November 4-6, 2009 -- Heading West Along Route 66
Wednesday morning was our day in St. Louis Missouri, a return visit for Mike and I after visiting there 41 years ago as part of our tour with the Kingsmen. We remembered walking around the block from the Greyhound Bus Station where the corps busses were getting worked on, and seeing the amazing Arch that had just been finished in June ‘08. Today was “SPECTACULAR”. The weather was perfect, sunny and warm and the stainless steel arch sparkled from top to bottom. We walked through a park to the base of it, such an incredible view. The official name for this land mark is the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial established to celebrate the roll that St. Louis and the Mississippi River played in the westward movement. The ride to the top of the 635 foot span was an experience in itself. You ride in these small little pods that zip up the arch much like a basket on a Ferris wheel. The view from the top was fantastic, the windows are quite small, but the town down below was quite a vision. We were able to see the Mississippi River, Illinois, Busch Stadium where the Cardinals play, the Rams’ Football stadium, and much of the varied architecture of the old and new down town. From the arch we walked a couple of blocks to the St. Louis County Court House, what a beautiful classically styled building. This was the location where the initial Dred Scott Trial (he was slave who believed he should be freed) was held and where he and his wife finally received their freedom some 11 years later. We enjoyed a great lunch at a local eatery named Calicos, and followed the day up with Ted Drew’s Frozen Custard—they call it concrete because it is so thick. Pretty darn yummy!
Thursday saw the MoHo and the 4 of us heading west through some of the Ozark Mountain Region and along the Historical Route 66. It is really quite a challenge to actually drive for any length of time along the famed road. We spent the day going back and forth from US Hwy 44 to the “66” and back again. After we left St. Louis we headed to the Merrimac Caverns where we took a nice tour of the caves. They had some amazing geological structures in this big ol’ limestone hole in the ground. The most beautiful area was the “Theater Room” Where the stalactites looked much like theater drapes, with the addition of lighting and music it was quite a show. From there we drove through the town of Cuba, seeing their interesting colorful murals on many building this small town. With a few more stops to enjoy the Route 66 feel, we stopped for the night in Marshfield, MO.