Day 13: Missouri

Gateway to the West

I thought before I headed West I needed to be at the Arch in ST Louis. Before that though, I headed from Des Moines to Hannibal Missouri, birthplace of Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain.  The drive to Hannibal through South Eastern Iowa was nice, rolling hills on a state highway.  Nothing like driving through Iowa on I-80 where you just see flat cornfields.

I noted as soon as I passed into Missouri and stopped at a gas station for coffee, that masks are totally optional here.  For the first time on this trip there was no sign on the door of the gas station saying you needed to wear a mask.  I’ve seen people in other states not wearing them and wearing them wrong, but this is the first time it’s strictly optional.  Even at the museums, it was just a suggestion.

Downtown Hannibal had a huge levy protecting the town from the river, so you had to climb the levy to see the river.  The boyhood home of Mark Twain was a nice little museum, it also showed you where the character that was Huck Finn and the character Becky lived and how they influenced his writing.  They also talked about how Clemens Anti-Slavery views took hold, which was interesting to me because I just started listening to Uncle Tom’s Cabin today.

Next stop was St. Louis.  Rather than head down the interstate, I elected to take the state road along the Mississippi   I was rewarded with a couple of glimpses of the river, but nothing like the views yesterday.

I have driven by the Arch a few times; this was the first time I was able to see it up close.  The ride to the top was open, but sold out, so I spent the time admiring it from below, and doing a quick walk through the museum.

Song of the Day: St. Louis Blues Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder

Podcast: Today on Smartless, Kamala Harris – the first long interview I heard with her, I was impressed

Book on Tape:  At the end of The Pioneers he mentions that Harriet Beecher Stowe went up the Ohio to return to Massachusetts to write Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

Beer of the Day:  Mansions & Benzes The Modern Brewery.

Total Miles 370 – same as yesterday