2023 Issue 5 Sept/Oct Focus - Mid-South Magazine

Southern Illinois + Missouri
Recommended by Chellie Bowman
Cape Girardeau Waterfront
Alto Pass, IL
“Recently, my partner and I were invited
to a wedding in a charming village in
Southern Illinois called Alto Pass, just three
hours north from Memphis. We had never
been to this part of the region and spent
our entire weekend exploring the area.
I was in awe with the sheer number of
wildflowers that were everywhere in June,
and the number of birds that we could
watch around the cabin we rented. The
town sits at the foothills of the Shawnee
National Forest and in fact, there is even
a trail to a large rock formation directly
accessible from the town square. The area
is also surrounded by multiple vineyards
that make up the Shawnee Hill Wine Trail,
something I very much lament we were
unable to check out. Later in the weekend
we were able to drive further into the
forest and hike a trail to see what’s called
“The Little Grand Canyon”, a wide and
impressive canyon that you can actually
hike down into itself, although we opted
for the shorter, less treacherous path
to the overlook. On the drive home, we
stopped by Cape Girardeau in Missouri,
got a delicious coffee at Ground-A-Bout,
walked to the large promenade along the
Mississippi River, and meandered around
their historic downtown streets. The whole
trip was very short, but a refreshing change
of pace from Memphis–we can’t wait to go
back and explore more!”
Downtown Cape Girardeau
Little Grand Canyon trail, Shawnee National Forest
Quetil Trail in downtown Alto Pass
42 Go! | Sept+Oct 2023 | focuslgbt.com