Not sure what I did wrong but I do know I spent too much time looking for it. I had wanted to go to another cemetery in town but ran out of time. So back on the road I headed for Marceline - The Boyhood Home of Walt Disney. A blogger named Kevin wrote a four part series on Marceline and Disney that I thought was very interesting. You can read this at Walt's Boyhood Home . . . Marceline, Missouri by Kevin Burk on StartedByAMouse.com - I think he did a great job on this series. 
The story is that Walt created Main Street in Disneyland as a replica of Main Street in Marceline and I could see the relation as I pulled in to town. Although I have to say that Main Street at Disney is a hell of a lot busier that Main Street in Marceline. There are street signs on lamp posts with Main Street USA on them and the iconic mouse head and ears shape is there as well. There are neat old buildings and some of them are nice and taken care of and some need some TLC and some were totally empty. I did stop at the Uptown Theater where Disney has had two premieres of movies - The Great Locomotive Chase in 1956 and The Spirit of Mickey in 1998. I was able to see a short film about Disney and Marceline while there. I then walked to a little downtown park with a gazebo, train engine and a caboose. I took a minute to look for a letterbox in the park. The clues lead you to the caboose and without any problems I found the box. I took it to a bench to stamp in and when I opened it I noticed that it wasn't the box I was actually looking for. So I went back and followed the clues again and didn't find another box. So I looked all over the area but still nothing. So I decided that the other box either went missing or was retired and never changed on the web and then someone else came along and hid a different box. The boxes have different names and different planters so I am not sure what happened - I did write to both of the planters to see if I could get a story, we will see if they write back. Anyway, after stamping in and then putting the box back in place I walked over to the museum. But as luck would have it I was in town on the wrong day. The museum is closed on Monday and that is the day I was here. One more stop and then it was back on the road. As I headed out of town I stopped to see Walt's Dreaming Tree and a replica of the barn that was on the property when Walt lived there. The tree seems to be having trouble these days. The pictures of the tree on the blog I mentioned above and the pictures I took are very different. The tree has lost branches and is kind of over grown with grass and weeds and things. Also you can't see the barn from the tree like in Kevin's pictures. It was still a magical spot and I could see a young Walt laying under the tree and letting his imagination run wild. I then walked the rest of the way to the barn. Like I said this is a replica and you are allowed to write on the wall on the inside of the barn. Lots of people have left notes and the walls are covered with words. I enjoyed this stop but it was time to continue my journey north.
The drive between Marceline and Des Moines was quiet and uneventful. There wasn't much traffic and I was on backroads instead of interstates which I find to be more relaxing even though it probably takes longer. I didn't make any stops until I reached the Capitol Building. I found parking in a visitors lot right in front of the building. From this area there is a great view of the downtown area and there are benches to sit on and enjoy the view. The first thing that struck me was the incredible gleaming gold dome that graces the building. While on my tour of the building I learned that the dome is externally gilded with 23 karat gold leaf. It really is stunning to see - when the sun is shining it looks like it is glowing. The interior of the building is just as beautiful and I really enjoyed the tour. I think this is among my favorites and it is also one of the most beautiful Capitols I have seen. After visiting the Capitol I headed toward the Des Moines Art Center to do a little letterboxing. On the way I was driving down Grand Ave. when some artwork caught my eye. There were these huge sculptures off to my left.
So I pulled over and parked so I could check it out. I found myself in the John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park. They had some very interesting pieces and some were a little strange but I did enjoy all of the sculptures and had a great walk around the park. After about thirty minutes I continued on my original path. It was a quick drive from the sculpture park to the Des Moines Art Center. I didn't go into the art center - I just walked around the grounds looking for a couple of letterboxes - which I never found. But I did enjoy my walk. They have a great rose garden and an interesting sculpture called Three Cairns by Andy Goldsworthy.My hotel wasn't actually in Des Moines it was in Urbandale, a little northwest of the city. So I headed in that general direction. I had mapped out boxes working my way toward my hotel. My first stop was a small park located in a neighborhood. I parked between two houses and found the letterbox hidden in a tree just behind the park sign. I nabbed it quickly and then walked into the park and found a bench to use to stamp in on. It was a quiet park and I only saw one other person while there. Continuing along, I made my way to the Urbandale Public Library. They have a great walking trail and gardens in the back and there were three letterboxes there to find. So I went on my little walk and found the Snake, Bird and Beaver letterboxes. They were listed as one clue and one box but there were actually three boxes for you to look for in three different locations. I had to be really stealthy because there were a ton of people here walking, biking and jogging so I had to wait for breaks in the crowds to look for the boxes. It took me about 40 minutes to get these three due to the traffic and then I left for the next location - Chapel Hill Gardens Cemetery.
Here I found Poppin' Fresh Pies. The story was neat and the cemetery was nice - another quiet place with no one around. You can read the story at Legendary Baking. Okay it was getting late and the sun was starting to set but I wanted to stop one more place - Prairie Tower - to find one more box. I drove out to Paragon Office Park and walked over to the tower. I am glad I was here at sunset because the tower in lit up and is incredible. The Tower is done in glass mosaic tile and is 120 feet tall and 16 feet in diameter. It is beautiful. After taking a few pictures I found the letterbox that is hidden here called Optical Illusion #1: Prairie Tower. I stamped in and rehid the box and then made my way back to the car. It was now completely dark and I was tired. I made my way to the hotel and got checked in, took a shower and had a little snack. It was a long and busy day but incredibly enjoyable.
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