Famous for the Blues, Beer,Baseball, the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the start of the Mississippi River's free flow to the Gulf of Mexico. Northward to Minnesota the river's flow is stepped by a series of locks and dams built and operated by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Today St. Louis is famous for the Arch. Much as New York is marked by the Statue of Liberty and San Francisco is marked by the Golden Gate Bridge, St. Louis has the arch as just a part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.
We stayed at the Pear Tree Inn - Union Station. The station is in the middle on the right edge of this photo. We are looking East from our room toward downtown and the river.
We walked to the station. From there one can take the Metro-Link light rail system. It is no longer a Union Pacific trans-continental station. It has been re-purposed as a shopping mall and what is now a Marriott hotel. It was the Hyatt until recently.
The Metro is NOT well marked; but, we found it and eventually figured out the ticket system. They have a machine like an ATM that you buy the ticket through. First choice was one way or round trip. Since we plan to come back we purchased round trip. Actually, it just spits out two tickets each.
We went down the steps to the platform and saw a sign stating that one should ONLY board trains with a validated ticket. There are no people working up there. How does one 'validate their ticket? I asked a man on the platform and he said, "Theys a red thing up there you put your ticket in."
Back up the stairs and there was a post about waist high that has a slot. Validated tickets are good to two (2) hours. Sally and I only validate one ticket each because we don't know how long we will be at the arch.
When the train pulled in it was full. We got on and held the overhead rod. Judging from all the red apparel we realize the Cardinals are playing a home game today. Twenty minutes later we get off at Lacledes Station. It is 2nd street and a short walk through the park to the arch.
I took a picture behind me as we were leaving the train. This is Eads Bridge. It was the first built across the Mississippi River completed in 1874. It combines rail and auto traffic. I didn't realize it at first but the metrolink uses that rail line. It is still an elegant steel arch bridge.
Our arrival was at an opportune time. I could step in the clearing and catch the sun atop the arch. It is as impressive today as it was in 1969.
What a great day to go up there and look out. Clear blue skies, warm day, great for walking in the park. The arch is 630 feet high and the base is 630 feet wide. The view on a day like this is sixty miles!
The balance of the park is this large expanse of lawn up to and including the historic courthouse. This is the courthouse of Dread Scott fame.
This is a trolley in which they load five (5) people and send to the top. I guess the idea is for you to try it out in the hall. Before one buys a ticket and gets in line and discovers they are claustrophobic. It is very close quarters and would be "stuffy" on a hot day.
Whoa! This is our greeting at the top. I wonder how many they will send up. It is more crowded than it appears here. You can't see the folks I am bumping bellies with.
This exemplifies transportation west in the 1800s. Many of the trails west originated in Missouri.
The stage coach was sprung on a leather sling. These are about four inches wide and each is about a quarter inch thick.
The balance of the park is this large expanse of lawn up to and including the historic courthouse. This is the courthouse of Dread Scott fame.
These steps lead up from Lenore K Sullivan Blvd. by the river. On the steps, at either end is a marker designating the height of flood waters in 1993. We were able to ascend these stairs, even in our state of advancing age.
This is a trolley in which they load five (5) people and send to the top. I guess the idea is for you to try it out in the hall. Before one buys a ticket and gets in line and discovers they are claustrophobic. It is very close quarters and would be "stuffy" on a hot day.
Here we are in line for door number 8. This is the roomy staging area to go up. There will be no such luxury accommodations to return to the earth.
This is the view from inside the trolley. As you can see, there is really quite a bit of room on the landings.
Whoa! This is our greeting at the top. I wonder how many they will send up. It is more crowded than it appears here. You can't see the folks I am bumping bellies with.
As we make our way across to the other side it becomes less crowded and we get to a window to look out. There's Eads Bridge!
There is the Becky Thatcher riverboat. And the cafe at the bottom had some good food. We are having lunch there when we get done here. I had catfish strips. They were breaded in corn meal and fried; really delicious.
Look! It's the Veterans' Bridge and Eads. Of course it is no longer called Veterans' Bridge; it was renamed Martin Luther King Bridge and called MLK.
The Veterans Memorial Bridge was built by the City of East Saint Louis as a toll bridge, opening in 1951. At the time, it was the 6th longest cantilevered truss bridge in the US, and the largest cantilevered truss bridge over the Mississippi River. It carried US-40 and US-66 from 1955 until 1967. When the Poplar Street interstate highway bridge opened as a free bridge in 1967, the toll revenue from the Veterans Memorial Bridge dropped off dramatically. Eventually, both the bridge and the City of East Saint Louis would end up going bankrupt. The bridge was renamed in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968. The structure continued to go downhill until it had to be taken over by the Saint Louis Port Authority and rebuilt in the late 1980's, opening again in early 1989.
Wow! Those steps are impressive from up here.
There is the courthouse and the park between it and the arch.
Looking to the West toward the horizon. That is the newest Busch Stadium at the bottom. They are playing there right now.
Looking to the West toward the horizon. That is the newest Busch Stadium at the bottom. They are playing there right now.
The round building is the Millennium Hotel. It used to be the Stouffer. The top is a revolving restaurant. You can eat and see the entire city in a little over an hour. If the weather is good.
This was the way up on the other leg of the arch. It us being refurbished.
In the museum of westward expansion they have a few dioramas and animatronic characters. Sally noticed that they all have a twitch in their left eye when they speak. It isn't Disney but it is okay.
This exemplifies transportation west in the 1800s. Many of the trails west originated in Missouri.
Longhorn steers were popular breed in the dry West.
The stage coach was sprung on a leather sling. These are about four inches wide and each is about a quarter inch thick.
It doesn't look very comfortable for a lengthy trip. But it does bring about a nostalgic dream of the romantic "old west".
This appaloosa seems like it could look up any second. There is a small plaque admonishing one not to touch. "Only a live animal can re-grow lost hair."
I love bison! They are so powerful and large.This one is beautiful. You won't see one this clean outside of a museum. They are covered in dung and mud or at best dust.
We validated our tickets and caught the train back to our hotel. It was virtually empty this time and we got to sit.
Walking back from Union Station, our hotel is on the right up there. it is about 5:40 now and will be dinner time when we get back.
1 comment:
Looks like you had a good time. Didn't you go on a segway tour?
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