A Visit to the Gateway Arch

Waking up early on Thursday morning, we had to make our way eastward since we had timed tickets to go up the Gateway Arch. One thing I didn't know until we were driving was that since I visited in 2013, it became Gateway Arch National Park, which I thought was a cool change.

We made it at 11:30, giving us 20 minutes until our trip to the top. The preshow for the Arch was mainly a recap of 1960s pop culture, which was...interesting. I would have preferred some more information about the Arch. After, we waited for the elevator to come back so we could go up. Luke and Josh told me that it was designed by Arrow Dynamics, the same people who built roller coasters.

Thre ride up to the top of the Arch was interesting. The pods we sat in didn't rotate as smoothly as I rememberes, so you would feel shifts going up. It was cool though how the doors were clear, so you could see the inside. It took about 4 minutes to reach the top.

The views from the top were so cool! To the west, I could see an incoming storm that we drove through on our way in. You could see for miles from the top of the Arch, which is not surprising givin you are over 600ft off the ground. We all thought the views from the top were incredible. The weird thing though about being at the top was that if you came up the north side, you could only be on the north side of the arch.

Before making our way back down, and back on the road to Ohio, we took a group picture in the elevator pod. It really looks like something from Men In Black, given its 1960s design. We all agreed stopping here on our way home was a good choice, and worth the $20 we spent to go up.

Stopping at the Gateway Arch was a "Gateway" to end our Missouri trip, and we all left knowing we had a great trip.