Sept. 1, 2010

Today is my first day with rain!  I started from the hotel without my umbrella, but came back when I realized the conditions.  I'm glad I returned for it.

The building in the picture to the right is the Old Court House of St. Louis.  Dred Scott's trial was held there.  It's part of the historic site of which the arch is also part: The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.  All of what you see pictured here and onward down to the river is part of it.  On the back side of the court house is a beautiful green park in which the arch stands; that park is next to the river.

I walked from my hotel over to the arch.  It was a nice distance and it felt good to be out exploring again.  Looking at the river from the park, I could appreciate that the Mississippi is very much a working river.  Just a cursory look allows one to see silos, power plants, huge barges.

This little fur trading outpost (at the time) was where Lewis and Clark made their final purchases and preparations before setting off for the west.  And their trip essentially opened the floodgates for westward expansion.  The arch symbolizes not only their journey, but those who followed as well.  I copied the words of one overlander, William Johnston, "I ... turning about in my saddle took a farewell look in the direction from which we came, conscious of having reached the dividing line between the east and west." I feel like that, too.

Do you have any idea what this picture is?  Go ahead ... guess!   Okay, I'll tell you.  It's the inside of the elevator car that takes passengers to the top of the arch.  The darker circle is the back of one of five small seats inside each car.  The cars are a little claustrophobic feeling, but not as bad as I thought they might be.  It helped that there were windows in the doors so the inside structure of the arch was visible ... even the stairway, which I was very glad not to be on.  From the top I took a few pictures.  Below is one:

Six-hundred thirty feet below!  Visibility wasn't bad when you consider it was actually raining at that point.

The rest of my afternoon was spent in the museum.  It was quite good.  I took in a terrific movie about Lewis and Clark, listened to a quick Ranger talk about the Corps of Discovery and took a ride on a riverboat, The Tom Sawyer.  On my way to the boat ride, I had to go through a relatively deep puddle ... deep enough and wide enough that I couldn't help getting my feet wet, and wet feet are always a little uncomfortable.  Then I thought about those explorers who years ago literally pulled their keelboat up the river for a pretty good distance!  I quit thinking about my feet and got on that boat!  My last picture is from the boat.  It's of the Eads Bridge, the first bridge to be constructed with steel (in the 1870's).  I forget all of the details, but if you read just the first few chapters of Rising Tide, you'll get the amazing story.