All Around Omaha--TRIP 3 (2012)

With one clap of thunder, a little much needed rain fell last night. "We have had an inch over two days," said one announcer. Some high stratus clouds moved southeast this morning towards Arkansas, and skies cleared. At 50 degrees, it was a beautiful morning.  A little fog clung to the skyscrapers down by the river, and along the streets leaves changed color and rustled in the constant breeze.
"You'll probably want a jacket," said Andy. "That wind makes it feel colder than it is."

An impressive entryway to ConAg Foods in downtown
Omaha made for beautiful pictures on a beautiful day. 

We headed downtown to walk the canal promenade and see the river early Sunday morning. Flags whipped at the entryway to ConAg Foods. We battled the winds for gorgeous photographs of the brilliant blue sky, red brick bell tower and yellow mums. Crimson flowers and reddening crab apple trees lined the brick walk.
"Here is where I heard all the cutting yesterday," said Andy. Every tree on both sides of the entrance had been sliced to the ground."Either they have plans to widen the drives, or they lost too many of the trees to drought," I said.

In spite of the biting wind downtown, the morning
was bright and clear in Omaha.

"Or they were growing too close together," Andy added. "But then they could have cut every other one."
We walked the downtown canal promenade along the water. Swans preened and then stepped in for a dip.  Back towards downtown and Little Red, we passed another bronze. This one, called Heritage, was dedicated by the Boy Scouts of America to the people of Omaha. Sculpted by Herb Mignery, it depicted a young boy kneeling on the ground to observe and discover. He was supported by both parents standing behind him. It read, "A gift to the people of Omaha from the Mid-America Council, Boy Scouts of America, Heritage Patrons--1984. Tomorrow's Heritage of Leadership is planted today in the minds of our young people through the ideals of Scouting."

Bundled, we followed the
path to the Bob Kerrey
suspension bridge.

Andy drove on down to the Bridge parking lot. "Bundle up," he suggested. "We're going to walk. I'm putting on my jacket." The wind whipped viciously as I grabbed a scarf. The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge crossed the Missouri in spectacular suspension style. For 1.3 miles back and forth we joined a few other bundled walkers for the stroll over the Missouri River. A project of former Nebraska Senator Bob Kerrey, now returning from retirement to run again, the bridge was completed in 2008 and opened on September 28, for a cost bid in 2006 of $22 million. Kerrey had secured $18 million in 2000 from the federal government to build the bridge.  Spectacular colors lined both sides of the river as trees in yellows and reds rustled in the breeze. We stood in the middle, half in Nebraska and half in Iowa. On one end was Omaha; on the other, Council Bluffs.

The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge crosses the Missouri
River to Iowa with incredible views of surroundings.

Back down in the parking lot we walked out to the Labor Statue by Matthew Placzek, 2009. The bronze marked the height of the Missouri during the floods of 1952 and 2011.  The Flood of 1952 lasted 25 days and crested at 40.2 feet. The Flood of 2011 lasted 101 days and crested at 36.29 feet. How ironic that a year later the city is begging for rain!  Only the hand holding the hammer remained above water in 2011. That Missouri Flood was triggered by record snowfall in the Rocky Mountains of Montana and Wyoming and near record spring rainfall in the upper Missouri River Basin.

Andy demonstrates the
height of the water in the
Flood of 2011.

The city of Omaha implemented a Unified Command Team that managed the community response to the flood from May 30 to September 7.  Volunteers filled 850,000 sandbags. Ninety temporary supplemental pumps helped to alleviate flooding on the dry side of 13 miles of levees, protecting the city of Omaha. Seventy wells and 35 more pumps kept the airport operational; and a temporary levee 2000 feet long, 42 feet wide and more than 10 feet high was constructed to protect the Missouri River Waste Water Treatment Plant.
The Labor Statue is a tribute to the dedication and hard work of all the people who built Omaha, to forge a better life for themselves, their families and their community. It is the second largest labor monument in the U.S. with five bronze figures, each eight feet tall and weighing 800 pounds. The three large ladles each weigh 6000 pounds. The total weight of the monument is 271 tons. The plaque explained that Omaha and its unions had grown up together. With access to transportation--the Missouri River and the Union Pacific Railroad--and right at the edge of a growing nation, Omaha was destined for economic growth, beginning in the 1860's.

Right on the Missouri River, the Labor Statue
pays tribute to the diverse workforce of Omaha.

Today, the labor movement "represents a diverse workforce of industrial, service, building and construction, and government sectors of the economy. But all stand firm in the commitment to strive for the betterment of the workers and the community."
Ranger Mynesha provided interesting background about Lewis and Clark and her role as a National Park Ranger when we entered the Visitor Center of the National Historic Trail Headquarters of the National Park system. The site marked a place where Lewis and Clark had passed on their 1804 journey to explore the Louisiana Purchase. Hands-on exhibits allowed children and curious adults to touch animal skins--buffalo, squirrel, beaver, otter--and handle animal skulls.
We watched the 25-minute video The Corps of Discovery about President Thomas Jefferson's commission to Lewis and Clark to search for a water route that crossed the continent to connect Atlantic Ocean to Pacific. Their two-year journey with about four dozen men in 1804 opened the West by tracing the Missouri River to its headwaters and trekking overland through the Bitteroot Mountains in Montana to the Columbia River and the Pacific.
Ranger Mynesha also explained her interest in Lewis and Clark. "I started as a Ranger in Saint Louis at the Jefferson National Memorial," she said. "I learned about the Lewis and Clark Expedition there so this expands my expertise." Today, the Trail, established by Congress in 1978, begins at the Lewis and Clark Memorial in Illinois and passes 3700 miles through Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon.

How our world has changed since the
time Lewis and Clark passed this
way along the Missouri River!

From the movie we learned more about the famous explorers, U.S. Army Captain Meriwether Lewis and U.S. Army Captain William Clark, and their most universally known event of American exploration and discovery.  The pamphlet said, "Neither foolhardy nor timid, Lewis and Clark were deliberate and quick-witted, and as inventive and creative as situations demanded." For 28 months the Corps of Discovery faced challenges.  Burdened by arduous tasks, hampered by inclement weather, and slowed by the hardships of the terrain, everyone on the expedition suffered mentally and emotionally, as well as physically.The spirit and cool-headedness of the two leaders in the face of hardships account for much of the success. Circumstances taxed the morale of the party, and the many references in the journals kept by both leaders reflect their concern about their men.  Andy and I read the information panels in the museum. When they left on the cross-country journey, the Corps of Discovery had 44 men of diverse backgrounds. Most were U.S. Army enlisted men; others, backwoodsmen. A few were French boatmen, hired to pilot the keelboat up the Missouri, who also knew how to handle the smaller boats called pirogues. Most Corps members--young, single, accustomed to hard labor--possessed varying skills. One, a black man named York, was Clark's slave. Two men had blacksmithing experience, and one knew carpentry. Others had learned Indian languages, and some had mastered hunting. All demonstrated the ability to bear extreme hardship.

In no-man's-land between
the two states, this statue
marks the entrance to an
industrial development.

`The journey began on May 14, 1804, as they left Camp River Dubois in the keelboat and two pirogues, crossed the Mississippi River and headed up the Missouri. During the next 28 months, they traversed 8000 miles of land and water, about which they knew next to nothing, in search of the fabled Northwest Passage that had eluded explorers for hundreds of years. Only one Expedition member died during the entire trek--Sergeant Charles Floyd on August 20, 1804. Both captains kept meticulous journals, recording distances traveled, navigational measurements for maps, observations of topography, ethnography, mineral resources and hundreds of plants and animals previously unknown to western science.
They left Fort Clatsop in Oregon to return on March 23, 1806. On July 6, after crossing the mountains via Lolo Pass and stopping at Travelers' Rest, Lewis and Clark split the men into two main groups in order to explore more of the territory. Lewis and three others headed through what is now called Lewis and Clark Pass to reach the Missouri at Great Falls; Clark's group retraced the outbound route to the Three Forks and then overland to the Yellowstone, which they followed to its junction with the Missouri. There the groups reunited. The Expedition then proceeded down the Missouri to St. Louis where, on September 23, 1806, the Corps of Discovery was greeted "with as much fanfare as the settlement could muster."

No longer part of the Missouri River, Carter Lake is merely
an ox-bow left behind when the river changed course.

The quirky Missouri River took a turn years ago, leaving a crescent-shaped ox-box lake between the states of Nebraska and Iowa. Although the land was west of the river, now on its new course, the property still belonged to Iowa. Two large metal sculptures marked the entrance to what was supposed to be an industrial park. "That's probably a casualty of the recession," said Andy. "This is prime industrial land, close to the city for either state. They just don't have an investor yet. I wonder which state has a more inviting tax base."
"No matter," I told hm, "because this is Iowa."
Our next stop, Levi-Carter Park, honored York, the Black slave of William Clark. The informational display said that slaves only had first names, and little is known about York. But he did return from the Lewis and Clark Expedition and eventually earn his freedom. He was also a respected member of the Expedition, even wielding a vote in matters of decision. We walked along Carter Lake, the remaining ox-bow of the Missouri River. The water looked fresh and clean, populated by hundreds of ducks. Each time we approached any groupings, they quickly swam the other direction for safety in the middle of the water. Here trees with colored leaves lined both sides of the lake for a spectacular foliage display.

High on a hill, the gardens of Mount
Vernon, Nebraska, mimic those of
George Washington.

Next we drove to Mount Vernon Gardens, a park intending to mimic George Washington's panoramic gardens on the Potomac River. These gardens are half the size of the Mount Vernon estate. The guidebook said it was a popular location for weddings, but on this Sunday afternoon a couple of photographers posed four or five young children. The park itself, in a beautiful location and clean, needed some tending with tender loving care.
A few miles away, Andy found Kenefick Park, named for John Kenefick, a senior management officer of the Union Pacific railroad. Kenefick said, "Any company has a certain amount of civic and corporate responsibility." The park in his honor on a bluff overlooking Omaha includes two gigantic railroad engines. We climbed the 61 stairs to the summit.
"How in the world did they ever get these up here?" marveled Andy.

Andy poses by the Big Boy, a coal engine of the mid-1900's.

On the back side we found the winding path lined with train wheels that circled to the top. The black Big Boy engine #4023, a four-cylinder coal locomotive, was designed in Omaha and built in 1944 in Schenectady, New York. Last used in 1959, it was replaced by diesel locomotives. This Big Boy carried up to 28 tons of soft coal and ran a total of 829,295 miles before official retirement in 1969.
The yellow diesel locomotive #6900, built in 1969, logged more than two million miles. It carried 8200 gallons of fuel and could attain a maximum speed of 80 m.p.h. Loaded with fuel, the engine weighed 545,432 pounds.  And what a view we had from the top of the hill!
Down below, visitors swarmed to Lauritzen Gardens, Omaha's botanical center. A living museum of unique four-season plant displays, Lauritzen Gardens was just being planted with the autumn mums by employees and volunteers. We browsed in the main foyer and looked around the gift shop. It was already 4:00 p.m. Still breezy, the weather had warmed, and most people in shirt sleeves basked in the hot sun.
Old Market is the Old Town of Omaha. We found a parking spot, free on the street on Sundays, and walked the brick streets, browsing in shops and checking out the bars.
“That one has happy hour from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and $2.99 margaritas,” I pointed out.
“OK. Sounds good to me,” said Andy.

Stokes in Old Market is a popular spot
to relax on Sunday afternoon.

For half an hour we sat outside Stokes Western American Grill and Bar, sipping margaritas and literally basking in the sunshine at a little wrought iron table. Music inside the bar blared country and western, but a street musician across 12^th Street wailed blues on a saxophone. It was one of those memorable travel moments I wanted to treasure for no reason forever. I took a deep breath and enjoyed the time.
All too soon the sun slipped behind the building across the street. Then the breeze felt chilly. We headed out for Mexican dinner at La Mesa, the perfect way to end a pure gold day.