Ranger Jerry Bransford shines his flashlight on the cave's wall and illuminates an inscription: "Mat 1850."
"Mat" was Jerry's great-great-grandfather Materson Bransford, one of three African-American enslaved guides who were the first to introduce tourists to the cave.

Story and photos
By MARK SHUMAN
Special to the Journal
Mackinac Island may still be the biggest draw for visitors to the eastern end of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, but nearby areas in the U.P. are also pulling in record numbers of COVID-weary travelers.
“We have broken every tourism record the U.P. has ever had,” said Tom Nemacheck, executive director of the U.P. Travel & Recreation Association. “Because of COVID, things were about finding open space last year, and that’s continui...
Show you...

Group Tour Magazine - June 13, 2020
Group Tour Magazine - May 6, 2020

With its rivers, caves and canyons, plus down-home crafts, food and music, the Ozark Mountains tumble along a colorful plateau full of possibilities for families who like getting into the country and not just looking at it.
True, the views from the county two-lanes are fantastic: Peaks can top 2,500 feet along a range running southwest through Missouri from St. Louis and into the northwest quadrant of Arkansas.
Another draw are the resident "aux arcs" short for "of the Arkansas," as coined by...

Story and photos
By MARK SHUMAN
Special to the Journal & Topics
When the Northwoods call Chicago-area kayakers and canoe-paddlers, Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area is often the go-to option. With around a million acres and a thousand lakes, it has almost legendary status.
But it’s not the only option for real wilderness canoe and kayak trips in the Midwest. Consider Sylvania Wilderness and Recreation Area and the adjacent Ottawa National Forest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Ottawa Nati...

Harbor Springs, Petoskey Area A Gem For Skiing, Food, Families
Seeing the snow around Harbor Springs, Michigan, is believing, says Peter Fitzsimons, a spokesman for the area’s visitors bureau. He pushed for a 24-hour streaming webcam years ago outside a Boyne Highlands ski lift as proof that snow is to this area what slush is to Chicago.
“When people see for themselves, they know the conditions are good,” Fitzsimons says.
Since Harbor Springs, Michigan, is a tale of two downhill ski areas — B...