A Starved Rock Sunday

Last Sunday Mom, Mara and I decided to get out of the house and head to one of the local attractions.  Starved Rock is a beautiful state park in the area and it happens to be where Josh and I got married.  Every Sunday they have a massive brunch in the lodge so we decided to make reservations and enjoy the day.

After stuffing our faces with eggs, bacon, waffles and way too many desserts to count we let Mara catch a few zzz's in the lodge great room before we headed outside to catch the trolley.

The trolley at Starved Rock is something my mom has wanted to do for awhile.  It's a history tour of the park and the surrounding area.  Mara woke up just as we were boarding the tram and seemed ready to enjoy the ride.  :)

Waiting to board

Our first stop was the Lock and Dam.  We got to go up to the viewing platform and watch a barge leave the lock.  Next we drove around Utica, the closest town, as our driver filled us in on some of the local history.  Finally we pulled back into the park for a quick stop at the visitor's center.

In the center we were supposed to watch a video but Mara needed to burn off some energy so we toured a small museum display instead.  Mara also really enjoyed looking at and trying to grab some of the local fish in a large tank.

At the Lock & Dam

Overall it was a fun outing.  Although I knew a little bit about the history of the park, I was really unfamiliar with most of the information given on the trolley ride.  I think Mara also really enjoyed riding in the tram and looking out the window.

Mara checks out some of the museum displays

Hopefully next time we go back to Starved Rock we can hit some of the beautiful trails and see some of the canyons!