In the 1800s, David H. Strother, an artist for Harper's New Monthly Magazine, explored the swamp and found large colonies of runaway slaves living in its dense undergrowth. Others hid in the swamp before moving on to port cities, such as Norfolk and Portsmouth, where they sought to board ships to the North.
The swamp has been a national wildlife refuge since 1974, with 3,100-acre Lake Drummond at its center.
For more information, visit the National Park Service's Network to Freedom Database at www.cr.nps.gov/ugrr/network.htm.
Olympian advice
SUN VALLEY, Idaho -- Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report's October issue focuses on tips for travelers planning to visit Greece during the August 2004 Olympics.
The newsletter says the games are scheduled for what is ''perhaps the worst time of year to visit Greece, due to stifling heat, . . . smog and hordes of Europeans on holiday."
Wild horse tour
ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. -- A 23.5-mile route offering motorists a view of southwest Wyoming's indigenous wild horses and scenic areas is open.
The Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour connects the cities of Rock Springs and Green River along several county roads. Besides a chance to see wild horses, the route offers views of the Wind River, Wyoming, and Uinta mountain ranges, Pilot Butte, Wilkins Peak, the old Overland Trail route.
It also provides information at various interpretive sites on the area's natural resources, geology, history, culture, and economic development.
Antarctica yule
DARIEN, Conn. -- How does Christmas in Antarctica sound?
Quark Expeditions is offering 11- and 12-day voyages around the Antarctic Peninsula and South Shetland Islands between Dec. 15 and Jan. 4.
The Connecticut-based company is making the trip aboard small vessels that carry 49 to 110 passengers, designed to navigate scenic waterways closed to larger ships. Ships leave from Ushuaia in Argentina on the Beagle Channel. New Year's Eve will be celebrated under the midnight sun.
Rates start at $3,995 per person. For more information, visit www.quarkexpeditions.com or call 203-656-0499.
