Visiting Beautiful Nauvoo – Part 1 of 4

Meili and Abbie both registered to attend a special session of Especially For Youth in Nauvoo after we knew grandpa would be there. All summer we planned our trip, making physical preparations as well as studying early Church history. Meili even had an opportunity to participate in our stake's youth pioneer trek. She was better prepared than any of us, actually, to appreciate the faith, rigors and sacrifices of the early Saints.

Following is a detailed description of our journey, told in four parts, in hopes that it might help inspire other family members and friends to make their own trek to Nauvoo.

Meili and I flew out ahead of Daryl and Eliah (who drove a couple days later) in order to get Meili to EFY on time and also to have a chance to see the Nauvoo pageant before it ended. On our way out of St. Louis, we stopped to tour the Gateway Arch, which, for your information, is the tallest national monument in the United States.

Against all bets to the contrary, I stepped into the pod and rode to the top of this 630-foot structure, peered out the teeny, tiny windows, then promptly took the next tram down. I actually loved it, but it was almost too amazing. You know? 

The drive from St. Louis to Nauvoo takes you right through the city of Hannibal, Missouri, boyhood home of Mark Twain. There we stopped to tour the home, museum, and other significant sites. We even got to paint Tom Sawyer's fence.

I can't say enough about the Mississippi River. It was a continual and steady presence our entire trip, from the Gateway Riverfront to the edge of Parley Street in Nauvoo and most destinations in between. It is so impressive at nearly a mile across. Crossing it is quite an adventure; it feels so unnaturally wide. As my sister Natalie said the following week, we in the West think our rivers are pretty cool, but really there is no comparison. The Mississippi is mighty indeed.

I had my mapquest directions, but dad told me to go a different way, and I was so glad I took his advice. The drive in on the Great River Road that late afternoon was breathtaking. As much as I came to love Nauvoo, I took advantage of any reason to leave the city that way in order to drive along the edge of the Mississippi.

View of the Mississippi from the Great River Road.