I love the autumn. And I love Saint Louis. In fact, my first non-rev day trip ever was to Saint Louis, nearly four years earlier to the day. It was a crisp, cool and sunny fall day, with the color and feel of Halloween evident everywhere. And as I descended from a clear autumn sky into Lambert International, I knew that the Gateway City would not disappoint.

This trip was to be a departure of sorts. It was autumn, my favorite season. It was near Halloween, my favorite holiday. And, besides Saint Louis’s being at the peak of their fall foliage, the city is also home to quite a few well known spooks, perfect to get anyone into the Halloween spirit. On this trip, I would visit three of the city’s most well known haunted spots- 14 North Newstead, the Old Saint Louis Courthouse and The Lemp Mansion and Brewery.

We touched down at Lambert right on time. The weather from the southeast to the U.S. heartland was perfect. I was excited and had a full day of adventures and scares on my plate, so I was on my way starting at the Saint Louis MetroLink station located in Lambert’s main terminal. I purchased a day pass, allowing rides on all trains and busses, for a very meager four dollars.

Saint Louis’s light rail is very comfortable and, at that time of day, not crowded at all. We arrived downtown, after a few delays through construction at Forest Park, about forty-five minutes later.

I exited at the Civic Center Station, located right next to the Savvis Center arena and just in the western shadow of downtown’s skyscrapers. I walked a block or so east to Tucker to catch the #73 bus to my first haunted spot- the Lemp Mansion.

The bus arrived after a very short wait. The driver was friendly and the interior clean as we made our way south. I firmly believe that riding a bus is one of the best ways to see the real city and get to know its real people. And I was not proven wrong in Saint Louis. We passed some interesting old architecture just south of downtown. The Carondelet neighborhood, though run down, had plenty of potential.

And it lay in the shadow of one of the towers of the old Lemp Brewery. The building has been standing for over a century, and its sheer size and emptiness gave it an eerie feeling all its own. But that was not where the real haunts are supposed to be. That would be at the Lemp Mansion.

Today the Lemp Mansion is a rather popular restaurant and bed and breakfast. I finally found it among other mansions and tenements along DeMenil. It was just as beautiful in person as in pictures. And the painted black outlines surrounding the windows against a white painted brick wall gave the mansion itself a truly spooky look.

I had arrived just in time for lunch, so I entered the historic doors of the building and walked past the main staircase and stepped onto the creaky wooden floor. The house was outfitted in turn-of-the-century décor. The ceilings were hand-painted and the cornices ornate. I was in awe, but not for long before a friendly hostess sat me in the main dining room.

Being the only patron there, I asked the hostess if I could take a few pictures. She said yes, quite happily, and I strolled through the many rooms. The Lemp Mansion has seen good fortune and great tragedy in its nearly 150 years. It was home to the Lemp family, who built their fortune on German lager beer. But a series of suicides and prohibition destroyed the family, leaving only one heir to the Lemp fortune. The full story of the Lemp family’s downfall is here.

But I was there for good food as well. And that I got with the Shaved Prime Rib Hoagie. It was was one of the priciest items on the lunch menu, with prices ranging from $5.00 to $10.00, but was definitely worth it. The attentive wait staff brought me a rather large sandwich falling apart with some of the juiciest and most tender prime rib I had ever tasted. It came with a side of waffle fries and a rather large helping of bread and butter. The great food along with the enchanting atmosphere made the $12.25 I spent there (quite a bit more than I normally spend on food during a trip) very much worth it.

I left the mansion satisfied as it started filling with other patrons looking for a great meal and atmosphere. When I walked out of the front doors, a tour bus was parked right outside. I took a final look at the mansion, and it seemed to be staring right back at me. I smiled as I turned to walk away as a chill went down my spine.

I walked past more buildings once a part of the five block Lemp Brewery on my way to Broadway to catch the #40 bus to downtown. It took a little while for the bus to arrive, but that was okay. I spent the whole time staring into the one window on the old brewery that wasn’t boarded up. I was waiting for something to stare back.

I stepped off of the bus in the midst of downtown’s skyscrapers and in the shadow of the Gateway Arch. I turned around and there was the second of my spooky destinations- the Old County Courthouse.

The building, almost two hundred years old, is now operated by the National Park Service, who denies any of the strange events. But, late at night, under the building’s ornate dome, workers who would rather remain anonymous say that doors open and close, lights turn on and off, and footsteps can be heard on the baloneys overhead or on the old staircases. Read full accounts here.

I walked back out of the old wooden doors and looked across Broadway to the Gateway Arch. I walked toward it, under red and gold trees of autumn, and to the stainless steel monument’s shadow. I do think that the Arch is one of the country’s more beautiful and graceful monuments. I walked north through the Expansion Park, with more fall trees above, the Saint Louis skyline to my west and the Arch behind me. But every few steps, I had to look behind me at the engineering marvel once again.

At the Laclede’s Landing MetroLink Station, I took the train eastbound across the Mississippi River into Illinois. I disembarked at the East Riverfront Station and walked upward to the pedestrian friendly Eads Bridge. I walked back over the Mississippi River to Missouri, stopping every so often to watch the river run below and the skyline get ever closer.

Soon I found myself near Saint Louis’s urban, vertical mall, the Saint Louis Centre. It has seen better times and the formidable, fort-like, non-pedestrian friendly monolith is probably on its way to being obsolete. So I walked south from there on 7th through the canyons of downtown. I made my way to the Eighth Street MetroLink Station. I rode the train east to infamous East Saint Louis before heading back to the west.

I got off at the Saint Louis Union Station, the city’s old railway depot that has been turned into an impressive shopping and entertainment complex. There, one can find a Hard Rock Café, a Hyatt Hotel and the Great Hall. There are a lot of tourist destinations, but somehow the facility seems to avoid kitsch. It, unlike the Saint Louis Centre, has found much success over the years.

I once again boarded a westbound MetroLink train and stopped at Central West End, home of Washington University, Forest Park, a good portion of the city’s gay and lesbian population and the final and probably least well known haunted spot, 14 North Newstead.

Located to the northeast of the MetroLink Station, the century old historic building at 14 North Newstead, now home to offices, once housed the Newstead Avenue Police Station. There, the site saw much corruption and violence. It all started in 1945 when a prisoner and three police officers were charged with manslaughter in the death of an inmate. A string of tragic events ensued, leaving the location scarred. Other the years, the building has seen a string of owners. None has ever stayed for long. Read the complete story here.

Leaving 14 North Newstead behind, I walked west toward the heart of Central West End along Euclid. There, I found a wide selection of upscale eateries and other local fare located in old buildings representing a full spectrum of classical architectural styles. Further west, along Aubert Boulevard across from Forest Park was the impressive Chase Park Plaza building, a landmark on the Central West End skyline.

I crossed the busy thoroughfare and found myself within the serene greenery of Forest Park, home of Saint Louis’s 1904 World’s Fair and the city’s yearly Pride celebration. I found a quiet spot just beyond an old Victorian bridge where I relaxed under the park’s golden trees right next to a lake with a huge fountain shooting water high into the clear blue sky. Every so often, a cool gust of wind would blow the spray my way. The sun was low in the sky. People were out enjoying the park. I was loving every second of it.

The MetroLink Station was just a couple of blocks east of my location, right past the Saint Louis Children’s Hospital, where I was planning on returning to Lambert International. But I still had three hours before my flight. So I boarded a westbound train back toward downtown. On a side note, Saint Louis’s light rail was contested when conceived, but has since been a major success story on which many other cities have based their own. And that evening’s ride was evidence of this success. It was standing room only with rush hour traffic past East Saint Louis all the way to the Illinois Park-&-Ride stations.

I started my way back west as the sky continued growing darker. Then there was the first major roadblock of the day. With two hours left until my flight, the train stopped. There was another train stopped in front of us. Horrible flashbacks of Chicago went through my head. But luckily we were still parked at a stop with the option to get off. It turned out that the train in front of us struck a car (trying to run the signal) and was damaged. But, unlike the Saint Louis’s neighbor to the northeast, the Metro promptly sent another train on the opposite track and we were soon on our way.

I watched the sky grow darker as we once again crossed the Mississippi into downtown. I could sense the excitement growing in another great American big city. And, after no further delays, I smiled as my plane rose above the net-like scattering of lights that mark the Gateway to the West.