10/12/07 (Friday): We left the St. Louis area yesterday morning. The route we followed roughly parallels old Route 66. We made it to our destination in Branson, Missouri, around dinnertime. Here's a
map of our travels so far.
We made a lunchtime stop at Meremec Caverns, one of the oldest attractions on Route 66. It was very touristy, but we enjoyed it anyhow. Some of the stalagtites were lit, which were surprisingly pretty (although very unnatural).
A spring flowed through the cave. It was very shallow and clear. The reflections were lovely.
You could also see the spring outside the cave.
We arrived in Branson Missouri yesterday afternoon. The drive was beautiful, but a little stressful due to heavy traffic and the first big hills we've encountered. We're in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains, with short, steep hills (some of them approaching 1,000 feet). We're at a nice KOA campground. We had dinner at a barbecue restaurant right across the street and turned in early. It was very cool last night (40's), but we were cozy with our central heat.
This morning we had breakfast at the KOA restaurant and then took off for a drive in the surrounding hills instead of taking in of one of the hundreds of shows or attractions (Branson is quite the tourist trap!).
We were not able to take pics of most of the scenic views because there was nowhere to pull over. The roads looked as though old wagon trails had been paved as they stood. They tilted at crazy angles and waved up and down small hills like a roller coaster!
There was a little park underneath this bridge. Wiley isn't really taking a swing on this rope that hung 20-25 feet under the bridge. It's a trick photo--but kind of cute, don't you think?
We head out early tomorrow and will spend the night in Bernice State Park in Oklahoma (the Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise). We probably will not have an internet in a state park, but be patient and we'll blog again as soon as we can.
We made a lunchtime stop at Meremec Caverns, one of the oldest attractions on Route 66. It was very touristy, but we enjoyed it anyhow. Some of the stalagtites were lit, which were surprisingly pretty (although very unnatural).
A spring flowed through the cave. It was very shallow and clear. The reflections were lovely.
You could also see the spring outside the cave.
We arrived in Branson Missouri yesterday afternoon. The drive was beautiful, but a little stressful due to heavy traffic and the first big hills we've encountered. We're in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains, with short, steep hills (some of them approaching 1,000 feet). We're at a nice KOA campground. We had dinner at a barbecue restaurant right across the street and turned in early. It was very cool last night (40's), but we were cozy with our central heat.
This morning we had breakfast at the KOA restaurant and then took off for a drive in the surrounding hills instead of taking in of one of the hundreds of shows or attractions (Branson is quite the tourist trap!).
We were not able to take pics of most of the scenic views because there was nowhere to pull over. The roads looked as though old wagon trails had been paved as they stood. They tilted at crazy angles and waved up and down small hills like a roller coaster!
There was a little park underneath this bridge. Wiley isn't really taking a swing on this rope that hung 20-25 feet under the bridge. It's a trick photo--but kind of cute, don't you think?
We head out early tomorrow and will spend the night in Bernice State Park in Oklahoma (the Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise). We probably will not have an internet in a state park, but be patient and we'll blog again as soon as we can.
4 comments:
Was Meremec a very large cave? Even though it was unnatural, the photo is quite pretty. Have you and Wiley seen many caves? I imagine it was rather cool underground, right?
The reflections in the streams/rivers look very clear. Are the waters that clear in Missouri? I haven't decided yet if it is my laptop or if it is your pictures but several of them have this rose/lavender or purple hue when I look at them. Is anyone else having this problem?
All I can assume, Wiley, is there must have been no fish in that stream or you would have been fishing instead of getting ready to swing on that rope!
I'm curious about one thing -- since you were not interested in shows in Branson, what made you decide to stop there? That's all I really know about Branson -- the Lawrence Welk group, I believe, perform there as well as many other celebrities.
I went to Branson with our church group. Had a wonerful time. Saw many great shows. I know our Heavenly Father has many wonderful shows that you enjoyed, but that many people you found in and around can't be wrong. It was a fun place. Happy trails
It was a very large cave--it has 7 levels. We did two levels and walked about 1-1/2 miles. The tour took almost 2 hours. And, yes, it was cool in there. We've done a few caves, but this was the biggest.
The waters we've seen are very clear and shallow. I don't see any rose/lavendar in my pictures. Open a few pictures online from another source and see if you have that problem with them.
We didn't take in any shows in Branson because that's just not our thing. We seldom did it in Florida, either. Branson was the closest we could get to the Ozarks on the route we're taking, and it has a lot of campgrounds (cheap). I also remembered that Mag had a good time here. We really enjoyed this campground. The people in Branson are very friendly.
Uncle Ed and Theresa -- haven't heard from you lately. Hope all is well. Are you enjoying the blog?
The cave reflection picture is great I had to look at it again to tell what it was b/c the reflection is so clear.
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