Day 4, 1K Country Adventure: St. Louis to Kansas City

Yesterday, my daughter lost her tooth while in the backseat of our Ford Flex. She asked, “Where are we? What state are we in?” Reminiscent of that movie poking fun at fast-paced European bus tours, If It’s Tuesday, It Must Be Belgium, this whirlwind trip has left me wondering, “What day is it?” or “How many days have we been traveling?” And, indeed, “Where are we?”

But we didn’t need to wonder about our whereabouts on our first Suite Stop this morning, as it was an iconic U.S. landmark. We were thrilled to wake up to find this video clue in our smart-phone mailbox:

Visiting the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, home to the Gateway Arch, at 9 a.m. on a weekday is brilliant. We faced no crowds as we made our way to the underground entrance to the tram that would bring us 630 feet to the top of the Arch.

Space-like pod takes us up to the top of the Arch.

I’d heard that the tram “pods” were slightly claustrophobic, but the ride is so short, the enclosed space – in a Jetsons-like capsule – didn’t bother me at all. I think it helped that each of the 16 pods – eight on each leg – seat five people. Since we were four, and two of us were under five feet tall, we had plenty of room to breathe. I think mechanics and engineering involved to keep the pod level as we made our way underground and up the arch is pretty amazing!

I pictured a much bigger “top” to the Arch – but it’s actually quite narrow. We peeked out and down through the little window slits at the St. Louis skyline and famous Old Courthouse (site of the Dred Scott case) on one side and the wide Mississippi river on the other. Very, very cool.

Leaning over a carpeted ledge to get the best view directly below the Arch.

In addition to going to the top of the arch, my 10-year-old daughter filled out an activity book, answering questions about exhibits she saw in the underground Museum of Western Expansion to earn her Junior Ranger badge. This is a tradition we’ve carried on through at least eight and maybe 10 national parks we’ve visited with her since she was a preschooler. (My eight-year-old son is not nearly as enamored of filling out the activity books!)

The museum contains exhibits and artifacts that help describe what it was like to live in the West during the time of the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis & Clark Expedition in the early 19^th century. Of particular interest to me? The display of peace medals, made specific to each president and given to the Native Americans as a sign of friendship.

We were so happy to be at the top of the Arch -- what a nifty view and fabulous experience.

"I feel the need for speed!"

After our two-hour visit to the Arch, a definite highlight of our road trip so far, we headed west to stretch our legs and drive go-karts at the Perche Creek Golf Center in Columbia, Missouri. For $5.50 you zoom around the smallest courses I’ve ever seen (just one little loop) on a “slick track,” which was especially entertaining because you can fishtail when you take the corners too fast! Also on site is mini-golf and batting cages – a good pitstop for anyone traversing the state on I-70 with kids!

And that’s exactly what we did today, as we’re ended our official Day 4 itinerary in Kansas City, Kansas, at the Country Inns & Suites By Carlson at Village West. We arrived at 5:30 p.m. Whooo hooo! Plenty of time for kids to play in the pool and for us to enjoy a lovely sit-down dinner together at Backfire Barbecue in the shopping mall within walking distance of the hotel.

Last night’s hotel: Country Inn & Suites By Carlson St. Charles

Stately entrance at the Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, St. Charles

This property just outside of St. Louis proper is my favorite so far. Housed in a red-brick building, the hotel offers the same cozy feel we’ve experienced at the other Country Inns & Suites, with a more sophisticated vibe. I think it’s the entrance with two big stately doors and the dark-wood accents inside that give it an upscale feel. We stayed in a standard room with big windows and a high-vaulted ceiling. This time, the kids were so tired they fell asleep even with the lights on so I could work!

Its location is incredible, too, just a few blocks from the most darling historic Main Street I’ve ever seen. The streets and sidewalks are paved with red bricks, and cute shops and restaurants are housed in 19^th-century buildings – also from brick and stone. This is truly a “walk back in time” type of place; St. Charles is actually Missouri’s first State Capitol, so it’s rich in history. I would absolutely recommend this St. Louis suburb as a destination in itself or side trip during a stay in the city known as the Gateway to the West.

The brick-paved streets and historic buildings in St. Charles harken back to yesteryear.

Gear Spotlight: Polar Bottles & Norchill Cooler

Keep road-trip food and drink cold with a Norchill cooler and Polar Bottles.

Water bottles and a soft-sided cooler are two staples in our road-trip gear arsenal, and for this week-long trip we’ve been sampling some new-to-us products. Polar Bottles are insulated to help keep drinks cold longer — and, man, do they work. Even when we’ve left them sitting in the car while making a Suite Stop, our water has remained chilly. I like the colorful and patterned foil liners — we have four different designs, and that’s how we’re telling them apart from one another in the car. (Mine’s bright pink, but I’m coveting my daughter’s royal blue and turquoise pattern.)

Every morning this week we’ve packed our Polar Bottles filled with ice water into our insulated Norchill cooler. The style we have is the “24-pack cooler,” and it’s large and thickly insulated, measuring about 10 by 18 by 12 inches. Through the trip, the bag has also stored the marvelous local microbrews and cheese that the Country Inns & Suites Madison West had waiting for us in our room the other night. And we used it keep cool our yummy Giordano’s pizza in a take-out box, too (which we ate for dinner last night while the kids had Subway). It has definitely come in handy this trip!

Suite Stops

• Gateway Arch, St. Louis, Missouri
• I-70 Rest Area, Wright City
• Perche Creek Golf Center, Columbia
• Country Inns & Suites By Carlson Village West, Kansas City, Kansas

Previous posts:

• Day 3, 1K Country Adventure: Illinois to Missouri
• Day 2, 1K Country Adventure: Wisconsin to Illinois
• Day 1, 1K Country Adventure:  Minnesota to Wisconsin
• Pre-Trip Excitement
• My Family is Going on a Mystery Road Trip

Disclosure: A significant portion of the costs and resources for my family’s participation in the 1K Country Adventure was provided by Country Inns & Suites By Carlson.