ZION NATIONAL PARK trip
Oct. 20-28 2018
PART 1
On this fact-finding mission, we visited Utah's Zion National Park and other national parks and monuments. What do these sites have? Hiking! Tons of it! Which I can't do for more than a few minutes at a time, because of poor health. Instead, I sat back and captured almost 400 Roads Scholaring photos!
This billboard on I-70 in Indiana advertises an Illinois town. Political conservatism abounds there. The town is also known for a 198-foot-tall steel cross that cost over $1 million. This was seen as excessive even in a conservative town, and the cross was criticized by residents because the money could have been spent helping the community's poor instead.
US 40 near Greenville, Ill.! We detoured here to avoid stopped traffic on I-70.
As US 40 makes a tiny jog near I-70 near Stubblefield, Ill., we look back on this dead-end road.
US 40 approaches Pocahontas, Ill., with I-70 immediately parallel on the left. Pocahontas is the hometown of right-wing singer Gretchen Wilson.
US 40 again, with I-70 on the left.
As I-70 approaches I-55 and I-270, we see it's known as the Paul Simon Freeway - named for the senator. The sign even has his bowtie!
I-270 bypasses St. Louis on the north, but here we're still in Illinois. I think this is going over IL 3, which means that up ahead, I-270 goes over Chain of Rocks Canal on its way to Chouteau Island. Apparently, this bridge is a 2014 replacement of an older bridge.
I-270 on Chouteau Island in Illinois, but the sign advertises a Missouri rest area.
I-270 again! In the background at left, you see the famous Chain of Rocks Bridge that once carried US 66.
A view of the Chain of Rocks Bridge. This span figured prominently in the roadmeet to end all roadmeets back in 2014. Sadly, however, I was the only member in our group of about 25 who didn't have the energy to walk very far on this bridge, which had been converted to pedestrian access.
I-270 crosses the Mississippi River to Missouri using the mile-long New Chain of Rocks Bridge, built in 1966. This was once Byp US 66 and was designed to supersede the older Chain of Rocks Bridge, which was narrow and had a 22-degree bend. The New Chain of Rocks Bridge was opposed by the mayor of Madison, Ill., because the city collected tolls on the old bridge. Construction of the new bridge was characterized by labor conflicts.
I-270 just grazes the north side of St. Louis. St. Louis is one of the cities I'd most like to Scholar - and I have. The city loomed large in repeated visits in 2014, and it has a lot of elaborate road features that stick their pinky fingers into the corners of Roads Scholars' mouths and stretch their lips into a permanent smile.
Old Halls Ferry Road! Like the Halls of Medicine! Here, I-270 lurks near suburbs like Ferguson, Black Jack, and Bellefontaine Neighbors. It would be cool if Bellefontaine Neighbors was renamed to Bellefontaine Comrades. It's a beautiful day in the commune, a beautiful day for a comrade. Please won't you be my comrade? Also, the freeway here overlays what was once a surface road for Byp US 40 and Byp US 66.
It's unusual for a BGS to use a county as a control city, but this one uses St. Charles County for the MO 370 exit.
I-70 is known for a huge buildup northwest of St. Louis. The twin span at the center of the photo is the Blanchette Memorial Bridge, which carries a total of 10 lanes of I-70 across the Missouri River. We'll be on the westbound side, which opened in the late 1950s and was effectively replaced by a new span in 2013. The eastbound side opened in 1978.
Getting on the bridge! A person is actually walking on the narrow shoulder of this freeway bridge!
I-70 in St. Charles, Mo. This exit itself has a few complex road features right around it, and it's signed as Biz I-70, MO 94, and the Lewis & Clark Trail.
I-70 again! A billboard criticizes a local TV station for its labor practices.
I-70 continues through the 50-mile-long suburban buildup.
For some, life is a series of events. But for others - like me - life is a series of projects. We project people aren't appreciated as much as event people are. But we notice little nuances like this: "Bryan ROAD." This is I-70 in O'Fallon, Mo.
I-70 enters Wright City, Mo.! I-70 here is also US 40, which it overlaid.
I-70 in Warrenton, Mo. The frontage road doesn't appear to have been US 40. But at least there's a hilarious teeth billboard.
I-70 past Warrenton appears to be directly overlaid on US 40.
I-70 approaching Kingdom City, Mo. Yes, that narrow road on the right was once US 40.
I-70 in Columbia, Mo. The road on the right - Clark Lane - was probably never US 40.