Visit Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

Gazing out over the expansive dunes that constitute nearby Wright Brothers National Memorial, you might wonder what drew pioneering brothers Wilbur and Orville from Dayton, Ohio, to a windswept area of the Outer Banks to test their new-fangled gliders. There are several reasons. First and foremost, the flat terrain provided an ideal setting for takeoff and landing. The almost constant winds were an aid to sustained flight. There were no trees to veer into, and sand provided a softer landing—and thus a better chance of survival—in the event of a crash. And in 1903 this area was isolated and remote, providing privacy for the brothers' groundbreaking aerial achievements.