Dispatch #5

Hamiltons Cross-Country Adventure 2010

Dispatches

Jun 17

Published at 15:11

"The Mississippi River will always have its own way; no engineering skill
can persuade it to do otherwise..." - Mark Twain

Yesterday we followed the Mississippi River north, stopping in a quaint town
called Cape Girardeau, MO for lunch. This was our first close encounter
with the Mississippi. It is powerful, rushing far faster than either of us
expected and carrying all sorts of trees and brush with it. The historical
high water markers noted on a wall protecting the lower part of the town
showed how much the river has the potential to swell. Glad we weren't there
in 1993!!

From the Cape, we continued up to the St. Louis area. Instead of a
Cardinals game, we headed for St. Charles, the one-time capital of the
state. We were attracted to this small town when we read about the Lewis &
Clark Museum and the Katy Trail (a bike path that stretches 225 miles along
the Missouri River where there used to be a railroad track). We have been
lugging these bikes across the country (and they had survived a night in a
public garage in downtown Memphis), so it was about time we used them! We
took about an 10-mile ride along the trail. St. Charles is a neat town with
a lot of old buildings, shops and restaurants. We lucked out by coinciding
with an outdoor music concert.

Today we check out the L&C museum and then head west to KC!

Name: St. Charles, Missouri
Elevation: +0 m
Latitude: 38° 46’ 19” North
Longitude: 90° 29’ 33” West