From St Louis: Take Hwy 67 North through Alton and Godfrey IL. As you are leaving Godfrey, veer right onto Hwy 111 (formerly Rte 67), traveling approximately 8 miles to Brighton IL. We are located 3 miles north of Brighton on Hwy 111. Watch for our nursery sign on Hwy 111. Approximately 50 minutes from the St Louis arch.
From northern or eastern Illinois: Take Hwy 55 south to Hwy 16 at Litchfield IL. Follow Hwy 16 West to Piasa IL At the junction of Hwy 111 and Hwy 16, make a left (South)… we are one mile down the road. We highly recommend calling the Alton Visitor's Center for their guide 'All Around Alton'. You will find an extensive list of Bed and Breakfasts, Restaurants, and things to do in this historic area. Or log on at www.visitalton, their email address is altoncvb@ezl.com. Cottage Garden is located 15 miles north of Alton IL.
For detailed directions, click here on Mapquest and enter your starting address.
For
Nature Lovers
Missouri Botanical Garden 4344
Shaw Blvd. St. Louis MO.
To those of you who aspire to those dreamy gardens in all the magazines,
Mo Bot is proof that it can happen here in our Zone 5-6 temperature extremes.
Tired of seeing Pacific Northwest gardens so prominently featured
in garden magazines? We midwesterners have struggled over the years
to develop our own garden style and you'll see it at Mo Bot, featured beautifully
and intelligently in a can-do style. While there check out the Kemper
Center for Home Gardening for the latest most up-to-date perennials, tropicals
and woody plants you won't want to be without. Their 'Plant Finder'
will tell you where to get them too! Tropical aficiandos won't want
to miss the Climatron, a virtual plant zoo under glass, so wear your safari
helmet and loin cloth to fit right in. Check out their website at
www.mobot.org.
Riverlands Hwy 67 just south of the Clark Bridge in Alton.
Birders and nature lovers unite at Riverlands year-round to enjoy this marvelous
wetland ecosystem. Especially beautiful at dusk, with the sun setting
on the majestic Mississippi. Memories will be made here, my favorite being
a late afternoon scene of blue herons framed against the setting sun, evoking
images of an oriental painting. Too beautiful for words! Follow up
your visit with a plate of 'talk n chic' fried chicken at Moonlight Restaurant,
fifteen minutes away, or maybe a lovely afternoon drive up the scenic Great
River Road to My Just Desserts in historic Elsah for soup and sandwiches,
and killer pie.
Local restaurants, things to do…..
Godfrey,
Illinois
Josephine's Tea Room and Gift Shop 6109 Godfrey Rd. (Rte 111) (618-466-7792) Famous for their lobster bisque, soups, sandwiches and desserts. Garden clubs traveling to our nursery lunch there, and it receives rave reviews. Beautiful gift shop in a historic nineteenth century cottage. A Southern Illinois institution!
Alton, Illinois
Moonlight
Restaurant 3400 Fosterburg Road (618-462-4620) A **** rating by
our Jack Russell terrier P.J., who never tires of the best fried chicken
in Southern Illinois. Extensive menu, superb house salad, with Italian favorites,
too!
My Just Desserts 31 East Broadway (near Visitor's Center)
(618-462-5881) Lovely historic rivertown ambience with food that is just
plain good. Desserts will have you drooling, so wear elastic waist pants.
Alton Area Antique District (On Broadway in downtown Alton)
Scavenge for vintage garden accessories and art….do we ever have enough??
National Scenic Byway (The Great River Road) Begins in Alton
at the riverfront, a hop, skip and jump from the great Mississippi River,
adjacent to the Visitor's Center of Alton. Follow it to historic Pere Marquette
State Park or the lovely little village of Elsah. A second location of My
Just Desserts is in Elsah, a beautiful and historic village. Drop dead gorgeous
scenery, some of the most beautiful in the Midwest.
Litchfield, Illinois
Ariston
Café Get your kicks on old Route 66, at the historic Ariston
Café. The salad bar is unrivaled and family style dinners are the
tops! Forty and fifty-somethings will groove to the fifties diner ambience.
Hit Interstate 55 North from Litchfield and head to Elkhart IL to the Bluestem
Café. Satisfy that sweet tooth with their incredible home-baked
desserts!
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