This summer the beautiful, cooler-than-normal weather and
lack of humidity has resulted in me doing a little more of the tourist thing
with friends.
Aldabra
Tortoise
One of the stops I made early in the month was at Grant’s
Farm; a small, but entertaining facility in St. Louis county. This was the first time I had ever been
there as just a tourist, and I have lived here for 8 years. One of my favorite photos from that day
was a close up of the Aldabra Tortoise.
This is the largest tortoise in the world from the island of
Aldabra. The two tortoises at
Grant’s Farm have been there since 1954.
Siberian
Tiger
Later in the month a friend and I did a big day of three
stops. The first stop was
Riverside Reptile Ranch, in central Franklin County, for a private tour. We had a great tour of the facility and
a nice up close look at many of the
animals. I took so many photos it
is hard to choose just one. This
facility not only has reptiles, but also many mammals. One of my favorite photos is a close-up
of the Siberian Tiger, largest big cat species in the world. This male slept while we took a look.
Stalagmites and stalactites with drip rings
Next stop on our trip was Meramec Caverns, also west of St.
Louis, in Franklin County. This
awesome cave is very worth the cost of the tour. At a cool 55 degrees we had about an hour and a half tour,
going down to about 360 ft below the surface of the earth. It was at this point I took one of my
favorite photos of the summer of the stalactites and stalagmites, with the
water making drip rings on the surface of the pool.
View of
St. Louis from the top of the Arch
The last stop was a stop at the Gateway Arch. I had been to the arch outside a few
times before, but never in and up.
The concept of going up was a little nerve-racking considering I am not
a fan of heights. However, I made
it to the top with a few encouraging words from other visitors that had gone up
earlier with the same misgivings.
Luckily it was a very calm day and not too hot. The view after a ride in the egg tram
was very beautiful. I have
included a photo of the Missouri view.
St.
Louis Gateway Arch
Lastly we walked over to the pond near the arch and took a
few photos, so my last photo is just a nice photo of the arch.
Sometimes taking the time to be a tourist in the town you
live in is nice. Just a few words
to the wise: early is always good as the crowds are smaller. Go early in the week if you can, and
just be patient.
Submitted by Cathy Spahn, World Bird Sanctuary Naturalist
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