Manhattanites may have Central Park and San Franciscans the Golden Gate Park, but Detroit residents have their beloved Belle Isle Park.  

Photographer Amy Sacka has documented the beloved city park off the Detroit River for decades, capturing kids playing, teens swimming, friends celebrating, and folks relaxing. Several years ago, she left a notebook in a wooden box with a prompt for park-goers to write a love letter to Belle Isle. Hundreds responded. Here are the cherished memories that are the backdrop to many Detroit lives. 

Photographer and writer Thomas J. Abercrombie traveled all over the world on assignment for National Geographic, including to Afghanistan in the late ‘60s. Over three months, he trekked 20,000 miles by Land Rover, horse, and yak—from the Desert of Death in the south to the snowy Pamir Mountains in the north. As evocative as Abercrombie’s writing was, the images from this feature made it one of the most iconic in the magazine’s history. Thanks to our new monthly series From the Vault, it’s online for the first time.

Thanks for reading today’s newsletter, which was edited and curated by Sidney Madden with the help of National Geographic’s photo team. It was produced by Amanda Petty. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here to catch next week’s Photo of the Week newsletter.