The Atlas Obscura Podcast

Writer and journalist Walt Hickey joins Dylan for a conversation about the different ways film and television have impacted us and our real world surroundings, a topic that’s the subject of his new book You Are What You Watch.

The story of a stork, a spear and a scientific mystery that led to breakthroughs in the way we understand bird migration.

In the California’s Jurupa Valley, residents discovered a treasure in their backyard: a 15,000 year old tree. Now, it may disappear.

Read Shannon Osaka’s article about the Jurupa Oak.

Today we visit the ATF Fire Research Laboratory where investigators recreate arson attacks and analyze burn patterns. 

Read more about John Allen and his work at the world's largest fire research laboratory.

Atlas Obscura's Gemma Tarlach shares what it's like to step inside a relic from the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, and to find traces of a famous lost party of explorers.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/discovery-hut

Today we're powering up our metal detectors and keeping a very close eye on the surface of the earth as we set out in the hunt for meteorites with Steve Arnold, who’s been in the game for more than three decades. If you want to learn more, check out Steve’s website, and read this profile of the meteorite hunting community.

In the basement of a Berlin hostel – in a corridor connecting their brewery to the luggage storage area – is a shrine to a pop culture icon with a surprising connection to the city’s history. (Hint: It’s David Hasselhoff.) 

Plus: Atlas Obscura has a new book coming out! Pre-order your copy of Wild Life today.

Dylan takes us on a tour of three places that have shaped his life.

Listen to our episodes about the Corn Palace, House on the Rock, and Gold Medal Flour.

How a woman in her 70s inspired some of the biggest labor uprisings in American history.

This elaborate architecture throughout Iran served a very unique purpose - gathering pigeon guano. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/pigeon-towers-iran

Travel writer Susan Orlean is an admitted terrible tourist. But she’s an expert at getting lost – with a purpose. Today, she takes us to some of the places that have shaped her life. And she talks about throwing out the guidebook – opening herself up to these experiences – and the art of getting lost.

Barry Enderwick has made and tasted more than 1000 sandwiches from across history. Today, he and Dylan make – and eat three sandwiches that each tell us something about history, culture, and ourselves. 

Pre-order Barry’s book, Sandwiches of History: The Cookbook, today!  We also have a new book coming  Pre-order a copy of Wild Life today!

For one day every July, the Assateague Channel on Virginia’s marshy eastern shore is filled with the bobbing heads of swimming ponies. These feral horses are celebrities in the area, but nobody actually knows exactly how they got there. Atlas Obscura senior editor Gemma Tarlach tells us the story and wrote about it here.

In 2008, a researcher floating in a boat in Lake Huron had an idea for how to learn more about our prehistoric ancestors. It involved sonar, a lot of patience, and some very bumbling AI caribou. Listen to Morgan Springer’s original story here. For more stories about the land, water, and inhabitants of the Great Lakes, check out Points North wherever you get your podcasts.

Anna Swan had an adventurous life before settling in Seville, Ohio and building a house large enough to fit her large life.

Today we have two classic episodes to share about hidden histories of America. In one, we’ll hear the story of an unconventional Revolutionary patriot – an enslaved woman who sued her enslaver. And in the other, we’ll learn about a group of Native American veterans who developed an unbreakable secret code during World War II – and the unlikely location where their legacy is preserved.

The story of a big idea, and a big duck – and how this duck would go on to become an important architectural landmark that would influence buildings all around the world.   

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/big-duck

Thomas Downing, who arguably invented fine dining in New York City, had a secret going on underneath the floor of his popular oyster house. Writer Briona Lamback tells us the story. If you want to read the full article, check out the link here. And if you’re looking for an oyster experience, Briona recommends Brooklyn-based The Real Mother Shucker, the city’s only oyster cart.