Explore buried treasure in Missouri’s Meramec Caverns

The “Stage Curtain” is a highlight of the cave tours. Meramec Caverns photo

Once a mine, an outlaw’s hideout and a dance hall, Meramec Caverns is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year as a tour cave and remains one of Missouri’s most well-known attractions thanks to the enterprising entrepreneur who first saw its potential and discovered its treasures.

Located in Stanton about 60 miles west of St. Louis, the cave was originally found by Native Americans and later mined for its saltpeter (potassium nitrate) which is a key ingredient of gunpowder. In fact, Confederate troops destroyed a Union-held gunpowder facility inside the cave in 1864. Then in the late 1800s, the cave was used by locals as an escape from the summer heat and for dances in a large room known as the “Ballroom.”

In 1933, Lester Dill purchased the cave and began promoting and offering tours. In addition to discovering many new rooms and new levels to the cave, Dill discovered artifacts reportedly traceable to the outlaw Jesse James, including strong boxes from a train robbery and rifles.

Tours today showcase a variety of fascinating cave formations, including a stunning 70-foot-tall mineral deposit called the “Stage Curtain” because it resembles an undulating curtain at a theater. A light show set to music paints the wall a rainbow of colors.

Tours last about one hour and 20 minutes and cover one and one-fourth miles. The temperature in the cave is a constant 58 degrees. A campground is available from April–October, and riverboat rides on the Meramec River also are offered for a fee.

Throughout the year, there will be special events in conjunction with the anniversary, including nighttime lantern tours on weekends in June and a truck show June 13–15. Other highlights include a patriotic July Fourth celebration, a car cruise on July 26 and a gathering of Missouri’s Trike Association Sept. 26–28 for three days of cruising and displaying three-wheeled vehicles.

The cave is located off Interstate 44. Tours are $17.50 for adults and $8 for children 5–11. For more information, call (800) 676-6105, or visit www.americascave.com.

Metropolis, Ill., planning a super celebration for Superman

The town has a 15-foot bronze statue of the Man of Steel. Metropolis Tourism photo

With costumes, celebrities, music and more, Metropolis, Ill., will celebrate its fictional favorite son this summer with the 30th annual Superman Celebration.

The celebration, which will be held June 12–15, will feature an array of activities that will draw Superman fans and collectors of all ages from across the country. This year’s festival is being held in conjunction with the 70th birthday of the Man of Steel, an American cultural icon who has appeared in radio serials, television programs, films, newspaper strips, video games and more.

Among the highlights of the festival will be stars of film and television, including Ned Beatty who became affiliated with Superman in the 1978 motion picture playing Otis, Lex Luther’s evil henchman. Also appearing will be Allison Mack, who portrays Chloe, Clark Kent’s best friend in The CW’s acclaimed “Smallville,” which focuses on the life of a young Clark Kent and Lex Luther.

Also, Noel Neill, the official “First Lady of Metropolis,” will return to Metropolis to celebrate her 60th anniversary of portraying Lois Lane on the television series “Adventures of Super-man.” Neill first portrayed Lane in 1948, and in honor of her, a 1940s Hollywood Ball has been added to the event schedule that will recall the glitz and glamour of the era.

Superman fans will have the opportunity to meet the celebrities during autograph sessions. There will also be question-and-answer sessions allowing fans to get their most pressing Superman questions answered by the film and television stars.

A variety of other events during the four-day celebration will include the Comic Artist Gallery featuring world- renowned comic book artists, Super Fan Films Film Festival and Contest, and the $1,000 Superhero Costume Contest. Nightly entertainment will be held under the main stage tent, and there will food booths available throughout each day.

Metropolis is located at the southernmost tip of Illinois on Interstate 24. For more details about the celebration, visit www.supermancelebration.net or www.metropolistourism.com or call (800) 949-5740.

Border battles will rage in Kansas City re-enactments

More than 1,500 re-enactors are expected to participate. Melinda Minks/Kansas City Parks and Recreation photo

Today’s rivalry between Missouri and Kansas often is played out on the basketball court and football field, but it began on the battlefield during the Civil War, and the Stand of Colors re-enactment this spring will show how the soldiers clashed and more.

The re-enactment, which will be held May 16–18, will re-create the Civil War’s 1864 campaigns near Kansas City, including the Battle of Westport. The first-time event is expected to include more than 1,500 local and national re-enactors at Jerry Smith Park in Kansas City.

Friday’s activities are reserved for student groups, but the public events on Saturday and Sunday will feature demonstrations of how soldiers and civilians lived then. Both days, a battle will begin in the distance at 7 a.m. and make its way to the park’s main fields. Other battles will take place both days, including a skirmish at dusk on Saturday.

Other highlights will include a Ladies’ Social, a military medicine demonstration, battlefield concerts, a Civil War Ball, candlelight camp tours, artillery salute, battlefield church services, period fashion show and cooking demonstrations.

Also taking part in the pageant will be the First Kansas Colored, formed in 1862, re-enacting their participation in the region’s Civil War events.

The event is sponsored by Kansas City’s Rotary Club #13, and proceeds will benefit its Youth Camp for special-needs children. Advance tickets, available at Price Chopper stores, are $15 for adults and $5 for children 5–10 and include parking at a site that had not been announced at press time.

Tickets during the event will be sold at the parking site for $20 for adults and $10 for children. Tickets will not be sold at the park, which is at 139th Street and Holmes Road, and there will be no parking there. For parking and event details, visit www.standofcolors.org.

Savor barbecue flavors at Kansas City, Kan., contest

The Woodlands Race Track in Kansas City, Kan., is usually a place where speed is the name of the game, but at this year’s Great American Barbecue Contest at the track, most cooks will go slow when they baste, smoke, grill and roast their entries to bring out all the juicy flavors.

In its fourth year, the event will be held Memorial Day weekend from May 23–25 and will help kick off the barbecue season in the Midwest. There will be invitational and open barbecue contests with thousands of dollars in prizes at stake. Among the categories will be pork, pork ribs, brisket and chicken, plus a World Brisket Championship.

Apart from the main contests, there will be competitions for appetizers, wraps, chicken wings, desserts, side dishes and more. For younger visitors, there will be a Kidz Que contest in two age groups. Also, culinary demonstrations by local and national celebrity chefs will be featured in a roaming chef’s kitchen.

In addition to the aroma of barbecue smoke wafting over the site, a number of hot air balloons also will fill the air at the track. The whole event will hum to the tune of live bands performing, and there will be plenty of barbecue sampling opportunities for the public.

The Woodlands is located at 9700 Leavenworth Road. For details, call (913) 422-9599 or visit www.thinkbbq.com.

Evansville, Ind., is getting ready for a Reptile Invasion

A python on display at the show. Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve photo

All things scaly, slithery and somewhat scary will be on display during the annual Reptile Invasion at Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve in Evansville, Ind.

In its 18th year, the event will showcase more than 150 reptiles and amphibians during the weekend of June 14–15. The event is designed to educate visitors about the creatures and their role in the ecosystem and to help visitors overcome their fear of the animals.

The nature center at the preserve will be transformed into a wild serpentarium during the weekend with frogs, lizards, turtles, alligators and snakes of all sizes. Some visitors will get the chance to hold a small snake or even have their picture taken with a huge Burmese python. A variety of programs will be offered on reptile care, venomous snakes and more.

The event will be held from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. each day. The preserve is located at 551 N. Boeke Road. Admission is $4 for adults and $2 for children 5–13. For more details, call (812) 479-0771 or visit www.wesselmannaturesociety.org.