People come out for scenic drive despite weather

Rain and chilly temperatures dampened attendance at some venues along the Mississippi River Valley Scenic Drive this weekend, but the drizzly weather may have boosted interest in others, participants said.

"Mother Nature didn't help us out too much with the rain yesterday," drive coordinator Estellee Wood said Sunday afternoon.

Peggy Luehrs picks out a slice of pineapple-coconut coffee cake from Sharon Penrod’s case of baked goods Sunday at her Pocahontas bakery and cafe, the Pie Safe. The Pie Safe was one of many stops along the 23rd annual Mississippi River Valley Scenic Drive. (Laura Simon)

Wood said participation seemed to pick up Sunday, with several people calling her to ask for directions to various venues.

In Pocahontas, Peggy and Edgar Luehrs of Jackson sampled a slice of Sharon Penrod's strawberry-rhubarb pie at The Pie Safe on Main Street.

The couple said they go on the tour almost every year and enjoy the chance to revisit their favorite spots.

"I absolutely love Sharon's pastries, and we're going up to Altenburg to the museum," Peggy Luehrs said.

Penrod, who opened The Pie Safe last year, said the weather may have helped her restaurant, which she said was packed Saturday with a mix of tour participants and curious locals.

African pygmy goats chase after Mollie Bumpus, 11, and her bag of food Sunday inside the petting zoo at Lazy L Safari Park in Cape Girardeau. The zoo was one of many stops along the 23rd annual Mississippi River Valley Scenic Drive. (Laura Simon)

"Maybe it was just a gloomy day, and there wasn't that much to do outside," she said.

The weather was less helpful for Vicki Lantz, owner of the Lazy L Safari Park, 2763 County Road 618 in Cape Girardeau.

"Our parking lot's been packed the last four weeks. Yesterday and today, it's, like, nothing. It's either feast or famine," Lantz said.

The Bumpus family of Gordonville didn't join the tour, but they spent part of Sunday afternoon at Lazy L.

"This was [the result of being] cooped up all day yesterday," Julie Bumpus said, laughing as several pygmy goats mobbed her, standing on their hind legs and leaving hoofprints all over her white jacket as they stretched toward the bag of feed she was holding. Bumpus, her husband, Dave, and their two children enjoyed the opportunity to "get out and get muddy," she said.

Sharon Penrod slices a piece of strawberry-rhubarb pie for a customer Sunday at her Pocahontas bakery and cafe, the Pie Safe. The Pie Safe was one of many stops along the 23rd annual Mississippi River Valley Scenic Drive. (Laura Simon)

Most of the locations on the tour are open all year, Wood said, so anyone who missed a spot this time can go back and visit it later.

"It's just to reappreciate the venues that we have right here in Southeast Missouri," Wood said. "This isn't something that's packed up and trucked off this weekend. It's something that stays. It's part of our heritage."

epriddy@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

2763 County Road 618, Cape Girardeau, M0.

146 Main St., Pocahontas, Mo.