I think one of my favorite places in St. Louis is Seiwa-En, the Japanese Garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden. It dates from 1977, so it is now over four decades old. It is interesting to see that our current garden was not the first in St. Louis; there was also one at the Japanese…
Tag: Beaches
The Confluence of the Mississippi and River des Peres
The confluence of the River des Peres and the Mississippi River is located in an isolated corner of the City of St. Louis. While the boundary of St. Louis is typically described as being at the River des Peres, that is not entirely true; there is in fact a substantial amount of land south of…
DePue, Illinois
Located far up the Illinois River, where it bends to the east north of St. Louis, DePue sits on a lake off the main channel. The town has some amazing slipcovers on its old buildings in the downtown. This old bank has one of the coolest survivors of an old burglar alarm, which I assume…
West From Castlewood
Many of the old lodges from the resort era at Castlewood still stand over on New Ballwin Road, but I’ve noticed an interesting trend recently. As can be seen below, in-fill housing, made to look like traditional architecture, has begun to pop up. Back over to Sherman Beach, the water was low again, just like…
Return to Castlewood
One of my most popular posts was one of earliest out at Castlewood. It still draws me back, as I see changes over the years. The old road above, which had begun to suffer from terrible erosion, has been stabilized. Originally, the road led to the various cabins on the bluffs, as well as the…
Positano, Amalfi Coast, Italy
Positano clings to the side of the cliffs overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. There are no cars, except on the ring road up above that loops around the town.
World War II Era Watchtower, Delaware Coast
This tower was one of a series of reinforced concrete bunkers that lined the Atlantic Coast during World War II; they served as a complex network of towers and coastal batteries that were intended to ward off German U-Boats.
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park was created back in the 1970’s out of the remains of what was once a thriving resort community along the Meramec River. The name comes from the gigantic cliffs, once the edge of an inland sea, that dominate most of the park. The views from the top of the cliffs surely drew…
In Search of the Kaes House
As mentioned before, the Meramec Valley in western St. Louis County is an isolated, but history filled region that remains largely unspoiled due to the creation of Castlewood State Park and other subsidiary trails and county parks. Update: I went back and found the Kaes House again in late 2015. What is fascinating about the…