Elephant Rocks State Park

There are a number of other state parks within the vicinty of Taum Sauk, & we were hoping to visit both 'Johnson's Shut-ins' & 'Elephant Rocks'. The former is very popular because it has a number of waterfalls, streams, & rivers where you can swim & play in the water. Unfortunately, this was still signposted as closed for renovations since a breach at a hydroelectric dam very close to Tom Sauk had sent billions of gallons of water through the park carving a path through the surrounding woodland & dumping tons of debris.

The Elephant Rocks State Park contains one of the more interesting geologic formations in the state of Missouri. The surrounding area has been weathered away to leave 1.5-billion year old granite boulders standing next to each other, a bit like a chain of elephants. Almost all of the rocks are within the seven-acre 'Elephant Rocks Natural Area'. The formation of the exposed rocks & boulders started during the Pre-Cambrian period, approximately 1.5 billion years ago. Magma (molten volvanic rock), accumulated below the earth's surface & slowly cooled forming red granite. As the overlying rock & earth was slowly removed by erosion, horizontal & vertical cracks developed within the granite which fractured the rock into huge, angular blocks. As groundwater penetrated into the cracks the angular edges were slowly eroded & rounded whilst the rock was still underground, forming giant, rounded, buried, boulders. Erosion of the surrounding area continued & eventually the boulders became exposed.

We followed the 'Braille Trail' around the park. This is designed for vision impaired people & utilizes different types of tactile paving & handrailing to indicate the location of a information sign written in Braille. At each location there is also a written description of a particular geological formation, or peculiarity about the close-by boulders. Although you are not allowed to use climbing equipment within the park, you can climb up most of the boulders.

It was quite hot on the day that we visited the park (90 degrees f +). Since most of the park is wooded we were in the shade quite a bit & so the high temperatures weren't too bad. The only time that we were really out in the sun was at the top of the park where signposts directed us up to the geological formation nicknamed the 'Chain of Elephants'. As we made our way out between a coulple of large boulders we found ourselves at the top of a granite dome looking at the 'elephant chain' seemingly balanced on the top of this almost spherical formation. The view was pretty spectacular & Cheryl even managed to stop 'Dumbo' the 27 feet tall, 35 feet long, & 17 feet wide 'elephant' boulder from moving by holding it up :)

Taum Sauk State Park

We have seen quite a few of the more popular tourist attractions in & around St Louis (The Gateway Arch, AB Brewery Tour, Zoo, Grant's Farm, etc) so we thought that we would try & see some of the areas that you only really get to see when you actually live somewhere. We decided to make the 2 hour drive south from St Louis towards Pilot Knob (!) to visit the Taum Sauk Mountain State Park (located within the St Francois Mountains), & see the Taum Sauk Mountain (which is the highest point in Missouri with an elevation of 1,772 feet).

The St Francois Mountains were formed almost 1.5 billion years ago when a series of volcanic eruptions spewed dust, ash, & hot gases into the sky. Fine-grained Rhyolite formed at the surface, with coarser-grained granite forming below. Erosion over hundreds of thousands of years has left just the roots of the mountains behind & so Taum Sauk isn't really that high compared to some of the other mountains in the US, & is really more like a hill. There is a really good view of the surrounding 'mountains' from the constructed overlook, but the actual highpoint is in the middle of a wooded area! As we left the park we noticed that there was an observation tower. There were no signs to indicate that we couldn't climb it, but as we reached the top we noticed that the access hatch to the platform was padlocked shut; however, we still managed to get just above the treeline to see some of the surrounding area from a higher vantage point.

Beth's Piano recital

Beth has been doing really well with her piano lessons. To showcase both her & Miss Penny's (Beth's piano teacher) other students talents, Miss Penny organized a piano recital at a local church. Beth chose two pieces of music to play for her performance, Magic Man (which she played solo) & Puff the Magic Dragon (which she played as a duet with Miss Penny). This was the first time that Beth played on a Grand Piano (which apparently requires a slightly different playing technique than with upright pianos) & she did great!

Ray's Confederate party

Tony & Mary's postman, Ray (who's Mum is English) invited us to a Confederate party at his house. Ray takes part in historical re-enactments related to the American Civil War of April 1861 between The Confederate States of America (or CSA) & The United States of America (or Union).

The CSA was the government formed by eleven southern states of the USA between 1861 and 1865. Seven states declared their independence from the Union before Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as President of the USA & a further four did so after the Civil War. The surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia by General Robert E Lee (yes, that is the same general that the Dukes of Hazzard's Dodge Charger is named after) in 1865 is generally taken as the end of The CSA. The CSA's last Cabinet meeting took place in Georgia in May, with CSA President Jefferson Davis being captured by Union troops near Irwinsville, Georgia in May 1865. Nearly all of the remaining CSA forces had surrendered to The Union by the end of June. A decade-long process known as 'reconstruction' gave civil rights & the right to vote to the 'freedmen', expelled ex-CSA leaders from office, & re-admitted The CSA to The Union & gave them representation in Congress.

The party was held at Ray's & his Mum's house (which just happens to back onto a huge lake). So as well as listening to some Confederate inspired songs (played by the live band), enjoying some southern-style Confederate 'fixings' (Black-eyed peas), & lazing about in the sun, we also got to go on an extended trip around the lake in Ray's Pontoon boat.

Super supersize me!

We took a detour on the way home from the Hot Rod Nationals through Collinsville, Illinois (home of the World's largest Tomato Ketchup bottle) to grab dinner at the Lotawata Creek Southern Grill. Since it was a Saturday night & we hadn't booked we ended up waiting about half an hour for a table, but it was worth it. The food tasted great & the portion sizes were huge! I had a 2/3 lb burger which was pretty big by the time it was topped with bacon & two eggs, but just to make sure that I didn't go hungry, the rest of my massive plate was overflowing with french fries. This is just a single restaurant but in a month they grind over three tons of meat (just for the burgers), serve over 25-tons of french fries, use 2000 lbs of butter & 9000 lbs of cheese, & have to buy 5000 Styrofoam containers so that patrons can take home their leftovers!

Hot Rod Nationals

Although we have been to quite a few car shows in the US, most of them have been local shows at smaller venues & so the number of cars on display have probably been about 200-300 maximum. There are a number of bigger, national shows within driving distance of St Louis, but most of these would require at least one night in a hotel. Luckily, the Hot Rod (Spring) Nationals is held in Springfield, Illinois, which is only about two-hours from St Louis.

This is a three-day event & it was advertised that there would be about 1500 cars attending. However, to be consistent with the year so far, severe weather (including some Tornadoes) hit Springfield on the Friday night which probably explained the reduced the number of cars at the event. There were , however, still some very cool vehicles at the show, including a V-12 engined rat-rod which was pretty unique since the V-12 was made up from two Honda V-6 engines placed in front of each other. There were a number of other car related activities included the DynoMAX Power to the Wheels Dyno Challenge, a NASCAR simulator (which Beth enjoyed racing on) & a real NASCAR race car that was periodically started up & driven in a semi-truck trailer on a rolling road. These race cars are seriously noisy when you are stood only a few feet away, watching as it speeds up to nearly 200 mph whilst strapped down.

The show was held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield is Illinois' capital), which has quite a good multi-purpose arena with lots of covered seating. This was the venue for the evening entertainment & we finished our day at the show watching the burnout competition & destruction derby.

Show-me's car show

Show-Me's is 'sports bar' chain similar to Hooters (i.e., the waitresses wear short shorts & white t-shirts) but the menu is more seafood biased whereas Hooters is well know for their chicken wings. I noticed on one of the local car-forums that the local South County Show-Me's was hosting a car show. This was a fairly small show held in their parking lot, but there were some cool cars there, including a low-rider (which has been featured in a national US magazine) & a ghost-flamed Plymouth Prowler complete with Lamborghini-style doors.

Poms Spring regional competition

The spring regional poms competition was held in Kansas City again, but this time it was at a different location than the last time that Beth qualified. We let Beth finish school slightly early so that we could leave St Louis earlier than for the previous competition & so hopefully miss the rush-hour traffic. This also meant that we were able to travel in convoy with some of our friends & that there was time for Beth to hang out & swim with her friends at the hotel.

The event was held at the Kansas Community College which is west of the downtown metro area. The hotel was about five minutes away, which was nice; however, the competition wasn't as well organized as previously. Firstly, the campus security guard/parking attendant was directing everyone to a full parking lot so we all just had to drive through it & then turn around. The same guard then directed us back the way we had just come, which wasn't particularly helpful. The hall that the competition was held in was also a lot smaller. Beth & her friends were in the later competition group & so didn't have to register until 12:00pm but since this was combined with the younger category as well, Beth had to stay sitting with her team on the arena floor (without a break) until nearly 4:00pm! But Beth still enjoyed the event &, even though her & her team were up against a large number of other teams, they did really well getting the runners-up position - well done Beth!

Poms Spring Parent's Night 2008

Beth followed on from her success at the poms spring local competition by successfully completing another semester at cheerleading. She obtained perfect attendance (again) & also successfully completed her tryout which meant that she progressed onwards another level. At the parent's night we got to see Beth & her team perform their winning cheer & dance routine (from the 'locals' competition), & then watched as all the students were recognized for their achievements.

BB 2008

We all went along to the annual 'summer fair' at Beth's school. As with previous years, there were displays by the local police, ambulance, & fire departments, raffles, games, snacks, & competitions. The weather had been pretty bad during the previous week, with almost continuous rain & low temepratures, & it didn't look like it was going to stop on the day of the fair. Luckily, it started to dry out in the afternoon, so the event went ahead as planned, although quite a few people were wearing jumpers &/or coats which was quite odd for the end of May!

This year, the PTO organised a swing-seat roundabout for the fair, which although cost more tickets per ride than any of the other acitivities it was undoubtibaly the most popular thing at the fair. There was always a good sized line throughout the night & Beth spent practically all her tickets riding with her friend. The same (very good & very funny) balloon modeller from previous years was there again (Beth got him to make her a Ladybug baloon bracelet this year). Beth also took part in the pie eating contest &, in almost a repeat of last year, finished first but was beaten by her friend next to her who shouted louder to the judges when she finished. Beth still got a small prize, along with all the other participants, & we got some great pictures of her covered in chocolate pudding!

Club Hope end of year party

During the year Beth has been attending Club HOPE (Helping Our Pets & the Environment). This was an after school session which, as the name suggests, is all about helping animals & looking after the environment. Each month had a different theme &, usually, examples of the types of animals being discussed were brought along to the sessions for the children to see (Cheryl did a session with Madeline, who is a Giant Flemish rabbit that we foster care for while she waits for a 'forever' home). There was also a field visit to the Humane Society of Missouri rescue center in downtown St Louis.

At the end of the year, a party was organized for all the children that participated in the programme. This was held at the 165-acre Longmeadow Rescue Ranch, near Union, Missouri. This is also owned by the Humane Society & is used to house, care for, & rehabilitate abused & neglected farm animals including horses, cows, goats, pigs, & ducks.

There were lots of events organized for the children. Each child got a card with seven activities marked on it & when each activity was completed the card was stamped. When all of the stamps had been collected, the participants got a certificate & could then have cake & popcorn at 'Poppy's Shelter' (which is the new picnic & outdoor meeting area. The activities included grooming one of the rescued horses, face-painting, doing some crafts in the conference venue (which overlooks the indoor animal exercise arena), & touring the ranch on a trailer ride. As well as seeing the meadows where some of the horses & cattle get to live, the trailer ride included a stop at Snortin' Norton's enclosure to feed the 900-pound (!) domestic pig.

Memories Car Club show May '08

Yet again, the weather was still causing havoc with the local car shows. Earlier during the day there had been some severe weather (thunderstorms & the like), but these cleared up mid-afternoon & the Sun was shining for the second car show of the season at Sunset Hills. The inclement weather again impacted the number of vehicles on display, however the variety of hot rods, musclecars, & other vehicles was still pretty good.

Evil Twin, which was one of my favorite cars from the shows last year (mostly due to having two engines & no front brakes!), was at the show. A closer look revealed that it had been re-built over the winter. The frame, running gear, & some other parts were now painted in purple 'Metalflake' & each engine now sported a supercharger & twin Holley carburetors. Still didn't have any front brakes, though! Assuming that the engines each displace 5.7 litres & are full of speed equipment, it is a good bet that each one will be pushing out at least 500HP, which probably makes for a very quick ride!