Shh, wanna know a secret that most visitors to Gateway Arch National Park don’t know?  There’s another way to get to the top of the Arch, beyond riding in a tram car. There’s a hidden staircase inside each leg of the Arch, with 1,076 steps on each side. 

But if the idea of climbing that many stairs makes your head spin, don’t worry.  The staircases aren’t for public use.

When the Arch was built in the 1960s, the designers had already made plans for a tram system to carry visitors up to the observation deck (and down again).  But they knew that park staff would also need access to the tram system for routine maintenance.  So they installed the stairways.  The stairs are an engineering feat, using 105 landings to snake through the curved structure. 

Visitors can sometimes glimpse the hidden staircase through the small windows as they ride up and down in their tram car.  So the next time you take a tram ride at the Arch, you can share the “secret” with your fellow riders!