Mile 179.7 - LBD Malcolm Martin Memorial Park

John Ruskey

20 Apr 2026 � 1 min read

179.7 LBD Malcolm Martin Memorial Park

You can get the best view of the Mighty Mississippi river and the Saint Louis skyline from across the river in East St. Louis at the Mississippi River Overlook, which is a 4 story elevated platform that allows you to overlook the levee. If you turn around while at the top you can also get a glimpse of the Gateway Geyser, which is directly across from the Gateway Arch. During the summer (April 15th thru October 15th) you can catch the Gateway Geyser every three hours starting at noon, with the last of the 3 daily shows at 6pm. The fountain is actually world's second tallest fountain, it is second to King Fahd's Fountain in Saudi Arabia which reaches a height of 853 feet. When the wind is less than 4 mph, the Gateway Geyser reaches a maximum height of 600 feet into the sky, matching the height of the Gateway Arch. Each eruption of the Gateway Geyser lasts approximately 10 minutes with four smaller fountains that erupt 100 feet into the air surround the main geyser, symbolizing the Mississippi, Missouri, Meramec and Illinois rivers. From Yelp.com: “This is a really cool little park directly across the river from the Arch. The park has a security guard who walks around, is well maintained, and is usually not crowded. Although it is is East STL, I felt completely safe, and during the summer, it's open until 10pm. The park also holds the Gateway Geyser, a 600 ft man-made fountain that matches (almost) the height of the arch. It goes off at 12pm, 3pm and 6pm for 10 minutes. The park has a 4 story high walkway/observation area that gives you a great view of downtown STL. A must-go to at dusk when the sun is setting!” This geyser was designed and constructed by St. Louis–based Hydro Dramatics in 1995 at a cost of $4 million. Three 800-horsepower (600 kW) pumps power the fountain, discharging 8,000 U.S. gallons of water per minute at a speed of 250 feet per second. The fountain has an axial thrust of 103,000 pounds of force; water is jetted out of the 6-foot (1.8 m)-tall aerated nozzle at a pressure of 550 pounds per square inch.” (Hydro Dramatics website)

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