Festus, Missouri

North another 80 miles today.  Minnesota keeps getting closer and closer.  We're in Festus, Missouri, tonight.  On the way here we stopped at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri.  It is small historic community on the Mississippi River.  We followed the signs to the visitor information center, it took us to the old down town area...oops... not a good idea for a motorhome, with it's narrow streets, and we couldn't fit in their small parking lot.  We were lucky enough to find a place to park on a side street.  I'm glad we don't have a 40' coach!  We walked around the old main street and looked at some of the old buildings, older than anything in Hutchinson, that's for sure.  Most were now antique shops or restaurants.  Lots of restaurants.  Someone recommended a place called Stella & Me.  The owner has turned her private home into a small restaurant.  The food was excellent, and not overpriced.


Bolduc House



We walked another few blocks and found the historic Bolduc House Properties.  The house was built by Louis Bolduc, the richest man in Ste. Genevieve in around 1792.  This is widely regarded as the first most authentically restored French Colonial house in the nation.  It is now a museum and the garden and some other out buildings.  We were too cheap today to pay to go inside and see it.  We've seen so many old buildings and antiques this winter, we weren't in the mood.

Low Bridge!

We got back to the RV and checked the map as to how to get out of town.  Can't go back the way we came in because that was a one way street.  We figured we could go around the block and head up the next street over, so off we go.  We go around the 2nd corner and..oops!  low bridge!  We need 11.5' clearance and there was only 9' here.  We can't back up with the toad (car in tow) in the back, but we managed to get turned around.  It involved some driving on the grass and being scraped by low branches and almost dropping the car into a drainage ditch, but we made it!