Sept. 3, 2010

Today was the day ... the harbinger of fall.  Yesterday was hot (90) and humid; it was  very much a summer day.  But last night there was a thunderstorm that changed everything; this morning when I went outside to check the weather it felt like fall!  The sky was azure blue and there was a stiff breeze blowing.

 I highly recommend the Lewis and Clark Boathouse and Nature Center to anyone visiting St. Charles.  This little museum has excellent dioramas that document L & C's trip from St. Charles onward to the West Coast.  They have an interesting exhibit on the markings on Indian feathers ... actually quite fascinating ... and another very engaging exhibit on the medicines Lewis and Clark had with them.  Plus, this museum is not just  a building with artifacts; this is an organization that re-enacts portions of the trip.  They have a keelboat and a couple of pirogues they take all over the place.  They also participate in sponsoring fundraisers like the boat race from Kansas City to St. Charles they just had. The volunteer told me the winners this year paddled 340 miles in 36 hours!

Below are a couple of pictures from the museum.

From some literature a volunteer handed me, I learned that the Missouri River has changed quite a bit since L & C traveled up and down it.  The river is shorter by 4 miles and slower and more constant in its speed.  In 1803, they took measurements that indicated speeds from probably 5 to 20 mph.  Today, because of damming and channeling, the speed is pretty constant at around 6 mph all along the river.  Many of the wetlands have subsided, too, for the same reasons given above; their loss impacts animals, plants, etc.  The volume of water flowing down the river is less as well; I imagine irrigation, evaporation, industry all contribute to that.

St. Charles itself was settled by French-Canadian trappers.  Between 1821 and 1826, it was the state capital.  It is a charming town, with a nice historic district.  However, the town has folded, it appears, by allowing a HUGE casino complex to come in ... well, it's at one end of town so a visitor might never see it.  I see it because my motel is near it.  Check this out ... one monster casino!

One last thing of importance.  Daniel Boone came through here, too.  A statue of him seems to beckon viewers to join him.

More thoughts on the strangeness of motels: they fold the toilet paper into points and they wrap individual paper cups!  Hmmmmmmm.