St Louis

We left fairly early and headed across the Mississippi into St Louis. John was driving so occupied myself taking too many pictures so that I wouldn't have to think about the traffic. I was surprised at how far out you could see the Gateway Arch.

There were very few people visiting the park today. The combination of heat, the threat of rain and the fact that most kids are back in school already worked in our favor.

We decided to take the tram to the top. There was no line and we got a car to ourselves. This was a very good thing. The tram cars are very small. Because of the shape of the arch they are a combination elevator - ferris wheel.

The observation area at the top is designed to hold over 100! If there had been 100 people up there you wouldn't have been able to see anything but the person next to you.

This is the Historic Old Courthouse.

Barges moving down river and a Casino barge in the background.

We toured The Museum of Westward Expansion. This was a sod house display. Can you imagine living in a house like this?

Then we headed down to the riverfront for a 1 hr boat tour. What a disappointment! There were only about 20 of us on the boat and you really didn't get to see much. Not nearly as much fun as a the tour I took on the St Lawrence.

I was facinated with the architecture of the Eads bridge. Completed in 1874 it was refurbished in 2003.

After lunch we headed to Confluence State Park. To reach the point where the Missouri and the Mississippi join you have to drive several miles down a gravel road through cornfields.
When we finally got to the park we were surprised to find a concrete sidewalk leading right down to the river. We were the only ones there and we just enjoyed the quiet. We should have packed a picnic!

I've only seen the Mississippi once before, when we went to Tunica, MS. Both times I expected to be mightily impressed with the river and both times I was disappointed. I guess growing up in NY with our rivers has spoiled me. There was very little river traffic and both rivers, though peaceful in the park, were lacking somehow.

Thunderstorms rolled through this afternoon and evening. The hotel lost power for awhile. Tomorrow we'll be heading to Branson. I'm not sure whether or not I'll have internet access there.