After a picnic breakfast of buttered raw toast (ok, just bread..), we headed to Cuyahoga Valley National Park which we have driven by for years. We weren’t expecting much for the area between Cleveland and Akron, and we found out later that we visited on the fiftieth anniversary of the last time the Cuyahoga River was on fire…
Not knowing where to go - Lisa spotted a van with a National Park Service logo on the side and exclaimed: “follow that van!” We did and parked at Brandywine Falls, a short boardwalk hike that led to an impressive waterfall. We spied it from all possible views before finding a map and going to the Boston Store Visitor Center to see what else we should do.
With map in hand, we went to the village of Peninsula intending to rent bicycles. After standing in a stationary line for a few minutes, we decided that it would be better to go for a walk. We walked the towpath of the Ohio and Erie Canal, admiring the locks that still stand along the way. There was a quarry path that we also followed through the woods that seemed to lack a quarry but was full of mysteries!
Cuyahoga Valley National Park was a nice surprise. It was full of trails and beautiful river scenery as well as an interesting human history. We would gladly stop again to stretch our legs.
Continuing west, our next stop was in the city of Dayton where we visited the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park. It preserved the site of the Wright Brothers’ bicycle shop and print shop where they first experimented with flight. They were truly jacks of all trades that would toy with whatever seemed to interest them at the time. There was also a portion of the museum that celebrated Paul Laurence Dunbar - a celebrated American poet from the late 1800’s.
We spent the night at the Terre-Haute KOA, intending to head toward St. Louis in the morning. I believe that Terre-Haute translates from French as “stupid boring cornfield.”
After eating a salad with polenta for breakfast we disembarked and headed to St. Louis for the morning. We admired the famous arch and went into the subterranean Museum of Westward Expansion. It was a newly updated museum that did a great job giving the history of the St. Louis region as well as the Lewis and Clark expedition and other journeys to the west. There was also an area that gave some interesting engineering and design information about the arch.
We grabbed some barbecue sandwiches at Caleco's, which seemed to be the only restaurant open in the downtown area. After lunch we explored the old courthouse, another National Historic Site which was the site of the historic (and most today would say bungled) Dred-Scott case and also home to some epic architecture.
Leaving downtown, we first headed to the Scott Joplin House, a state historic site that was unfortunately closed on Sundays. We snapped a picture and moved on. The Cardinals were playing this afternoon, but with rain in the forecast it didn’t seem like a nice afternoon to catch a game. We will save Busch Stadium for next time…
Our last stop before leaving St. Louis was at the former home of Ulysses S. Grant. It was his house as a younger man and included a horse barn by his own design. The interpreters gave a detailed history of his life as well as a tour of the house. He was certainly a product of the times in which he lived…
We then spent the afternoon blasting across central Missouri on interstate 70. We are spending the evening in Oak Grove intending to sink our teeth into some Kansas City Barbecue tomorrow. Sounds like we will have some sweet, tangy and spicy dreams tonight!
We have a drive through the plains tomorrow...I don't know what people think is so great about them:
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