Places to Go, Things to Do

Fall is here; Halloween to come

Fall is here and there are plenty of ways you can take advantage of the bright autumn colors. And, at the end of October, Halloween brings its own special flavor.

Regarding fall colors, be sure to read the month's featured article that tells where to go and what to do while pursuing the best of the St. Louis area's fall colors. (See article leading off the Home Page lineup of stories.)

YSL.com has picked a dozen other October events for fun for kids and families.

(Each month, Young Saint Louis.com compiles a list of activities and events to provide kids and their families some enjoyable times during the current month. Whenever possible, YSL.com gives special attention to activities that are free of charge.)

Fall Color canoeing and hayrides

The St. Louis Parks Department will sponsor Fall Color Canoe Floats on the Meramec River on Saturday, Oct. 13, and Thursday, Oct. 18. Floats are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Floaters meet at Castlewood State Park's boat ramp. You "put in" at the Route 66 State Park for a 9-mile float on the Meramec. Canoes, paddles and life jackets are provided. Cost is $15 per person.

For reservations and information, call (636) 391-0922.

The Parks Department also sponsors a number of Fall Family Hayrides from Jefferson Barracks, Creve Coeur, Cliff Cave Park and on the Al Foster Trail.

For information at Jefferson Barracks, call (314) 638-2100; for Creve Coeur, (314) 355-7374; for Cliff Cave, (314) 894-3089, and Al Foster, (636) 391-0922.

Fall closing at BG's kid garden

The Schnuck Children's Garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden will close for the season with a special program on Sunday, Oct. 28, from 1-3 p.m.

Kids will get a chance to harvest seeds from prairie wildflowers. They also will get to make natural noisemakers and enjoy wild stories and crafts.

For more information, visit www.mobot.org/finn or call (314) 577-9400.

"Primitive camping" on state lands

For a different type of fall experience, why not try "primitive camping" in a Missouri Conservation Department conservation area.

The MDC has specially designated primitive camping areas and defined camping sites. They generally offer gravel parking pads or mowed sites for your camping equipment.

But, there are no electric hookups or other amenities. You'll be roughing it.

For information, visit www.missouriconservation.org/2930.

Explore the Great River Confluence

Kids in the St. Louis area have ready access to one of the natural marvels of the world. That's the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. And the fall is a beautiful time to sightsee by hiking, biking, car travel and even riverboat.

Not only are the forests at their colorful best, but there are a lot of parks, trails, conservation areas and historic sites to visit at the same time.

For bikers and hikers, there are four major trails: the Riverfront Trail, the MCT Confluence Trail, the Vadalabene Great River Road and the Katy Trail.

For more information, visit www.confluencegreenway.org.

The Columbia Bottom Conservation Area, the Riverlands Environmental Demonstration Area and the Jones Confluence Point State Park provide "walkers only" trails along the Mississippi and Missouri.

For travel by car, you can visit www.confluencegreenway.org/m-whatsnew.php.

Driving tour includes the Lewis and Clark State Historic Site, National Great Rivers Museum, Pere Marquette State Park, Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, Jones Confluence Point State Park, Columbia Bottom Conservation Area and Old Chain of Rocks Bridge.

Finally, there's even a chance to see the scenery from a riverboat. The 12th annual Big River Rendezvous will be Saturday, Oct. 6. This is on the Tom Sawyer Riverboat and includes a buffet meal and Dixieland music. The price is $45 per person.

For tickets, call Larry Ruff at (636) 949-2793 or email at Lruff@charter.net.

Final Trailnet "Kids Fun Ride"

The last Trailnet "Kids Fun Ride" will be held Sunday, Oct. 7, and it will be a long one.

Registration is 6:30-7:30 a.m. at the St. Louis Brewery at 2100 Locust St. in St. Louis.

The 100-mile trip gives sights of the Great Rivers, two major universities, three parks, two ferry crossings, historic Route 66, five trails and the Gateway Arch.

There is a $25 pre-registration at www.trailnet.org. The fee is $35 at the day of the ride.

"Best of Missouri Market"

The 16th annual Best of Missouri Market will be held at the Missouri Botanical Garden on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 6 and 7. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Over 100 vendors will have specialty foods, crafts, baskets and jewelry for sale.

A Kids Corner will feature cow-milking, pumpkin decorating and barnyard animals.

For information, visit www.mobot.org.

"Scarefest" Haunted Houses

In recent years, St. Louis has seen a growth in the number of commercial haunted houses and big stores that sell Halloween costumes and props.

There is a website to get details: www.scarefest.com.

The website talks about the haunted houses, "The Darkness" and "Creepy World."

It also gives locations for 8 "Halloween Superstores" in the metro St. Louis area.

"House on Haunted Hill" movie

The Missouri History Museum's "Meet Me at the Movies" selection for October is the 1959 thriller, "House on Haunted Hill." Not only is the movie scary but it stars one of the scariest actors of all time, St. Louisan Vincent Price.

The film will be shown in the Museum's MacDermott Grand Hall and admission is free.

The film starts at 7:30 p.m. But, an hour before, there will be displays of cinematic and theatrical objects as well as a selection of cartoon short films.

For additional information, call (314) 746-4599.

Butterfly House's Halloween Party

The Butterfly House in Faust Park will hold its annual "Booterflies Halloween Party" on Saturday, Oct. 20. Hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The party is included in the regular admission, which is $6 for adults, $4 for kids 4-12.

There are a dozen new, but non-scary, activities and crafts. Dr. Cy Fly's Laboratory will include bubbling test tubes, giant flying insects, moving books and crawling hands. Kids also can play Pumpkin Putt-Putt, challenge Frankenstein in one-on-one "boo-ketball" or go B-O-O-wling for ghosts.

For information, call (636) 530-0076 or visit www.butterflyhouse.org.

Ice skating rinks open

Public ice skating sessions open at the North County Recreation Complex and Greensfelder Recreation Complex in Queeny Park during October. These are part of the St. Louis County Parks Department.

The NCRC sessions begin on Saturday, Oct. 6, and run through March 5, 2008. Hours are 10-noon and 1-3 p.m. Monday-Friday; 1-3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For information, call (314) 355-7374.

Sessions at GRC begin Saturday, Oct. 13, and run through February 23, 2008. Hours are 10-to noon on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday; 3-5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday-Friday and Sunday; and 7-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For info, call (636) 391-0912.

Pubic sessions at the Kennedy Recreation Complex started September 22 and run through March 7, 2008. For information, call (314) 894-3088.

Outdoor Nature Film schedule

The Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center has a full weekend schedule of outdoor nature films during October. The movies are usually held on Saturdays and Sundays and admission is free.

Special kids outdoor films are held from 9-10 a.m. and from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Then there are films for all ages from 10-12:30 p.m. and from 1:30-4 p.m.

No reservations are needed and groups are welcome. Some of the films are closed captioned for the hearing impaired.

Films during October are about caves and bats, fitting for the Halloween season.

For directions and details, call (314) 301-1500.

"Walk to School" activities

Trailnet is cooperating with local schools at they participate in "Walk to School" activities. The emphasis will be during International Walk to School Week Oct. 1-5.

For information, check www.walktoschool-usa.org or call Cindy Mense at Trailnet (314) 436-1324, ext. 113.