Gateway To The West

Today we chugged down the Mississippi on “The Tom Sawyer”. As you will see from the pictures, it is a busy port. Certainly not the same as a boat ride on our lake in Maine, but pretty in its own way. After the boat ride, we went to the Gateway Arch. When we were first planning our trip, I thought 15 minutes for the arch should do it. Look at it, take some pictures, and you’re done. I had seen pictures of the arch (we have a really cool game called “Snapshots Across America” where you “visit” different states and historical landmarks) but I didn’t know you could go inside and ride to the top. You get inside this little pod and travel 630 feet to the top. It’s quite an engineering marvel. The views, as you might expect, are amazing.














At the base underground, there’s also a museum about westward expansion and a great movie about Lewis and Clark with a little Sacajawea thrown in (not enough in my opinion). If you go to St. Louis, this is definitely a must-see. After our full day at the arch, we walked down the (very long) stairs and waiting at the bottom were several horse drawn carriages. One looked like Cinderella’s carriage. Although this was the carriage we chose, that wasn't the reason. We chose our carriage because the horse’s name was Moose. :o)

We were supposed to continue our westward trek tomorrow, but we have decided to stay in St. Louis another day.
Be sure to check out many more photos from today in the photo gallery!