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This is the view that commanded a number of our decisions today.

It caused us to:

*Wake early at our campsite at the Lake of the Ozarks, MO, and to be on the road East by 7am.

*To stand for forty minutes in the noonday sun to in order to clear security at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.

*Stay onsite for much longer than we intended.

*Cancel our reserved campsite for the night and book a hotel room instead (so we could spend more time exploring!)

All in all, it was definitely worth it. The Gateway Arch and the National Park is a fascinating destination and we loved our time there. We went up the arch, toured the museum and visitor center, and the girls and I even dipped our feet into the mighty Mississippi River! A fantastic day!

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We made a visit to Topeka, Kansas at the Brown vs Board of Education National Historic Park.

As National Parks go, this was relatively small, but it is packed with emotion. I found myself equally devastated and uplifted by the story they portrayed, from slavery to civil rights.

Esme, as you might notice, was nonplussed by the museum, but the rest of us found it to be a very interesting site.

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Not all of Kansas is totally flat. Our campsite on the lake here at Wilson State Park is lovely and quite scenic.

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Congratulations to Meg and Bill, married tonight on a mountainside in Colorado!

These little party goers ran until they were quite out of steam and loved every minute of the night!

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After a week of driving, we have made it to our westernmost destination, Golden, Colorado.

Howdy, Golden! Thanks for having us!

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“We have to be close. Scooby Doo is scary you know.”

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We took ‘the scenic route’ today that brought us across nine miles of Wyoming landscape on this dirt road.

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When you book all your campsites online from a cottage in Massachusetts it is hard to know what kind of site you’re going to get.

For our one night in the lovely state of Wyoming we were treated to a wonderfully beautiful and remote campsite. We had amazing views of the hills above Cheyenne, Crystal Reservoir and the pair of Pronghorn Antelope that came to visit on the ridge above the tent.

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My favorite pic of the day, Peter and his girls!

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We found some friends here in Iowa! Jet and Esme had fun tending the fire with their sisters, Onyx and Catherine. Us parents chatted not too far off. A great end to a long day on the road!