Katy Trail Forum

Planning a trip from the Arch in STL to the observation deck in KC's River Market in the spring. Thanks!

I highly recommend camping at the Community Club Park in Marthasville. If the weather is threatening, you can pitch/move your tent under the big shelter. Don rally takes care of the campers coming through there.

As for Sedalia, I have stayed at the MO State Fairgrounds. It was OK, but that was a few years ago. I don't have a fresh recommendation.

Check out the Towns and Services link above for camping information.

The Fairgrounds updated the camping grounds about a year or so ago. There is a shower house that is close to the area on the east side of Clarendon Road. Not sure about the West side camping area. There are few trees, and picnic tables. You are with in riding distance of Wal-mart, a grocery store and several restaurants. Each site has a pole with power. You can get on the fairgrounds straight from the Katy trail without riding Clarendon as long as the gates are open. (two different locations with gates east side of Clarendon). They do lock all the gates at night!! Not sure times.

ive camped in pilot grove a couple of times the town park is right next ot trail also a caseys a block away.

New camping option I'm hearing good things about just a short bit west of Sedalia is Lazy Liz Campground

is the rock island trail complete from windsor eastbound to eldon? planning a trip between christmas and new years. thanks in advance for the info

The DNR only recently took possession of the portion of the Rock Island east of Windsor so it will probably be several years before it is developed into a Katy Trail equivalent.

thanks for the info, happy holidays. peace

On December 14, Ameren, Missouri DNR, State Parks, Department of Economic Development, and Governor Parson invited Missouri trail supporters to Rock Island Park in Eldon for an announcement.

And they delivered!

Ameren and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources signed the final agreement transferring the 144 miles of Rock Island corridor between Windsor and Beaufort, Missouri, to Missouri State Parks to become Rock Island Trail State Park.

Hello all! I am getting excited for spring and longer rides already. I rode the trail Machens to Clinton with my daughter on our Tandem last summer. We live in the STL area and fit in a ride from Machens across the Mississippi also. Now, my daughter wants to "complete our ride across the state" and do a ride from Clinton to the MO border. Any ideas on a route? Thanks all!

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/7439098055

If you do not get/find what you feel is a safe route an alternative for your consideration is to start from the Katy Trail in Windsor and ride the Rock Island Trail into Kansas City, through The Country Club Plaza and finish in Westwood, Kansas. I rode across the entire state in September and Kansas to Pleasant Hill was my day one, and my shortest day by far due to availability of lodging and trying to have consistent length days. I recommend your ride in KC be on a weekend, to decrease traffic even though this route is predominantly trails. Also, there is an unfinished gap in the Rock Island between Lees Summit and P Hill of about 9 miles…this route keeps traffic to a minimum…..I rode on Labor Day and the only difficulty I had was waiting for a gap in traffic crossing 291 Highway in Lees Summit. Join Fans of the Katy Trail on Facebook if possible….thousands of people and good help….plus you can search previous topics.

I would recommend the Rock Island Trail if you would rather stay on trails. We started in Lee's Summit and overnighted in Windsor. It is not a spectacular ride but easier than roads. It also appears Lee's Summit into KC is pretty easy.

Thanks so much!!

Three of us (and our bikes) are taking train to Lee's Summit in October. Staying at the Comfort Inn in Lees Summitt which is a couple miles away. We don't arrive until about 10 pm.

We are currently planning on having to ride our bike from station to hotel, but we do have to cross a bridge via SE Hamblen Rd. Has anyone done this? At Night? Safe? Is there any known bike shuttles at Amtrak that can take us to hotel?

Any other feedback on the Rock Island to Katy Trail connection?

My dad and I are doing the exact same thing (leaving this thursday) I will let you know how it goes. Taking the train and arriving late and riding our bikes over to the comfort in. Ill give you and update next week

From the Lee's Summit Amtrak, taking 5th Street to Hwy. 291/Hamblen, to Oldham Parkway and your hotel is the straightest route if you don't mind riding in pretty heavy traffic at night, but there is another sidewalk trail option that would keep you out of traffic. Here is the sidewalk trail route: go left (south) from the Amtrak station, cross 3rd Street and go straight to the next intersection 4th Street. You will see a nice new sidewalk trail straight ahead next to the black metal fence that separates the train tracks. Go straight about 500', cross the wooden bridge where the sidewalk trail ends at a park parking lot. Turn left and enter the park parking lot and after about 100' you will see a curb ramp to your right that leads onto the Hartman Park trails. Take the park trail past the playground swingset and rock climbing wall. The park trail will wrap around the swimming pool and you will see a well lit separated bike/ped path across and over 50 Hwy. Keep going straight south until that path dumps you out onto Oldham Parkway (a different one from your hotel). Turn left on Jefferson Street and go south until you reach Persels/Bailey Road (you have to ride in the street on Jefferson here, but there is no traffic). On the south side of Persels/Bailey, there is another bike/ped sidewalk that takes you across 291 Hwy., over the railroad tracks, and towards your hotel. Although the bike/ped sidewalk ends over the railroad tracks at Hamblen, Bailey road is really wide, pretty well lit, and has a striped bike lane/shoulder that will take you to Bridgehampton where you would turn left and ride through a residential neighborhood in order to reach your hotel. I also have a preferred route to Pleasant Hill that you can use the next morning if you need it. Good luck!

Mark, can you share your preferred route from the LS amtrak to PH trail head?

Interested in the preferred route from the Comfort Inn in Lee's Summit to the Pleasant Hill Trail head. My wife and I would like to stay away from high traffic roads as much as possible.

TC: I picked up Hamblen road from SE Thompson, which is a light industrial area (truck traffic) on a holiday. There was very little traffic since it was Labor Day and it was like that all the way to P Hill. I was satisfied with this route including the one block of 150 highway. I rode from Kansas to Illinois then back into Missouri finishing at St Louis. 394 miles over 5.5 days. In Windsor you can get a good lunch at Judys Kitchen…it’s a local country cooking sort of place. In Booneville don’t miss Derailed Coffee Cafe, it was excellent. Although I enjoyed my experience I didn’t think a whole lot of the Rock Island trail….it was a little harder to ride and the gravel was rougher than the more established and traveled Katy. I did see a post in the last few days about fresh gravel on part of the Rock Island. If you’re on Facebook I highly recommend joining Fans of the Katy Trail group. I just got back from Scottsdale area about a week ago….two desert mountain back rides, Browns Ranch, McDowell Preserve and then climbed Camelback…..took about four days for my legs to stop hurting. I can see why people like it in Arizona….at least in December.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/7439098055

Thanks Mapmedic. We haven't figured out yet if we will stay in Pleasant Hill or Lee's Summit prior to beginning our trip to St Charles. If we stay in Pleasant Hill, we have no choice but to pay for two nights at an AirBnB although we will only be in town for one night. The mileage from Lee's Summit to Sedalia will push our limits on that first day, especially if the trails are wet. Glad that you enjoyed Arizona. We love to ride the trails around Tucson, especially during the 7 really nice months!

Hi all, thanks everyone for your previous comments. I've just discussed with my friend and I think we have a plan. Can I get some folks feedback on if anything in this plan is crazy or a bad idea? Are there any good travel ideas that we are missing?

Planning on going in April.

Day 1 - Fly to Kansas City Airport (from Washington DC and Oakland). Spend night at a Kansas City airport hotel.

Day 2 - Go to the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Kansas City Sport Complex Area via public bus (for 1 person and the other person may bike there if they bring there bike on the airplane). Go to the Kansas City Royals game.

Day 3 - Have a pedal assist bike dropped off at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Kansas City Sport Complex Area by Bike Stop Cafe from St. Charles (this appears to be about $400 to drop off the pedal assist bike plus $400 for the pedal assist bike for the week). I will either have my bike I had taken on the plane or just rent a hybrid from them for the week as well.

Day 4 Pleasant Hill April 17 Private Mulberry Hill Bed and Breakfast 24.1 (miles)

Day 5 Clinton April 18 Hilton Hampton Inn Clinton 66.8 (miles)

Day 6 Sedalia April 19 Choice Hotel Bothwell Sedalia Central District, Ascend Hotel Collection 39.2 (miles)

Day 7 Booneville April 20 IHG Holiday Inn Express Boonville 34 (miles)

Day 8 and 9 (spend 2 nights here) Jefferson City April 21 Courtyard 57.9 (miles)

Day 10 Hermann April 23 Vinchester Inn 47.6 (miles)

Day 11 St. Charles April 24 Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, St. Charles, MO. 63.5 (miles)

Day 12 Go to Bike Stop Cafe to drop off pedal assist bikes/get bike boxes. Take their shuttle to the airport with the bike box if needed. Travel back home (Washington DC and Oakland).

I see you are spending 2 nights in Jefferson City. I lived there 30 years before moving to Pittsburgh. If you want ideas on things to do: do a tour of the Missouri State Pennitentiary (MSP), I'm not positive they start tours in April, but they probably do. Google it and you'll get who to contact. Also do a tour of the State Capitol Building. Especially see the Thomas Hart Benton Mural. Suggestions on where to eat: O'Donohue's on the Eastside, Prison Brews, Ecco Lounge in the Southside (close to your hotel), Madison's and The Grand are downtown, and Paddy Malone's on West Main (again close to your hotel). But most importantly get ice cream at Central Dairy. By the time you are there the new bridge to Adrian's Island should be open. Be sure and ride on that. You know, maybe your should plan for 3 days in Jefferson City.

On thing I'm noticing is that it appears that Pleasant Hill MO Mulberry Hill Bed and Breakfast is no longer open. I don't see any recent reviews and can't figure out how to contact them. Does anyone know if they are planning on opening again or if there is somewhere else to stay in Pleasant Hill. Not seeing any options on the Towns and Services page.

Looks like a fun trip.

Seems you will have to look at AirBnB and VRBO and Warm Showers to find a place to stay along the RI spur.

I could not find a place to stay in Pleasant Hill which impacted the daily trip locations. We ended up in the Hampton Inn in Lee's Summit. Lee's Summit has a lot of options and the ride down to Pleasant Hill was not bad at all and did not take long.

I'm not sure why you could head south to Clinton after hitting Windsor. We overnighed in Windsor and then headed north. If you read my trip report, we were not overly impressed with the scenery on the Rock Island and even the Katy up past Sedalia. The only reason to hit Clinton is to say you started at the beginning from our experience.

I had that issue with P Hill also. I ended up having my wife pick me up and drop me off....i was a pain since I live by the airport KCI. There actually is an AirBnB there. Change your search to a two night accommodation and it will show up. Once identified perhaps you can get a hold of them since you have time and arrange a one night...maybe. Lees Summit is about 9-10 miles away from P Hill and has plenty of options....just know you have some street riding involved. I stayed at Bothwell and Vinchester as well. Drury Inn is nice in St Charles...free drinks and food in evening plus decent free breakfast. I am hoping this link will work for my Strava below. You might find me on Gaarmin Connect also, but I struggle with the technology and sharing rides, etc.
https://www.strava.com/activities/6034731364/overview

I contacted the AB&B houses in Pleasant Hill thru the app. They are not flexible concerning 1 night stays even mid week in May. Too bad, it would be convenient for us.

Last night heavy storms moved through Augusta, Defiance, and Weldon Springs. A tornado was reported in Defiance which destroyed houses. That section of the Katy Trail might be a real mess for a while with trees and other debris on it.

It appears that Casey’s recommendation of the new bridge is legit. The GooglMaps satellite pic shows the bridge under construction. In spring 2022 we will plan to use his recommended scenic road and the new bridge to get to Amtrak Washington station for the train ride back to Leesburg.

The bike lane on the Washington bridge is open and has been for some time. The best route from the Dutzow trailhead is to continue east on the Katy to approximate MM 70.5, then turn south on Augusta Bottom Road which takes you to Highway 47 just north of the bridge. I have done this route a few times recently and the gravel portion of Augusta Bottom Road can be quite bumpy, but it is still much better than taking Hwy 47 south from the Dutzow trailhead. I would still urge caution on Augusta Bottom Road as it does get a fair amount of traffic and people in my experience aren't necessarily respectful of bicyclists.

After riding the beautiful Katy Trail - Augusta Bottom Road is a stark contrast. It can be downwind of nearby farm-field spraying, the gravel is large and difficult to ride on with a bicycle, cars and trucks pass too close, drive too fast and kick up lots of dust. As a cyclist, you get to breath whatever the farmer is spraying and breath the dust kicked up by traffic. Augusta Bottom Road might be more dangerous than the highway. A shuttle or Uber may be the best option.

Neither Augusta Bottom Road nor Hwy 47 is a good route. It's kind of a matter of which you dislike the least. I think it also depends a bit on your tire size; 32's or better would be recommended for A Bottom Rd. I live in the local area and have been pestering (politely) my govt representatives to find a better route for a few years now. It is sorely needed IMO. Unfortunately so far the money isn't there.

Hallo meine freunde! Has anyone here done a solo ride from Sedalia back to St. Charles over 2.5 days? I am looking into the logistics. I am curious if anyone knows about the cell reception along the trail so that I can let family track me via GPS or if anyone has any other suggestions for a solo trip and the safety of such trips? Thank you!

Cell reception is ok, except where the trail is very close to the limestone bluffs. The trail is safe. Most people overestimate the distance they can bike in a day, as the trail surface is finely crushed limestone, which is much slower than pavement, and gets worse when it rains. Expect 25km/hr on your tour bike.

We've done several Sedalia to St. Charles rides, and 2.5 days is a good idea. Sedalia to Jefferson City is a good haul, but doable in a day. There's a bike lane on the bridge so you can get to town now, but many shuttles are also available. From there it's a nice half day ride to Hermann which is an easy ride up from the trail at McKittrick. That leaves you less than 70 miles on day 3. The other option is to start in Clinton and ride to Sedalia on the afternoon of day 1. Sedalia to Hermann is a 100 miler on day two then the last 70 or so on day 3. Cell reception is only spotty in places. Your family will be able to track you most of the time.

Is the half day you ride going to be your first day of riding or your last day?

Morgen Jürgen; we cycled Sedalia to St Charles in late September 2019 - the last time we were allowed out of the UK! Mobile phone signals were ok generally. We were shuttled out by Todd at Katy Shuttles (no idea if he is still in business) from Defiance just west of St Charles who also hired us bikes (not very good ones).Then we took a full six days to cycle back, stopping to smell the roses, talk to people, find our way around the wash-outs, get lost on some of the highway sections (we don't mind small bits on the road) and fix a few punctures.30 to 40 miles a day seemed enoughfor us, and it was hot, very hot. It all depends on whether you want a steady enjoyable saunter, or a wizz-bang 100 miles a day race. But as Mr Bump rightly points out, it is easy to overestimate the distance you can ride. Get lost, get a couple of punctures, and you'll end up riding in the dusk or the dark unless it's mid-summer. I can post more information about where we stayed - we go for small bed and breakfasts or cheap hotels.

Many businesses along the trail are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays in the smaller towns. So you might want to plan your trip around that.

2.5 days is doable for a strong rider. I suggest wider tires instead of skinny road tires.

Cell reception is good but not perfect. Sometimes it depends on which cell phone company you use.

Thank you all for the help. Half day ride would be the first day (start in the late afternoon). Planning on waiting until the time change again to buy some more daylight.

Good decision; enjoy the ride!

Depending on what time of day you are able to leave Sedalia, Boonville or possibly Rocheport would make a good half day. Your second day could make Bluffton, McKittrick or Hermann and then the third day into St.Charles. If You are going to get rooms each night that should not be too difficult of a ride. Camping will of course add both time and complexity. There are very few sections of the trail that you would not have cell reception at least once an hour or so. Please feel free to call me at Bluffton Barn for more detailed information.

Stayed in Nov. 2021. Super reasonable price and right off the trail. Excellent for KATY TRAIL riders. Room was clean and cozy and hot breakfast was fresh and tasty. Town (McKitrrick) is a bit run down, but if you're staying here, you're either here to just relax in your room or go to Hermann anyway. I'd definitely stay again.

ENORMOUS SPACE that is beautifully well kept for a super reasonable price. Fridge had a few beers in it ready for consumption a pon arrival, and host is super nice and answers texts/calls promptly.

Also, it is perfect for KATY TRAIL riders, particularly a large groups, for 3 reasons: (1)it is literally right off the trail, (2) it's right in downtown in Boonville so you can easily walk to everything (very good after a long ride), and (3) plenty of private spaces in the apartment. This place can easily hold 6-8 people.

There are two bedrooms with large (queen size beds i think?) at separate ends, so those people can have a completely private space, and another room has 3 beds that one bedroom squatter would have to walk through to get to common areas (kitchen, bath). Also There are two couches and a pull out bed, so really the space can probably hold 9-10 as long as the majority of folks aren't too picky about having a space that folks would need to walk through to get to other ares.

Is there any shop along the trail to rent one of the new ebikes? Or a recumbent bike?

You can rent e-bikes at the Kickstand in Augusta.

Love this place! Great experience!

Stayed on 11/2/21. Host went above and beyond to come pick us up from the train station 10 miles away (Sedalia) Originally had planned to ride our bikes to the property during the day but our train was delayed by many hours and we ended up coming in at dark. Wendy (host) Came and picked us up and showed us where would we get on the trail the next day. She also makes a great breakfast, And the silos were super cute and cozy.

Also there’s a lot of animal entertainment, So if you’re an animal lover this place is for you. Goats were super friendly, as were the cats! I think they want Ed to go for a ride with us !!!!

Looking for feedback on what you consider the most scenic part of the eastern portion of the trail (between Machens and Portland).

We are looking for the most scenic ride (about 20 miles) to do in that area.

Thanks!

There are a variety of options, depending on what you want in scenery. Here are some choices:

Portland to Bluffton - away from road and near river

McKittrick to Treloar - very nice section right next to river (and away from road) with scenic bluffs

Marthasville to Augusta/Matson - nice section, Daniel Boone grave, good bluffs near Dutzow and Klondike

Defiance to Greens Bottom - nice bluffs, away from road around Weldon Spring, river views, cool bridges

St. Charles to Machens - quiet, river views, ag area, lots of snakes in the summer (part of scenery)

Check the links on this website if food stops are important to your plans.

I stayed last night and was awakened by workers around 7am. Pleased to report that there's a brand New Roof on the building today!
What a great place to stay on the trail.

I was fortunate to have stayed at Joey’s Bird House in October 2021. If you are considering a ride on the Katy Trail, plan your trip so you can stay with Joey. Upon arrival, I was treated like a long lost relative that had finally come back home for a visit. The accommodations are very convenient and comfortable. One thing that stood out was how well everything was planned for someone traveling on a bike; like a garage for your bike, air pump to fill your tires, and snacks in your room. A ride into town for dinner was an unexpected treat that allowed for great conversation and a history of the area. The breakfast was world class and my only regret is that I didn’t accept the offer for an extra biscuit “to go”

Hello,
Will you be having the carolers competition at the wassail walk this year?
Thanks.
meadowvole@gmail.com