American Road Magazine Volume 10 No. 2 Back Issue

The Summer 2012 issue of American Road® magazine commemorates its decennial milestone. Inside, one finds a compilation of its greatest two-lane tales. The line-up includes one feature from each of the magazine's first five years, showcasing the imagination and mechanics that make this magazine's motor run.

First up is a feature emblematic of the American Road® ambition to revisit and reassemble auto trails of the 1910s and 1920s. "A Winkle in Time"—originally published in Volume IV, Number 2—chases the enchanting Rip Van Winkle Trail through New York's mysterious Catskill Mountains. With its misty waterfalls, blue hills, and whiskered hemlocks, the 1923 highway is a fairy tale in itself—a hill-country spell that casts magic few romantics can resist.

Since its debut, American Road® magazine has steadfastly supported the National Scenic Byways Program. "Roll On, Columbia!"—first appearing in Volume III, Number 3—explores the ups and downs of Oregon's Historic Columbia River Highway—a route widely considered to be the country's first scenic corridor. Author David J. Sell leads one along this classic path of Northwest panoramas before dipping south to drive another All-American Road. "Surviving the One" dates from Volume II, Number 4. Written by Joyce Gregory Wyels and Vicki Leon, it braves the precipitous cliffs of salty and swerving California Highway 1.

Exquisite photographs have always been part of the American Road® model, with Amy C. Elliott and Hiroshi Hanamura both adding pictorial punch to its pages. A photo essay chosen to represent Elliott's colorful contributions comes from Volume V, Number 2: "Highway 61 Revisited" captures the cadence and character of Mississippi's Blues Highway in all its southern glory. Hanamura's "Rising Son on Route 66" hearkens back to the magazine's inaugural year—a time when American Road® was only beginning to find its stride—in its study of the quintessential American Road with an eye to the Far East.