Retired Nomads: Gateway Arch, Trolley Tour & Lone Elk Park

June 23

It was a bit warmer today, but it’s supposed to be the last “cool” day for a while. Oddly, there was no “Welcome to Missouri” border sign. We found the parking garage and then walked to the Gateway Arch. We had pre-booked our tram tickets to the top so we had a bit of time to kill before we needed to check in, so we went down to the Mississippi Riverfront. We got photos from all angles of the arch. They had just opened the entrance that we used after a big remodel. There is a new presentation display area that was behind wraps until they have the Grand Opening in a couple of weeks.

was the old Courthouse - now Jefferson National Memorial

Mississippi Riverfront

female Mallard

Finally, it was our time to que up for the tram. We were given our tram number and waited for it to arrive and for the people in it to come out. It was like a tiny egg with 5 seats and we were wedged in like pieces of a pie. It takes about 4 minutes to get up (3 minutes down) and it’s quite an interesting ride as it falls forward and then levels over and over again until you get to the top. It’s a very small area up there and you need to wait for a spot to open up to get a window view. To see out, you really have to lay on your stomach and lean over to see out. Great views of the city and the Mississippi River. You could stay up there as long as you wanted and then go down either side you want. Since we went up the North Entrance/exit we went down the South Entrance/exit.

inside the arch

waiting for the tram

tram doors

tiny doors

inside the tram

at the top - it's a small area

leaning on the carpeted areas to see out the small windows

views of the river on one side

the other side has the city views

waiting at door 4 for our tram down

you can see how tight it is in there

It was a neat experience. We then walked around the area some more before visiting the old Capitol Building which now is the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.

some weird shots straight up from underneath the arch

Dred & Harriet Scott filed suit here for their freedom

We then walked through a park on the way to Sugarfire Smoke House which is some of the best BBQ I have ever had. I got the pulled pork sandwich and Greg got the brisket. You get a tray with paper on it and they put the food right on the paper. I got a side of sweet potato tater tot casserole and Greg got Slaw & Beans. They had around 6 different BBQ sauces and the 2 I tried were really good. The sides were quite good as well. I told Greg I’m glad we don’t live here or I’d eat there every day.

Sugarfire

this area filled up and people lined up out the door as we ate

pulled pork sandwich & sweet potatoes

beef brisket, beans & slaw

We have only been to St. Louis at the airport on layovers and actually had respectable BBQ at the airport.

OK, here is where our day took a turn. I thought doing the Trolley tour would be a good way to see the city. It was a long walk to get to the pickup point and when we got there the whole area was under construction. I finally called the company to ask where they were. It actually didn’t even have an office the pickup was in front of the Grand Central Station Hotel. It also was not a hop on hop off which I knew, but I didn’t realize that there were 2 routes and it was a different meeting spot for the one I really wanted. After all the trouble of getting there we went ahead and did it and it was informative, but very hard to see all that well or take photos since it’s an enclosed tram (no open windows) and the windows were in 2 sections and the bar between the 2 half was kind of in the way. (probably depends on your height.) It was about an hour and a half and we did learn a lot.

Central Station Hotel

Gay Pride Festival

all wars memorial

Busch Stadium

used to be a police station, now a BBQ place called The Capitalist Pig

some of the houses we passed

an iconic restaurant on route 66

amusement park on the roof

We asked the driver if we could stay on and be dropped off closer to our car and she said no problem, so that saved us walking the long way back.

On the way to our last stop we stopped at Serendipity for some ice cream. It was pretty good, but huge portions. My double scoop was like a pint of ice cream. If I had seen the size before I ordered I would have gone with one scoop.

Our last stop was Lone Elk Park, another preserve that you drive through to see Deer, Elk, Bison, Turkeys, birds & raccoons. It was really a nice area that also had picnic areas (in safe places from the critters) and several different roads to drive. The first drive around we saw deer and elk as well as turkeys and raccoons. (people were feeding the coons from the cars which is a big no-no) The second time around we saw everything including the bison. Not as many as the other Prairie reserve we went through, but a few and 2 young ones. On our 3^rd time around the bison were gone, but everything else was there. We headed back to an area that had a lot of birds and that took us around the lake again. We were watching the ducks and the geese and just took some photos of turtles on a rock when everything scattered. An Eagle swooped in and sat on the rock where the turtles just left. Then, we watched the Canada Geese form 2 lines and swim from 2 directions towards the Eagle. Interesting. The birds were gone in the area we went back to and it was getting late anyway, so we left the reserve and drove home. It was after 8:00 when we got home, so a long day.