Katy Trail Forum

I'll be participating in the 2013 ride next month and I'm looking for personal insights from people who have taken part in this five-day journey. I've done a fair amount of road-biking over the past year, but very little time spent on the Katy. I would very much like to hear from folks with thoughts or suggestions that apply to trail-riding.

My thoughts: 1) Eat when you are not hungry, drink when you are not thirsty. Trail mix, water, and powdered Gatorade are my friends. Bonking in the middle of a ride is not fun. 2) Have good tires. There are lots of threads on this website discussing that subject. Changing tires in the middle of a ride is no fun, so don't set yourself up to fail. 3) Be comfortable on your bike. That takes time, and numerous adjustments. The bike shop can get you close, but you will need to get it perfect. I still make 1/8 of an inch adjustments on bikes I've put thousands of miles on. 4) Have fun. Who are you racing? Read, take a picture, stretch your legs. It's also Ok to have fast/intense days, but nobody cares how fast (or slow) you are, so enjoy your time.

Solid advice from Arky above. Not much (if anything to add)...I plan on 2-4 mph slower on the KATY than on the roads just because of the surface...but sometimes even slower...just because I can.

The one other note regarding the difference between the roads and the KATY for me....

Good news: The KATY is flat there are no HILLS to climb.

Bad news: There are LONG grades on the KATY that can feel grinding to me at time. There are no hills to coast down to recover. If you're moving forward...you're pedaling.

ENJOY!!

Completely doable in 5 days. We rode it in October and just this last week. The longest day we had was 8 hours. Do bring water and some food to get you through. We love it and will do it again.

As I posted, the ride this year is in your backyard. Cool. I did it a few times and it is a good time with a great deal of camaraderie especially if you camp out. I believe the average age is about 48 so its like going back (way back) to summer camp on a bike. If you can ride 3-4 hours nonstop without too many aches or pain and not get dehydrated (most ride temp days are in the 90's) it will be real fun. The key word is chamois butter.

Michael, if you are talking about the DNR ride in.June, they provide SAG support each day - fruit, water, Gatorade etc at several stops. They also provide portable showers - the huge tractor trailer kind. So you pretty much just ride and the DNR people take care of the rest. Enjoy your ride.

They don't allow folding chairs so what do you do for seating at night at the campground? Haven't figured this one out yet.

you can take folding chairs with you as long as they will fit into one of ur bags, see you there. it will be fun.

The DNR ride is great. With the way folding chairs are now days, easy to get one and fit it in your duffel bag. Also handy is a hanging mesh bag to carry all your shower things in. The shower stalls are not big and it's helpful to just hang everything over a faucet handle. A definite must is also sunscreen, and a hat of sorts for the afternoon and evening hrs off your bike. Label your phone/camera chargers brightly and well so it's easy to pick yours out of the dozens that will be charging. Earplugs if you're a light sleeper.....but we've always been so tired by the time we hit the pillow nothing bothers us. The DNR does a great job with the ride and it's always a good time! See you there!

Homewood suites has free pick up and drop off from anywhere within 5 miles of their hotel( includes downtown st Charles). We had a real nice stay!

anything else i might need

Yesterday, Tuesday the 7th, I rode Clinton to Green Ridge and back... a really nice ride, but man, did I feel isolated. Because it was a Tuesday, traffic was extremely light. I saw 3 joggers and maybe a half dozen bikes, all up by Windsor and Green Ridge. An aweful lot of this route is in the open and offers no shade. A point that was drummed home at 2:30 PM as I was finishing. My previous ride on the KT was Rocheport to N. Jefferson and back. Much more scenic and shaded. My next "scheduled" ride on KT is Pedaler's Jamoboree... much more "accompanied", so I don't get lonely! :)

Part of the reason I love the Katy is that it has so many personalities. You saw a very neat one yesterday.

Since you are a KC area person, you will probably find yourself doing the Sedalia to Boonville run too. You will probably want to bring a buddy with you if you ride for that (my favorite) part of the trail because it feels even more remote and removed (but it does have the shaded tree tunnels)

I love the kind of riding you described. It is the thing I enjoy the most aobut the Katy. No cars, no phone (that I answer anyway), no nothing but "Me" time, finding the right gear, and the right rhythm on the bike. There just aren't very many places that one can "Go and Go" on a road-ish bike and not have to worry about being hit by a car, dodge other riders, etc. Part of me has, for lack of a better term, "sub-clinical autistic traits", so the Katy is where I get to indulge.

Now, go be a social butterfly at Pedaler's Jamboree.

Kenny, we MUST hook up for a ride some day!! Great stuff!!

I almost always have some "adapt" time whenever I hit the Katy. Which means the first 10-15 minutes I am bored or at least "unimpressed," as the same ol Katy and it's same ol long unwinding trail is still the same. But then something almost magical happens and I unwind and hit the groove and the next thing you know I am in love and 15-18-25 miles have passed.

My wife and I rode 78 miles in one day last spring, Clinton to Boonville, and one thing that sticks out was hitting the bridges over Highway 65 and I-70. The highway and traffic roaring by seemed like an alien world. I felt literally joyful pausing there on my bike. For me the great appeal of the Katy is how it takes you "out of this world" and into a much more peaceful, slower, and more beautiful one. LOVE it.

I know precisely what you mean. I live in Ottawa, KS, which is the start of the Prairie Spirit Trail, which I ride frequently.

The PST is much more "cocooned" away from reality in most places than the Katy is in most places, which REALLY adds to that "out of the world" feeling. I've mentioned a few times on my blog that riding that trail, especially for a long ride that takes a good chunk of a day, it's struck me before that I could just as well be cycling on Mars, for all the separation and lack of human interaction.

As Kenny mentioned, it's one aspect out of several displayed by the trail, which is really cool.

Bill, I was going to ride PST Tuesday, but chose KT instead, due to support available along the trail.

I guess I must be somewhat whimpy, cause I like seeing other people and having a cold drink from time to time.

Just an FYI - The Summit Lake Winery in Holts Summit is now the Canterbury Winery. Same location, different owners and name.

i'm coming your way to ride next week....i keep hearing of flooding in St. Louis. is the mighty Missouri over its banks and effecting the Trail? or any other trail issues? likely will be riding the area between Sedalia to Herman.
Thanks!

No worries with the Big Muddy Missouri. It's up but not in flood. Possibly some minor creek backups but I doubt it. Go to Missouri DNR Katy Trail State Park webpage for updated info.

Boonvile 10.8 ft. current with flooding at 21 ft. and KT problems at 26.1 ft.
St. Charles 20.28 ft. current with flooding at 25 ft. and KT problems at 27 ft. as of May 9 at 6AM. No problems yet Mo-Rider. How about some Mo-Beer?

thanks for the info!

Which of the bike shops on the trail has the best (lightest) bikes?

What I recall seeing in the Rocheport and Defiance bike shops are hybrids, none of which I'd call best because of weight. Consider bringing your road bike if you want a light weight ride.

Hey Trek, ouch! I ride a Trek Verve 1 Hybrid and it's no pig! It's a relatively light bike. I don't know that any of the bike rental places are renting "high end" bikes (Trek, Special(iz)ed, Cannondale, etc)

AC, I believe Ride, Rest and Go in Hermann could fix you up with a road bike. Phone 573-486-9170, riderstandgo.com. Not affiliated with them at all.

Just a shout out to the Riverfront Bar in Portland. I have loved this place for a while but haven't been in a coon's age. Had no idea if it would be open Memorial Day and lo and behold it was. Great big burger. We have now nicknamed this the Hallelujah! Bar, as in Hallelujah, it's open!

Great Stop. My dad and I stopped there back in September (2012) and had a good meal.

Quaint hotel, friendly staff, very reasonable rates. Highly recommended, we will stay here again.

Very friendly owners and the food is great. This will be a regular food stop for us now.

Great shuttle experience, great price, very easy to work with. Definitely recommend to everyone.

From the 06MAY2013 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
http://www.stltoday.com/suburban-journals/stcharles/news/discussions-begin-for-extending-trail-over-highway-in-st-charles/article_9bbe3b59-3d71-5704-82b0-43c4a7106f88.html

A very large and very friendly black, male Labrador (mix?) with a blue collar but no tags has wandered down the trail and made itself at home in McKittrick. If anyone knows where this dog belongs, it needs to go home. Please call me at 314-698-9152 thanks!

Looks like he probably followed the though hiker and belongs east of you.

My father and I are planning on doing this trail in late may/early june. We are deciding between bringing our bikes via plane or renting them once we get there. What do you think is the cheapest way? Also, does anyone know if the trail will be finished to Kansas City by then?

Renting in Rocheport looks like $30/day per bike, if you don't really mind about the specific bike you prefer. Sending by plane (both ways) unless you pack well or have a hard case risks the airlines damaging your bikes. I've shipped my bike without any problems worldwide in a soft case with styrofoam and tape. For me I would want my own bike if spending a week on the trail. As far as the KC leg, they are only working on a Green Ridge spur and it will not be done and not go all the way into KC.

To me, it would depend on how much of the trip is about the cycling on the Katy. If you are just going to ride incidentally to your trip, rent. If your trip is so that you can ride, you won't be happy using someone else's bike, so bring yours: small differences on a strange bike (I.e. the seat) could make the trip a real pain (pun intended).

The trail is not, and will not be complete to KC this year. I bet it won't get done until 2016

I'd be happy with the KC connection being done by 2016, but I'm not optimistic about it.

If you are in the area of the KT on Memorial Day weekend, you could join the couple thousand riders doing Pedaler's Jamboree!!! I am!

There are good places to rent along the trail. Most of them offer some sort of shuttle or know where you can make those arrangements. If you wanted a bike with certain accessories, I'd spend the money to bring your own.

Keep us posted though, so we know when to look for ya!

Cheapest way is to buy 2 sub $100 bikes at walmart, then donate them at the end of your ride.

I'm no expert but we're planning a trip on the Katy Trail in a couple of weeks, and we're shipping our bikes via Amtrak. We're flying to Kansas City, picking up our bikes at the Amtrac station and riding Amtrak to Sedalia to start our ride.

Martha, that sounds like a pretty good plan. I've never shipped a bike by plane or train, so I have no valid input on those methods.

The train ride to Sedalia should be nice. Hope your trip goes off without a hitch and that you have a great ride on KT!

Early in the game I gave Rich some crap about advertising Joey's on just about every thread that came even close to concerning McKittrick. While I stand by those posts ( because we all know I don't make mistakes) after having supper there Friday, and meeting Rich and Joey, I have to say Rich and Joey are the type of folks that make the KATY what it is. I had 2 huge bowls of excellent gumbo for $12 and more than 2 hours of free entertainment upstairs in the dance hall. I'm pretty sure the wife and I will be back.

Thank you Jim,
Glad you enjoyed the gumbo, I don't recall meeting you so say hello next time you stop in at the McKittrick Farmers Mercantile. My place, Joey's Birdhouse is actually the B&B next door. Thanks again, Joey

We love Joey's birdhouse and will be there a couple of days next week. Can't wait to stay again!

The Missouri River is predicted to crest at 28.3' at the Boonville Gage sometime early Saturday morning, April 20. When this happens, the Katy Trail will be under water between mileposts 178.9 to 181.5 west of the Rocheport tunnel, between mileposts 153.6 and 157.9 between Hartsburg and Rt. M, and possibly between mileposts 161.8 to 165.5 between Bonne Femme Creek and the Providence River Access.

Additionally, the parking lot at the Providence River Access at milepost 165.5 will be under water, as will Easley River Road near milepost 162. While the road is under water, the trail will be opened to local vehicular traffic in this area so users need to exercise caution and expect to encounter vehicles on the trail.

The Missouri River is also predicted to crest at 31.9' at the St. Charles Gage sometime early Monday morning, April 22. When this happens, the Katy Trail will be under water between mileposts 34 and 34.7 east of St. Charles, on either side of the Weldon Spring trailhead at milepost 56, and possible near Frontier Park in St. Charles.

The trail will be closed at the flooded locations and signs posted to warn users of the temporary closures. Additionally, flash flooding can occur across the trail from area creeks and streams. Trail users will need to avoid these areas and should never travel through flood water.

For updates and other trail advisories, check out our website at http://www.mostateparks.com/park/katy-trail-state-park.

Thanks so much for the information, Dawn, this will change my plans for the weekend. What a difference a year makes -- or even a couple of months in this case!

Four of us plan to ride the trail from St Charles to Sedalia from April 22 to 27th. Can you update flooding conditions as our date gets closer. Thanks.

Wow, Thank You, although I doubt I'll get to ride at this time, it's nice to know that informed folks are looking out for us. I do hope that there's no lasting damage to the trail in the areas near Boonville. I have three terrific days on the trail up there during Pedaler's Jamboree.

FYI, link to flood info on Katy to bookmark if you are traveling:

http://mostateparks.com/page/58843/potential-flood-locations

Thanks so much for posting this kind of info. The management and upkeep of this trail has impressed me soo munch since I got here. Is there a place/person/organization we can volunteer with to help with post flood clean up?

Thanks Dawn! We plan to ride from McKittrick to St. Charles on May 25-26. Is there a number we can call to get an update like this in case it rains?

We have great news! Because we did not receive the anticipated amounts of precipitation during yesterday’s storms, the National Weather Service has significantly backed off its flood predictions for the Missouri River.

The river is now predicted to crest at 23.8’ at the Boonville Gauge around 7 a.m. Saturday morning, April 20, which is about 4’ above flood stage but thankfully not high enough to flood the Katy Trail at the originally listed locations near Rocheport, Hartsburg and Providence. Additionally, it is not anticipated that the Easley River Road will be flooded.

The river is predicted to crest at 28.2’ at the St. Charles Gauge around 7 p.m. on Sunday, April 21, about 3’ above flood stage. At this flood stage, the Katy Trail may still be under water between mileposts 34 and 34.7 east of St. Charles, but will not be flooded near Weldon Spring Trailhead or Frontier Park.

Trail users will still need to exercise caution, as they may encounter areas of rough surface or debris across the trail where storm water overtopped culverts and ditches. These areas will be signed and staff is working diligently to make repairs as quickly as possible.

In answer to some of the posts about receiving updates prior to trips, we'll continue to post updates here, on our Katy Trail Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/#!/KatyTrailStatePark), and on our Katy Trail website. The neat thing about our Katy Trail website is that we provide a webpage that lists potential flood locations on the trail (http://mostateparks.com/page/58843/potential-flood-locations) and also provides a link to the National Weather Service's hydrologic prediction pages for the Missouri River at the Boonville and St. Charles gauges.

You're also more than welcome to call the Katy Trail State Park office at 573-449-7402 for updates on storm damage, construction projects, special events, etc. This is also the number to call if you're interested in volunteerin

FANTASTIC CUSTOMER SERVICE!! Thanks Dawn.

Absolutely fantastic, helpful, & timely info, thanks so much. A couple friends & I are planning a daytrip ride on the 27th. This gives confidence to expectations about trail conditions. Thanks again!

On Saturday (4/20) , Easley River Road was under water near MM 162. Traffic was rerouted onto the trail. Interesting when 2 cars meet!

Thanks for all the information. Four of us are planning a ride May 2 to May 5. First from St. Charles to Marthasville, then west awhile and back to Augusta, returning to St. Charles on the 5th. Unpleasantness from the rainy forecast aside, will we encounter any residual problems on this route?

Duane, if we receive any rain, you may encounter some minor washouts or areas with rough surface, but these will be posted. Enjoy your trip!

Is the Trail practical for a road bike with 700 X 25C tires?

My friend and I did an out and back (468 miles) on the Katy last summer. She - a road bike with 700x25 and me a cyclocross with 700x28 (I pulled a trailer). We never had any flats and no issues other than avoiding the crevices that appeared due to the drought conditions. It never rained on our nine day trip so the trail was dry.

I should add, I did purchase new Continental Gatorskin Hardshells for the trip and I am still running them with an additional 500 miles on then and no flats. I am either lucky or what I researched on line about them was true.

I agree with your tire selection and have had similar good luck with them on the KATY. I ride 28s...my riding buddy rides 25s (as that is the widest tire he can get on his road bike). We are both pleased as, in addition to numerous day trips of 50-80 miles on the KATY, we have ridden Clinton-St. Charles twice on these tires with no flats. We're either lucky - or those tires are really good for this use. Probably a bit of both...

I would appreciate any feedback from anyone who has been on the trail this weekend between St. Charles and Columbia...any washouts, flooding, etc. that a group of cyclists should know about for this weekend? I am with a group that is planning on riding this weekend and would be grateful for any comments about trail conditions.