Our touring method of the Route has been to set up camp in a city and explore Route 66 ahead of and beyond where we camp. So today we took a trip to Rolla and Meramec Springs State Park a short distance away.
The Mule Trading Post didn't just trade mules. Nope, they had a little bit of everything.
Lots of shirts and lots of Route 66 trinkets.
These are ALL cookbooks.
By the time we had waded through all of the "antiques" it was time for lunch. We had noticed a Stuckey's sign on the Route so we found it and enjoyed some "Cookin' from Scratch". It seems everyone has an homage to the Route in their establishment.
Every business needs a "catch" phrase and the Totem Pole Antiques claim to fame is that it is the oldest continuously operating business on Route 66. It HAS moved a couple of times but the same family has owned it and operated it since 1933.
He doesn't sell gas anymore but inside he has the usual Route 66 merchandise for sale and some locally made baskets. The owner, Tim, also dispenses stories of working on the Route with his father, pumping gas, and servicing the old cars. He no longer sells gas (loses money), but he does entertain film crews from around the world wanting to cover his story and hear his tales.
We hopped off the Route and headed to Meramec Springs State Park outside of St. James, MO. We spend a few hours there walking around and learning about the mining business in the area.
There was this old road up through the higher parts of the park where we got a view of the Ozarks.
The Springs start here next to the base of this cliff. The water comes from far away as it seeps through the hills and comes up here.
They have a fish hatchery here and fish in various sizes of growth were kept in pens until their release. Each of these three pens had larger and larger fish in them.
During the summer they gather up a bunch of fish and release them a short ways downstream. The parking lot is huge, so this place must be extremely popular for fishing. I think we walked almost 3 miles down river and back along the path. It's a very pretty place and a nice break from Route 66 merch.
Some attractions just "suck us in". Such was the case with the Vacuum Cleaner Museum.
You pushed this one along the floor to rev up the turbine to create the suction - much like the little toy cars children play with.
The models were arranged by year and it didn't take long for us to find a Kirby, Electrolux, Regina, Filter Queen, and Rainbow. The museum was free, but the point is to sell you THEIR vacuum, so a guy kind of walks around with you demonstrating a few of the various models. Eventually you get to the end and he says, we've taken on the best of them and our model beats them all. Sigh. It was still a great place to go and I would highly recommend it if you are in the area.
Reading your post are you guys anywhere near the state park where you can dig for your own diamonds?
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