By J.Y. Miller

Fall is a popular time for these festivals throughout the state. The little city of Hollister, near Branson, hosts a grape festival each September. In addition to grapes, the festival features local craftsmen and lots of entertainment. Learn more at www.bransonshows.com/eventCalendar/HollisterGrapeandFallFestivalnearBransonMO.cfm/.

A visit to St. Louis would not be complete without seeing the Gateway Arch. Details about the Arch and its construction can be found at www.gatewayarch.com. You can also purchase tickets for tours during your next visit.

Have you noticed a greater emphasis on natural plants and agriculture? Native plants usually just grow better since they are designed for the area by nature. This page at www.grownative.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.home/, is a joint project between Missouri's Departments of Conservation and Agriculture and has information useful to farmers and gardeners. There is a section to help identify native plants and information on landscaping and how to best utilize our native Missouri plants.

You can't get more native than an unspoiled Missouri prairie. The Missouri Prairie Foundation exists to save and restore native grasslands. Their web site at www.moprairie.org/, includes some beautiful photos of natural Missouri prairies.

You may be surprised to learn that only 22 known meteorites have been found in Missouri. A list of their locations is at http://epsc.wustl.edu/admin/resources/meteorites/missouri_meteorites.htm/. The page, which belongs to Washington University of St. Louis, provides the location, date found and description of each of the meteorites. Several were observed as they struck and at least one hit a car.

Missouri is known as the cave state, appropriately nicknamed due to the number of commercial caves open to tourists. Fantastic Caverns, located near Springfield, is unique in that visitors are driven through the cave. The cave has numerous special programs for school groups and scouting units. Their web page, www.fantasticcaverns.com/default.htm, describes these tours.

While in Springfield, you may want to visit Bass Pro Shops or you can visit online at www.basspro.com to find the one closest to you.

This seems like a mixed collection of sites, but that is the best thing about Cyber-Travel and about Missouri. There a variety of things waiting for you to discover. Perhaps we will see each other IRL or on the web as we explore out wonderful state. Until then, be safe on the road.

J.Y. Miller lives in Glasgow and is a regular columnist for Show-Me Missouri. His e-mail address is jymiller@showmemissouri.net.