National Geographic August 1980

Flight of the [ Kitty Hawk] { Balloon [ Kitty Hawk] Crosses North America; [ Kitty Hawk] Floats Across North America}
A father and son, Maxie and Kristian Anderson, make the first coast- to- coast balloon crossing of North America on the winds of May.
Here’s to Milwaukee { Milwaukee: More Than Beer}
A heady ethnic brew of citizens share the view that theirs is the best town around, as Louise Levathes and Michael Mauney discover.
Eighty Centuries of Veracruz { Man’s Eighty Centuries in Veracruz}
For nearly two decades archeologist S. Jeffrey K. Wilkerson has documented an 8, 000- year record of human habitation on Mexico’s Gulf coast. Photographs by David Hiser and paintings Richard Schlecht.
Bordeaux: Fine Wines and Fiery Gascons
France’s Bordelais region is justly famed for vintages of excellence and people of flamboyant independence. By William Davenport, with photographs by Adam Woolfitt.
The Wild World of Compost
A startling microcosm of tiny creatures helps turn garden waste piles into rich organic humus. Naturalist Cecil E. Johnson and photographer Bianca Lavies explore the process.
Our Most Precious Resource: Water { Water: Our Most Precious Resource}
Thomas Y. Canby looks at how the nation uses and abuses its vast store of fresh water: purifies it, distributes it, benefits from it, and increasingly depletes it. Photographs by Ted Spiegel.