jackb

My wife and I are leaving in a few days to make the drive from Montana to Missouri. We are booked to cycle the Katy Trail from Clinton to St. Charles. We are doing this on our own, so I'm wondering if anyone who has done it has an tips to share with us. We are quite excited to do this as it has been many years since we did a tour. We are staying in hotels and B&Bs and we are having luggage shuttled each day. This should keep our loads very light.

mrv 

Hope to see you on the trail. Next Wednesday I'll be kicking off on the Rock Island Trail out of KC, and fully on the Katy Trail by next Thursday, staying at the Katy Roundhouse.
I'll watch your post here for any last minute advice.

cheers!

ps - hollar if you come across a loaded Panasonic

irc

Just enjoy. I did it in 2009 as part of a coast to coast. Enjoyed a few days without needing to watch my mirror. Cooper's Landing is a nice spot for a beer.

indyfabz

Can I watch your place in MSO while you’re away? I’d love to ride Rock Creek Rd. again.

Thulsadoom

I rode it couple of weeks ago. Missouri has done a great job with the Katy Trail. Someone should get a medal.

In Sedalia the route gets a little weird as it goes through town, watch the arrows that are painted on the road or you can get turned around. The same thing goes for Boonville, keep an eye on the arrows. Those are the only two places I can think of that are remotely confusing, the rest of it is all trail.

I recommend a meal at Meriwether's at Rocheport. You can't miss it, it's right off the trail. And I'm sure you'll enjoy a stop at Cooper's Landing as the above poster said.

As of a couple of weeks ago there was one spot right before Mokane (eastbound) where the trail was washed out and closed. I had to jump on the highway for about a mile and a half to get around it, no big deal.

Have a great time. I did.

fishboat

We rode it last year from Lee's Summit via Rock Island Trail to Katy to Kirkwood train station.

If you're staying in Jefferson City..the Baymont downtown is good(no problem taking bikes into room) and within walking distance of Arris Pizza (across the street from the Capital Bldg). Get a big Greek Salad and the pizza of your choice... terrific! Get a large pizza as the leftovers make a great lunch the next day(speaking from experience).

The Santa Fe Hideaway AirBnB in Boonville...ack! Inexpensive and you get what you pay for. The Hotel Frederick was booked for a wedding so "no room at the inn", though dinner there was very good..mixed with a wedding reception...everywhere. Hotel Bothwell in Sedalia..very nice, good food too. The KT Caboose in Marthasville..two thumbs up! Nice guy that owns it and good sandwiches and ice cream. Coopers Landing..nice place to refresh for a bit, or camp if you're inclined. Joey's Birdhouse in McKittrick (by Hermann) is a nice place with a grocery about a mile away. We went about a year ago next week..had weather-days of 60 and raining all day to 94 degrees and sunny. The rest of the days were perfect.

jackb

Thanks to everyone for the info. We will start our cycling on 15 September. Really looking forward to this.

irwin7638

Here's a link to my trip a few years ago: Simply Cycle: Old home, old friends and the Katy Trail

Marc

Craptacular8

What road route did you use for the eastern end of the Rock Island to connect to the Katy? What distance is that between the two trails that you spend on the road?

robow

The Rock Island trail connects directly with the Katy Trail on the northern edge of the small village of Windsor, Missouri. There is no gap between the two trails.

mrv 

Here - i made this public: https://www.strava.com/activities/9845024407 If it works for you, you should be able to see the KC to Pleasant Hill details, which is what I think you want to know. Google Maps had us going through some kind of Memorial preserve, but there is intel on using different routes to connect.
Check this link out for that:
https://ridewithgps.com/events/89805...967040/preview
- we used the "more gravel, less traffic" route. It took us past some rock quarries with some REALLY BIG trucks. The drivers seemed like total pros and were usually going about 15mph. I didn't have a problem with the trucks, there weren't many when we went though (a Wed. late AM). I actually found the route really nice. Hilly. Interesting. Not much shade though.

Camel up before leaving Pleasant Hill. There's NOTHING until Chilowee. And then only one small store. We pushed to Windsor making it an 87 mile day. (my strava shut off or paused, so I only show 66 or something.)
.... ok,, not nothing - but cows and cornfields aren't giving up Gatorade or salty snacks! -- is what I'm sayin'

let me know if you got other questions. we had PERFECT weather the whole time.

mrv 

See the links I just posted. There's a couple of mile break (6?) in the Rock Island Spur Trail. I have no idea if this is recent, or what. We followed the RideWithGPS info, and it worked out for us super-fine.
....(unlike the campground in St. Charles...... the Barnhouse-Riverview thing... with the NO TRESPASSING sign at the end of the drive - sheesh. )

robow

Interesting, how far west of Windsor did you lose the trail ?

Craptacular8

Excellent information. That's exactly what I was referring to, lol. I hit the end of the trail just southeast of Lee Summit, and wondered where people were riding to connect back up with the rest of the spur northwest of Pleaseant Hill. Not sure when I'll be able to work in a tour of the Rock Island/Katy, but looking forward to it. In the interim, I try to ride dribs and drabs of it whenever I find myself back in MO. Lovely trails.

mrv 

pleasant hill is about where the RIST stops.
then picks up again after a freeway. And eventually ends near the stadium.

robow

OK, sorry for the confusion but when I stated there was no gap between the two trail systems, I was responding to the gentleman's question regarding the Eastern end of the trail, not the western portion near Lees Summit and in fact the Rock Island does cross over the Katy directly.

fishboat

Take a look at the first 12-14 miles of the attached map. We rode it last year..it was good. Mostly rural roads with near zero traffic. It takes in a gravel road for 5-6(?) miles a that connect to a rail trail type path that takes you into Pleasant Hill. The other half of the route to PH is paved.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/40629921

boomhauer

When you get to the end of the rock island east of lees summit look on your Google map. You will see James A Reed county park to the east. Go around it to the southeast Corner and pick up smart road. Smart road will take you all the way to where you pick up the Rock island trail again. Google is your friend . Do not ride on route 150! Cross it but don’t ride on it.

mrv 

true fact - we camped at the Farrington Park - pretty good place to camp -- when we left camp on the RIST (heading west to the Katy Trail), I missed the Katy Trail !!!
We went UNDER it, and I didn't realize I needed to arc south to connect to it. (the Katy Trail has a train bridge where it goes over the Rock Island Spur Trail)
Anyway - just laughing at myself about not realizing we passed the Katy Trail until we hit a familiar road we knew we weren't supposed to be on.

cheers.

jackb

Back from our Katy Trail tour. Had a great time. Good cycling and lodging. the trail is hard-packed and well maintained. My wife and I loved cycling it. Highly recommended. Nice to ride for a couple of hundred miles with no cars through rural areas.