Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
When we travel, as Americans we often visit the landmarks of our heritage. I’m not different.
I spent most of the last two weeks on the road visiting family from here to Iowa, Minnesota and back. Along the route, I visited the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, the Corn Palace, Mount Rushmore and other truly American destinations.
But I also stopped at a couple places that were of this world, almost.
One of my stops on my way back was at Devil’s Tower, north of Sundance, Wyo. I had to get back to work, so I didn’t stay long enough to climb the monument or hike around Devil’s Tower.
My stop lasted about an hour, during which time I took photos and looked for alien souvenirs.
Alien, you ask? But, of course.
E.T. may not have landed at Devil’s Tower, but the monument was prominently featured in the 1977 Steven Spielberg movie, “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”
I can still hear the tones from the original movie in my head. It’s a good thing the local bar and grill was closed when I arrived, otherwise I’d likely have a mashed potatoes story to tell, too.
Devil’s Tower was also among the locations in the movie “Paul,” a down-right funny movie about a small “grey” alien escaping Area 51 and trying to get home to the Andromeda galaxy.
Yes, I know, my inner geek is showing.
But it gets better.
I also had time to stop for about an hour at another out-of-this-world location, Riverside, Iowa, a small town surrounded by corn and Amish communities in the southeast part of that state.
So, how can than this community of barely 1,000 residents be out of this world?
Well, it isn’t yet. But it will be.
You see, Riverside is the future hometown of Capt. James Tiberius Kirk of the The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701). If you’re a Trekkie, you already know Kirk will be born there March 22, 2233.
In Riverside, there is a life-size bronze statue of Kirk. And streetpost banners depict the characters aboard the original Enterprise.
That’s just the beginning. There is the Voyage Home History Museum, complete with the Enterprise bridge, a life-size Gorn, books, costumes and more.
Starfleet “Delta Shields” are in painted in town crosswalks and a 20-foot shield stands near the museum.
There are Star Trek murals and monuments, spaceships on street signs, a replica of the Enterprise and a starship coming out of a restaurant building.
It was a good thing I didn’t speak Klingon, as Starfleet is alive and well there.
Town residents invited me to come back June 24-26, 2025, for the 40th annual TrekFest. Of course, they suggested I wear proper Starfleet attire next time I’m in town (as if I didn’t already standout as a tourist wandering around talking photos).
And with a “live long and prosper,” they sent me on my way.
— Roger Harnack is the owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Email him at roger@cheneyfreepress.com.
Roger Harnack is the owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Having grown up Benton City, Roger is an award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher. He's one of only two editorial/commentary writers from Washington state to ever receive the international Golden Quill. Roger is dedicated to the preservation of local media, and the voice it retains for Eastern Washington.
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