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St. Louis Brews, 3rd Edition

St. Louis Brews, 3rd Edition
$45.00

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  • Spotted my first Great Horned Owl in @forestparkforever today. The sticker shock from that new camera lens evaporated tonight. Thanks to my good friend Aileen for helping me find Charles (yeah, that’s actually his name). #greathornedowl #birdnerd #heslookingrightatme
  • Today I spotted my first Eurasian Tree Sparrow. And as I have recently learned in this enticing new hobby of mine, this is a special addition to the life list. Introduced to America in #STL from Germany in 1870, this is a bird that can still only be found in and around St. Louis (well, in the Western Hemisphere, at least). I’ve read that many believe the more aggressive House Sparrow may be the reason why it hasn’t spread to other parts of the country. I’ve also read that rookie birders can have a tough time finding this one. I think this photo merits high-end gin in the martini tonight. #itsallaboutstlouis #birdingmuse
  • Big steps today... Bald Eagles and Eurasian Tree Sparrows. This place is amazing. #birdnerd
  • My favorite #STL park was at its best today. Also ID’d my first American Crow, Red-winged Blackbird (2), and I think I spotted a Yellow-rumped Warbler... but I’m not counting that one until I’m sure. #moon #birdingmuse #somanygrackles
  • I love the blue racing stripe on mallards. I also learned today that only the females quack (like this one). The males (with the green hats) make a quiet raspy sound. #birdrookie #somuchtolearn
  • Great walk in Tower Grove Park (swamp) after the rain today. And I tried my hand at birding again. I added five new birds to my (very short, but growing) checklist: Blue Jay, House Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, and the Common Grackle. Never heard of a Grackle before, but I promise ya there’s one in that tree. #stl #stlparks #birdnerd
  • Brutally cold walk around Fairground Park this morning. And while I'm pleased to have hit the mother lode of geese, Fairground Park is also a special place to a #STL history nerd like me. The amount of history (good and bad) that has happened in this 131 acre space could fill several Distilled History posts. It was originally the (privately owned) site of the the St. Louis Exposition (think of an enormous county fair) from 1856-1902. It was the site of a camp named Benton Barracks during the Civil War. In its Expo years, it was the site of the largest ampitheater in the world, it had a racecourse, an enormous grandstand and jockey club, exposition halls (including a three-story "Chicken Palace"), and various other mechanical and agricultural venues. In 1876, a zoological garden was added that would evolve into the zoo we know today in Forest Park. The building that once surrounded the bear pits (pic 2) still stands at the corner of Natural Bridge and Grand. The St. Louis Cardinals used to play across the street (Robison Field). It was the site of the first automobile race in St. Louis. Fairground Park was also the site of the first municipal pool in St. Louis (and when it was built with a diameter of 440 feet, it was the largest pool in the world). And in one of our city's darker moments, that pool was the site of St. Louis's first race riot in 1949 when it was desegregated. And all of that is just scratching the surface. It stopped being a fairground when the World's Fair came to town and it became a city park in 1908. Fun fact: The bear pit structure is what got me interested in St. Louis history. About ten years ago, I was driving up Grand Avenue and thought "What is that?" For that reason, I was kinda saving Fairground Park for last in my little #STL park survey. I still have 70 or so smaller parks to get to, but I think I'm gonna take a break until things start blooming. Thanks for following along. #illstillpostbirdpicsthough
  • And here are a couple smaller parks I explored recently in north #STL. The first is Old North neighborhood's Jackson Park (pic 1). This small (.7 acre) park sitting next to I-70 has a circular walking path that I rambled around a few times (while avoiding a large dog). I also took the opportunity to extend the walk around the neighborhood and (of course) make a stop in Crown Candy Kitchen. According to the city's website, it is the second oldest park in the city, created by ordinance in 1816. Later I found Windsor Park, another small-ish park in the Hyde Park neighborhood. At 3.3 acres, it features your basic tennis courts, playground, and not much else. However, stand in the ballpark's outfield and you can get a great look at Hyde Park's old police station. One of the five Art Deco police stations designed by architect Albert A. Osburg in the 1930's, seeing it up close makes a trip to Windsor Park well worth it. Fun fact: Osburg also designed Homer G. Phillips Hospital (see my blog post about that) and the Soulard Market. #stlparks
  • Not a great day for #STL park walking (but I’m still heading out), so I thought I’d share a few of the neighborhood parks I’ve been exploring in recent weeks. To start, I would guess that many in #STL would think The Hill’s Berra Park is named after Yogi Berra, the legendary Yankee who grew up just a couple blocks away. In fact, the 4.8 acre park is named after Louis G. "Midge" Berra. Originally known as Vigo Park (not “Virgo” as I’ve read elsewhere) when it was purchased by the city in 1945, it was re-named after Berra (who was not related to Yogi at all) in 1965. Berra was a "political force" in the area and the first Italian-American to be elected alderman in St. Louis. Fun fact: If you look at the planting and pavers around Berra's statue from above, you'll notice they form the shape of Italy. #stlparks #goyankees
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