St. Louis and Kansas City

 While St. Louis isn’t exactly “on the way” from Michigan to Yellowstone, we chose this route to begin our journey at the Gateway to the West. We had planned a picnic under the Arch, but rain called for a change of plans. Instead, we ate at the museum café—which may have worked out for the best. Faith discovered toasted ravioli, a St. Louis classic, and it was a hit.

None of us had been to the Arch before. It's a unique national park, and the museum beneath it is packed with great exhibits about the city’s history, westward expansion, Lewis & Clark, the Mormon Trail, and more.

With the rain still coming down, we hit the road early for Kansas City—a 3.5-hour drive. It turned out to be a great call. We arrived with time to explore downtown, ride the streetcar to the Freight House District, and enjoy some excellent BBQ at Jack Stack’s on the patio. The restaurant sits in a restored freight depot, and we had dinner while watching trains roll by—Marley was thrilled.

This time, we stayed downtown at the historic Phillips Hilton. It's within walking distance of Main Street, the trolley line, shops, restaurants, and even a grocery store. Parking was a bit of an adventure—the valet didn’t bother with the garage and just left our Subaru out front the whole stay. But that made for a fast getaway in the morning, which we needed. Our longest travel day was still ahead.