Places to Go, Things to Do

Sites for eagle watching; an ice festival in January

With winter going full blast in January, St. Louis kids and their families have lots of ways to watch eagles as they hunt and fish in area rivers and lakes.

Also, University City plans a Loop Ice Festival and the art museum has Family Sundays.

As a January bonus, we're also including some additional destination sites from the book, "100 Best Kept Secrets of Missouri." Young Saint Louis.com introduced this book by St. Charles author Ann M. Hazelwood in a story in the August, 2008, edition.

YSL.com is including four additional destinations close to St. Louis that weren't mentioned in the earlier article. (To see that earlier story, click here.)

Each month, YSL.com looks for events and activities that would provide good destinations for fun outings. Whenever possible, we focus on activities which have either low admission prices or are free.

Eagle Days events; make your own tour

Viewing bald eagles in the wild has become a popular winter activity as eagles increase in number along the area's rivers and lakes.

The Confluence Greenway regularly publishes key sighting locations. This year, the group has listed nine different locations and urges families to plan a mini-tour to the locations convenient to where you live.

Among the stops are:

Alton Convention and Visitor's Center. You can get an official All Around Alton Eagle Watcher's Guide and attend Eagle Meet and Greet Programs every Saturday in January. For information, call 1-800-AltonIL or visit www.visitalton.com.

Pere Marquette State Park. The eagles may be spotted in the treetops along the Illinois River. Bald Eagle Days are held throughout the winter. For info, call (618)786-3323 or visit www.dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/PARKS/R4/PEREMARQ.HTM.

The Nature Institute at Godfrey, IL. An Eagle's Perspective of Winter Along the Mississippi River Bluffs will be held, weather permitting, on Wednesday, Jan. 21. Hours are 9 a.m. to noon. Call (618) 466-9930 or visit www.thenatureinstitute.org.

The National Great Rivers Museum in East Alton. Eagle Meet and Greet sessions will be held Jan. 18 and 25 and Feb. 1 and 8. Hours are noon to 4 p.m. You'll see a live eagle up close and hear an educator from the World Bird Sanctuary. For information, call (877) 462-6979 or visit www.mvs.usace.army.mil/rivers.

Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary at West Alton. This is a favorite fishing spot for bald eagles and you can view the eagles from the comforts of indoors. Raptors Over Riverlands is a new program offered on Saturdays. For info, call (636) 899-2602 or visit www.mvs.usace.army.mil/rivers.

Fort Belle Fountaine County Park in Spanish Lake, MO. The park provides panoramic views of the Missouri River and overlooks the Lewis & Clark's 1804 campsite. Special Eagle Watch and Trail Hike programming is Saturday, Jan. 24. For more information, visit www.stlouisco.com/parks/FtBellefontaine.html.

Columbia Bottom Conservation Area where the Mississippi and Missouri rivers intersect. On Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 17 and 18, special spotting scopes will be set up and staff will assist visitors in viewing the eagles. For more info, visit www.missouriconservation.org.

Old Chain of Rocks Bridge will be the site for Eagle Days on Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 17 and 18. Hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be eagle education programs, individual viewing scopes and Lewis and Clark reenactors. For info, call (314) 416-9930 or visit www.trailnet.org.

Lewis and Clark State Historic Site near Hartford, IL. Eagles soaring over the reconstructed site make a spectacular sight. You'll also enjoy the museum exhibits. For information, visit www.campdubois.com.

U City's Loop Ice Festival

The Loop Ice Festival at University City will be Saturday, Jan. 17 in the Delmar Loop area. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and admission is free.

The event includes ice sculpture, snowboarding, music, games and arts/crafts.

For more information, call (314) 727-8000 or visit www.visittheloop.com.

Art Museum's Family Sundays

The St. Louis Art Museum will have its popular Family Sundays each of the Sundays during January, 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th. Hours are 1 to 4 p.m.

The theme for the four events is "Artists Have Feelings Too."

Each Sunday will have a scavenger hunt through the Museum and then an opportunity for each family to create its own artwork.

For information, visit www.slam.org.

Butterfly Museum's Hot, Hot, Hot

The Butterfly House will hold its 6th annual Tropical Family Fun Day on Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 24 and 25. Hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day. Event admission is free with a regular admission ticket.

The theme for the event is "Hot, Hot, Hot." Activities include kids' games, live music and kids' crafts.

For information, visit www.butterflyhouse.org.

Basket-making at Shaw

Hands-on Basket Making will be offered at the Shaw Nature Reserve on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 9-10. The Friday session starts at 7 p.m. while the Saturday classes will start at 3 p.m.

For more information, call (636) 451-3512 or visit www.shawnature.org/events.

Hunter Education Classes

The St. Louis City Parks Department has scheduled hunter education classes on Saturday, Jan. 31, and Sunday, Feb. 1 at Queeny Park. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The classes are for kids 11 and older and a certificate of class completion is required before you get a state hunting license. The Missouri certification is accepted by 50 states.

Advanced registration is required. To register, call (314) 615-8481.

Four more of "100 Best-Kept Secrets"

Here are four additional destinations from the book, "100 Best Kept Secrets of Missouri:

The Secret of the Mastodon State Historic Site at Imperial, MO. This is the only museum in Missouri dedicated solely to the ICE Age. This 425-acre site is located 20 miles south of downtown St. Louis along I-35 in what is known as the Kimmswick Bone Bed. For information, call (636) 464-2976.

The Secret of the Foundry Art Museum in St. Charles, MO. Once the home of a railroad car manufacturing plant, it now features unique art and artists who create new artwork. For info, call (636) 255-0270 or visit www.foundryartcentre.org.

The Secret of the St. Louis Cathedral in downtown St. Louis. The gigantic basilica has the largest collection of mosaic art in the world, covering 83,000 square feet with 41.5 million pieces of glass tesserae. Tours can be arranged by calling ahead to (314) 373-8241.

The Secret of Missouri's Dinosaurs at the Lost World Studios in Arnold, MO. Geologist Guy Darraugh has spent 40 years creating life-sized models of extinct Missouri dinosaurs. You can check out his work at www.lostworldstudios.com. Then, call (636) 282-0970 for information on how to arrange a visit to his studios.

Be sure to check our earlier story in the August, 2008, edition by clicking here. Or, if you'd like to buy the book, check www.STL-books.com.