Ten days for Katy Trail - and then what?

Hi, I'm going to ride the Katy Trail (MO, ~220 mi) from my home in St.
Charles down to the end and back, in the week before Labor Day. I plan to
camp at night, but I'll be relying on the towns for food. Although I'll
have a bit more than 10 days if I set out Friday night, I can't imagine the
trail taking more than 3 days one way. Can anyone recommend interesting
places to check out within a couple days ride (say 150-200 mi) of the trail?

--
+---- Kevin C. Saff ----+ F-15 | |Eagle
| Engineer in St. Louis | _____|_^_|_____
| Tracking/Fleet Support| * + [_(x)_] + *

Kevin,

I too am planning a trip on the Katy Trail only I am planning for the week
after Labor Day.
Do you have the book "The Complete Katy Trail Guidebook. ISBN 0964662507 $16.95
from Amazon. Other folks that I have spoken with have highly recommended this
book.

From the book it appears there is much to see along the way. If you are looking
for an alternate route on the way back you may want to investiate the maps from
Adventure Cycling
http://adventurecycling.org/
The Lewis and Clark Bicycle Trail Section 1 -- has a loop on the other side of
the river from Boonville to Jefferson City. It does branch off of the trail at
Boonville and heads Northwest, ends up in Council Bluffs Iowa. They also have a
book Bicycling the Lewis & Clark Trail. Which also has some information about
what is along the trail, but not as good as the Katy Trail Guide.

Good luck on your trip and have fun.

Bill

"Bike4funeat2bike" wrote in message
...
Kevin,

I too am planning a trip on the Katy Trail only I am planning for the week
after Labor Day.
Do you have the book "The Complete Katy Trail Guidebook. ISBN 0964662507
$16.95
from Amazon. Other folks that I have spoken with have highly recommended
this
book.

Yes, I have that one, and it is indeed good. (Well, I left it in a friend's
car - it isn't helping me much just now.)

From the book it appears there is much to see along the way.

Indeed. Since I live in St. Charles, I am intimately familiar with miles
37-100. Have you been out to the trail? I've never been on a multiday tour
on it, but I think I need to take plenty of degreaser, a cog brush, and
possibly a microfiber towel to keep the limestone dust from destroying my
bike.

If you are looking
for an alternate route on the way back you may want to investiate the maps
from
Adventure Cycling
http://adventurecycling.org/
The Lewis and Clark Bicycle Trail Section 1 -- has a loop on the other
side of
the river from Boonville to Jefferson City. It does branch off of the
trail at
Boonville and heads Northwest, ends up in Council Bluffs Iowa. They also
have a
book Bicycling the Lewis & Clark Trail. Which also has some information
about
what is along the trail, but not as good as the Katy Trail Guide.

Thanks for the tip! I ordered the maps they had of my area for this and
future trips.

I'm starting to get a bit nervous since I've never toured before, and I
haven't even decided whether or not to get a new bike for a trip that's only
a week away! I'm considering a Cannondale T800, mostly because I know a
shop that has one in my size. Otherwise I'm going to be stuck on my Schwinn
Sierra AL (a comfort/trail bike) - it's really not too bad except the riser
bars kill my hands on long trips, so drop bars would be a welcome change.

Good luck on your trip and have fun.

Bill

You, too -

--
+---- Kevin C. Saff ----+ F-15 | |Eagle
| Engineer in St. Louis | _____|_^_|_____
| Tracking/Fleet Support| * + [_(x)_] + *

I too am planning a trip on the Katy Trail...

I will take this opportunity to shamelessly plug a website I built,
www.BikeKatyTrail.com. Check out www.BikeKatyTrail.com for a thorough
listing of businesses and services along the Katy Trail, lots of maps,
mileage info, an interactive trip planner, event listings, and more.

Enjoy your trip!

Ray Scott
Founder & Administrator, www.BikeKatyTrail.com

"Kevin Saff" wrote in message
...
Hi, I'm going to ride the Katy Trail (MO, ~220 mi) from my home in St.
Charles down to the end and back, in the week before Labor Day. I plan to
camp at night, but I'll be relying on the towns for food. Although I'll
have a bit more than 10 days if I set out Friday night, I can't imagine
the
trail taking more than 3 days one way. Can anyone recommend interesting
places to check out within a couple days ride (say 150-200 mi) of the
trail?

--
+---- Kevin C. Saff ----+ F-15 | |Eagle
| Engineer in St. Louis | _____|_^_|_____
| Tracking/Fleet Support| * + [_(x)_] + *

I just got back from a two day overnight trip on the KATY trail last
saturday and sunday. St. Charles to Tebbets the first day, and back the
next. Although I checked every possible web page for support, you really
have to be careful about what may be available for camping and eating
places. Ray.net's web page, I found, was the best, no question. There is
not a lot of variety for eating places, especially past Marthasville (40
miles west of St. Charles). Expect to dine in taverns or bars especially
trailside. You may have to put in extra miles off the trail to find better
places. Also, not alot of readily available spots to fill up water bottles.
Whatever you do, take extra water and food, just in case.

There are good spots to camp in Bluffton (Steamboat Junction, Rendelman). I
would stay away from the free hostel in Tebbets (there's a story behind it;
let me know if anyone's interested). SOB (Steedman's only bar) allows free
camping behind the bar, but do so at your own risk (bar is right off
highway). The Crossing at Mokane is no longer open (i.e., no camping or
restaurant). One gentlemen I met along the way camped right along the
trail, near one of the Lewis and Clark historical markers and didn't have a
problem.

Although I haven't personally gone on any side trips, I might suggest going
south to Hermann (Highway 19) or to Jefferson City (Higway 54), to see the
State Capitol. You could also visit Columbia.

If you have any specific questions, let me know. Good luck and enjoy!

Kerry Nikolaisen

Can anyone recommend interesting
places to check out within a couple days ride (say 150-200 mi) of the trail?
....
south to Hermann (Highway 19) or to Jefferson City (Higway 54), to see the
State Capitol. You could also visit Columbia.

Kerry, thanks for the compliment; I'm glad to hear that you found
www.BikeKatyTrail.com to be the most useful site. I will contact you
off-list to hear the story about the hostel in Tebbetts.

Kerry makes some great suggestions for side trips from the Katy Trail.
Hermann is a picture-postcard town with lots of B&B's and wineries,
which hosts a big Oktoberfest each year. The bridge to Hermann can be
travelled by bike, as long as you're comfortable riding next to
high-speed traffic without a lot of space. Many of the B&Bs in
Hermann will send a shuttle over to pick up their guests from the
McKittrick trailhead. More Hermann info at http://www.hermannmo.com

As the state capitol, Jeff City obviously has a lot to offer too. The
bridge to Jeff City has a sightly better bike lane (on the south side
of the bridge only), but you'll still need nerves of steel to face
down the high-speed traffic. Like Hermann, many of the Jeff City
Hotels will send a shuttle to the North Jefferson trailhead. More JC
info at http://www.jcchamber.org

Columbia is certainly the easiest to get to; the 9-mile-long MKT
Fitness trail will take you from the Katy Trail into the heart of
Columbia. It connects with the Katy Trail at mile 169.9, near
McBaine. More Columbia info at http://www.visitcolumbiamo.com

Here's a page on my website that discusses side-trails connecting to
the Katy Trail:
http://www.bikekatytrail.com/SideTrails.asp?src=rbr

Kevin, you're from St Charles so I won't suggest a St Louis side trip
for you, but for the sake of other readers here is a web page
explaining how to get to downtown St Louis from the Katy Trail, by
bike:
http://www.bikekatytrail.com/kt2downtown.asp?src=rbr

You said you were looking for things to do within 150 miles of the
Katy Trail - this certainly includes Kansas City, although I don't
know the best way to get there from the Katy Trail by bike
(suggestions are welcome!).

Happy trails,
Ray Scott
www.BikeKatyTrail.com

would stay away from the free hostel in Tebbets (there's a story behind it;
let me know if anyone's interested).

Im interested in that story

Tell me

Kerry Nikolaisen wrote:

I would stay away from the free hostel in Tebbets (there's a story behind it;
let me know if anyone's interested).

Kerry Nikolaisen

I'd like to read about this, too. TIA.

Skyhooks
hmardis "aht" uiuc "daught" edu

"Kerry Nikolaisen" f o u r n i k s @ c h a r t e r . n e t wrote in
message ...
"Kevin Saff" wrote in message
...
Hi, I'm going to ride the Katy Trail (MO, ~220 mi) from my home in St.
Charles down to the end and back, in the week before Labor Day. I plan
to
camp at night, but I'll be relying on the towns for food. Although I'll
have a bit more than 10 days if I set out Friday night, I can't imagine
the
trail taking more than 3 days one way. Can anyone recommend interesting
places to check out within a couple days ride (say 150-200 mi) of the
trail?

SNIP SIG

I just got back from a two day overnight trip on the KATY trail last
saturday and sunday. St. Charles to Tebbets the first day, and back the
next.

Nice ride!

Although I checked every possible web page for support, you really
have to be careful about what may be available for camping and eating
places. Ray.net's web page, I found, was the best, no question. There is
not a lot of variety for eating places, especially past Marthasville (40
miles west of St. Charles). Expect to dine in taverns or bars especially
trailside. You may have to put in extra miles off the trail to find
better
places. Also, not alot of readily available spots to fill up water
bottles.
Whatever you do, take extra water and food, just in case.

This sounds about right. I usually take a large supply of food and water,
but my last long ride I managed to run out of drink somewhere between
Treloar and McKittrick, which left me with a pretty bad hydration deficit
for the rest of the ride. It's too bad if McK to Tebbets is as desolate.

There are good spots to camp in Bluffton (Steamboat Junction, Rendelman).
I
would stay away from the free hostel in Tebbets (there's a story behind
it;
let me know if anyone's interested). SOB (Steedman's only bar) allows
free
camping behind the bar, but do so at your own risk (bar is right off
highway). The Crossing at Mokane is no longer open (i.e., no camping or
restaurant). One gentlemen I met along the way camped right along the
trail, near one of the Lewis and Clark historical markers and didn't have
a
problem.

Thanks for this advice! This is the kind of thing I was hoping to find out,
since I intend to free camp as much as possible.

Although I haven't personally gone on any side trips, I might suggest
going
south to Hermann (Highway 19) or to Jefferson City (Higway 54), to see the
State Capitol. You could also visit Columbia.

The Columbia side trail is beautiful. I'd like to see Jeff City, but I'm a
little worried about my loaded bike.

If you have any specific questions, let me know. Good luck and enjoy!

Kerry Nikolaisen

Thanks! I'll have to email you for the Tebbets story.

--
+---- Kevin C. Saff ----+ F-15 | |Eagle
| Engineer in St. Louis | _____|_^_|_____
| Tracking/Fleet Support| * + [_(x)_] + *

wrote in message
...
would stay away from the free hostel in Tebbets (there's a story behind
it;
let me know if anyone's interested).

Im interested in that story

Tell me

OK. I know that Ray was going to inquire off group about my experience, but
since others have requested, and I wouldn't want anyone to experience what I
went through, I will let loose.

My original plan was to get as far as Bluffton and possibly spend the night
at Rendelman or Steamboat Junction. Being the cheapskate I am, I considered
going to Steedman, and camping behind SOBs since it was free ( I called
prior to leaving and the bar owner told me that was acceptable). Once in
Steedman I noticed that the bar was right off the highway, and with that in
my mind, and the doubt my wife threw in on the phone earlier, I decided to
go to Mokane (Rays web page listed "The Crossing" as both a restaurant and
campground). Once in Mokane, I noticed that "The Crossing" was a bar/tavern
which was no longer in business. Instead of going back to Bluffton, I
decided to go only 6 or 9 miles further west of Mokane to Tebbets, where I
heard there was a free hostel. Two townspeople along the way had good
things to say about it.

Got to Tebbets at around 6:45 pm and noticed there were two young adults
(18-20 years old) sitting on the porch with a baby. I asked them if they
were in charge and who I needed to speak to about checking in. They
immediately offered me a beer (perhaps this should have been the first sign)
and seemed very friendly. The young woman gave me a rundown on the hostel,
saying she wasn't affiliated with it, but that she, her boyfriend and child
were staying while they waited for a part for their van, which had broken
down. She basically said that, as she understood it, the hostel was an old
residence which had been converted to a bunkhouse. It appeared to cater
entirely to touring cyclists. There must have been at least 10 to 15 bunk
beds on the bottom floor, and I didn't even check the upstairs portion.
According to the woman, there was some affiliation? with YMCA. There were
two showers downstairs with hot/cold water (hot water broken on the one
shower) and restroom facilities. There was also a refrigerator and stove,
both of which I didn't use.

Since I had put in a few miles that day (95.66 to be exact fully loaded), I
decided to get a quick shower and get some dinner at the adjacent tavern. I
was also in dire need of a phone to let my wife know I was OK (cell phone
reception [T-Mobile] is basically nonexistant west of Marthasville). I
noticed the couple that I met on the porch were in the tavern, and
communicating with what appeared to be friends. At this point the alarm
started to go off, but it was not that loud!

I was in bed by about 10:00 pm but was noticing multiple people going
between the hostel and the tavern. It appeared that there were at least 6
people associated with this original couple who were staying at the hostel.
Although I try not to pre-judge people, the amount of tatoos on both women
and men and the frequent use of the F-word indicated to me that I the class
of people I was dealing with would not be sympathetic to a tired touring
cyclist.

Although the young woman who originally greeted me told me that she would
try and keep everyone quiet, and even told her friends to sleep upstairs, it
didn't matter. People continued to go between the hostel and the bar until
2:00 am. Someone came in drunk at about midnight, puked their guts out,
talked in their sleep, and then snored loudly. The two original folks I met
on the porch had a shouting match near my bed regarding whatever ( I think
they were fighting about who was going to change the baby's diaper) with
blows being exchanged and the husband calling the wife a slut. This was at
4:00 am.

All told, I believe that I got 2 hours of sleep. Why didn't I say anything?
For one, I was afraid (6 vs 1) that I would wake up in the morning to see my
tires slit or spokes kicked in. Keep in mind that the planets may have all
lined up at that time, and nothing of the sort will ever happen again at the
Tebbets hostel. If there had just been a supervisor or someone to contact
(although there was not a phone in the hostel), it may have worked out.

Anyway, I woke up at 6:00 that morning, and rode 94+ miles on the return
trip to St. Charles. I was sound asleep on my sofa in my house by 7:00 pm!

Just beware and good luck!

Kerry