Katy Trail Forum

If anyone is planning to stay at the Hotel Frederick in Booneville you can get a $50 gift certificate for $15 at the KRCG TV website.



http://krcge.incentrev.com/

Great deal, thanks!

We ate lunch at Abigail's during our Katy Trail ride in October of 2009. We liked it very much. I have a hard time understanding the negative comments by some who have posted. It is a delightful restaurant and, as a small business owner myself, I was impressed with the organization and unique menu presentation. This is not Burger King (thank goodness!). Anyone who has ever worked in a restaurant - at any time and of any kind - should appreciate the effort put forth to make this a wonderful experience, from the ambiance to the selection, and to the service. Nice.

We ate lunch at Abigail's during our Katy Trail ride in October of 2009. We liked it very much. I have a hard time understanding the negative comments by some who have posted. It is a delightful restaurant and, as a small business owner myself, I was impressed with the organization and unique menu presentation. This is not Burger King (thank goodness!). Anyone who has ever worked in a restaurant - at any time and of any kind - should appreciate the effort put forth to make this a wonderful experience, from the ambiance to the selection, and to the service. Nice.

I think most of the complaints are about the temperment of the wait staff. I have eaten there many times and most times it has been an enjoyable experience. There have been times,though, when we have had the distict feeling that they thought they were doing us a favor serving us. It's not a big enough deal to keep us from going back though and the food is good.

I think most of the complaints are about the temperment of the wait staff. I have eaten there many times and most times it has been an enjoyable experience. There have been times,though, when we have had the distict feeling that they thought they were doing us a favor serving us. It's not a big enough deal to keep us from going back though and the food is good.

We stayed at the Hotel Bothwell on our first night riding the Katy Trail in October, 2009. It is a beautiful hotel and the service and amenities were excellent. We rode the train into town with our bicycles, arriving about 8pm (dark), and the staff was wonderful, storing our bikes and making us feel comfortable. Sorry our stay was so short. The town of Sedalia was undergoing some renovation at the time, but it is a pleasant place to visit. Felt welcomed by everyone we encountered - bike shops, coffee shop, and restaurant.

We stayed at the Hotel Bothwell on our first night riding the Katy Trail in October, 2009. It is a beautiful hotel and the service and amenities were excellent. We rode the train into town with our bicycles, arriving about 8pm (dark), and the staff was wonderful, storing our bikes and making us feel comfortable. Sorry our stay was so short. The town of Sedalia was undergoing some renovation at the time, but it is a pleasant place to visit. Felt welcomed by everyone we encountered - bike shops, coffee shop, and restaurant.

This was a wonderful place to dine. The price range on here is way off. Wonderful service, food, and atmosphere. Highly recommend it.

This was a wonderful place to dine. The price range on here is way off. Wonderful service, food, and atmosphere. Highly recommend it.

Thanks Ashley.

Thanks Ashley.

Had visited this restaurant years ago when I first met my wife, was probably under a

different owner/name back then. Took a romantic trip to Augusta this weekend and

wanted to go back to the restaurant we visited so long ago. It was maybe 8pm, a server,

who greeted us at the door after about 5min of waiting went on and on about all of the

people that just "showed up" without reservations (it's Saturday night during the nicest

weekend of the year so far...). We were turned away I suppose due to a lack of

preparedness on the part of the staff. There were several empty tables. Another couple

behind us were turned away as well. Funny thing was when the server first greeted us she

stated she'd go back and check if they could seat us. When she never returned I finally

went looking for her, only to find out the bad news. I guess she wasn't actually going to

come back and just hoped that all of us standing at the door would just go away, I believe

that's called apathy? This should serve as a red flag to the owners/ concerned parties.

Sorry.

Had visited this restaurant years ago when I first met my wife, was probably under a

different owner/name back then. Took a romantic trip to Augusta this weekend and

wanted to go back to the restaurant we visited so long ago. It was maybe 8pm, a server,

who greeted us at the door after about 5min of waiting went on and on about all of the

people that just "showed up" without reservations (it's Saturday night during the nicest

weekend of the year so far...). We were turned away I suppose due to a lack of

preparedness on the part of the staff. There were several empty tables. Another couple

behind us were turned away as well. Funny thing was when the server first greeted us she

stated she'd go back and check if they could seat us. When she never returned I finally

went looking for her, only to find out the bad news. I guess she wasn't actually going to

come back and just hoped that all of us standing at the door would just go away, I believe

that's called apathy? This should serve as a red flag to the owners/ concerned parties.

Sorry.

Years ago the restaurant where Cafe Bella is now at, was Ashley Ro se...they have moved and they are now located on Walnut St in Augusta, across from the town square.

Years ago the restaurant where Cafe Bella is now at, was Ashley Ro se...they have moved and they are now located on Walnut St in Augusta, across from the town square.

Has any woman biked the entire length solo? I'm a senior and am considering doing so next summer. Can't find any friends who are interested. That's okay because I enjoy my own company but is the trail safe for a single woman?

I don't think a single woman rider would be any less safe than a male single rider. Riding solo always entails a little more risk - mostly from equipment failures. I say go for it and have fun.

I had a friend from California do the through trip last fall and she was very comfortable. She didn't experience any grief and made a number of friends along the way.

You might want to check out the annual Department of Natural Resources (DNR) group bike ride. They do a good job of planning out the trip, provide SAG support, and you definitely would not be alone.

I've seen many solo females riding various sections of the trail. And, according to several past posts on this site, several have also done it solo from end to end.

You might carry a self-defence mechanism of some kind tho, like, pepper spray. Sometimes a dog or two can be a small problem. Take a camera, too. Good luck!

Go girl.. Shouldn't be a problem.. Be sure you have good tubes recommended by your bike shop for the ride.. You will do fine...

Go for it. People are very helpful on the trail. I rode in early October and met a lady who

had finished the trail and was bicycling to California. Lots of times you won't see many

people on the trail. Plan your ride and ask lots of questions.

I met a lady in her 70's biking the trail by herself. She said her husband was going by car and meeting her in the place of lodging, however. You'll have no problem. If you need a companion, e-mail me. Are you sexy?

Uncalled for Howard.

Everyone and every group has one, apparently Howard is the one.

Proving once again that you can't fix stupid. You can however, delete their comments Ray.

go for it april. enjoy the ride, have fun. the katy is magnificent. tell us about it when you are through, and ignore the idiotic comments.

I (female) did the full trail solo when 50 in '03 and many 1-2 day trips solo since then. Had no problems at all, but do echo the comment re pepper spray for the occasional dog that may be more agressive then friendly (most dogs though just want to run along with your for a bit). The fall is a nice time as there are many other bikers doing the full trail. Also check out the DNR ride in June as noted above. Hubby and I have done it the past 3 years and had a blast. Very well organized, they carry your camping gear, provide breakfast and supper and SAGs along the way. Which ever way you chose to do it, have fun, take enough time to explore along the way, to sit on the benches along the way to enjoy the woods and river, take an extra tube or two, and of course your camera! If any questions, this comment Forum is a wealth of info from riders who have done it every way you could think of!

Probably a misguided attempt at humor. Howard has made positive contributions to several other threads so I''ll reluctantly give him the benefit of the doubt. I''m sure he knows there are many dating websites out there but this is not one of them.

This topic comes up from time to time. Check out these earlier threads:

http://bikekatytrail.com/talk.aspx?thid=1922
http://bikekatytrail.com/talk.aspx?thid=55
http://bikekatytrail.com/talk.aspx?thid=2910
http://bikekatytrail.com/talk.aspx?thid=2842

The consensus seems to be positive. Have fun!

I would be interested to see what the Katy looks like after last week's snow storm. If you skied, hiked, run, built a snowman etc. on the trail and have pictures; it would help cure an old man's cabin fever.

I wish I had a pic...looking forward to see if anyone does. I would love to bike after/during one of the nice fluffy snows, temp only around 30 and no wind. It would be beautiful!

According to the MO Bike Fed the pedestrian/bike lane is soon to be added to the east side of the Missouri river bridge in Jefferson City. This will make it much easier to bike to Jeff City and back without the traffic threat.



http://mobikefed.org/2009/12/katy-trail-connection-to-jefferson-city.php

I went to the public meeting at the North Jefferson site and saw the plans for the bike path. The plans call for a square structure built on the north east side of the bridges consisting of a series of ramps that will bring the path to ground level and then the path will continue on to the boat ramp on the north west side of the bridges and then on to the pavilion on the Katy Trail spur. Each corner of the ramp structure is to have a 15’ x 15’ landing. The people I spoke to at the meeting said the ramp design was developed to 1) cut down on costs – they said running the bike path the full length of the bridge to the first overpass would cost more and 2) slow down bike traffic coming down off the bridge – they felt a straight ramp down from the bridge could result in unsafe high speeds.



Item #2 makes sense to me, but I’m not sure about it costing less in the long run since the ramp structure would be built in an area subject to frequent flooding and I have e-mailed my concerns to MoDOT. But then anything would be better than what is there now.

Terry and Kathy's is an awesome place.

Terry and Kathy's is an awesome place.

Hope the season is finding everyone either out there riding (although cold), or at least wishing they were out there riding. Unfortunately, I'm in the latter group at this time, although reading about everyone elses experiences is a good second best to actually riding!

The Katy is a gift that keeps on giving all year through, year after year. How lucky we are!

well said MAH, i also am in the latter. and a merry christmas and a God filled happy, healthy new year to everyone.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas everybody! Just dropping in while taking a break to enjoy some more cookies and milk, I love those cookies with the green sparkly Christmas trees on them, nice touch. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and a most enjoyable year of cycling, hiking, and jogging the Katy Trail and elsewhere.



Good will to all men!

Merry Christmas! Thanks to everyone for coming to BikeKatyTrail.com, and thanks for all your posts to the Forum, making it always interesting to read. 2010 promises to be a good year for the trail, with expansion underway and the trail's big 20th anniversary going on. Much to be thankful for, much to look forward to.



Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Happy Trails to you!

Good job Ray. Your web site is well done and a delite.

It saddens me but every time I sign on to the Forum all I read is complaints. Isn't anyone having fun anymore? I know in our town the mayor is working her tail off for the trail and the merchants. Why are people so critical? The people along the trail are hard working, generally blue collar, folks trying to make a buck. They may not be as hign born as most riders but at least they are trying to work. Please cut us some slack with all of the negative attitudes.

It would sadden me too.....if all I read here were the complaints.



I'd suggest reading some of the good posts too. It does the heart wonders to read all of the positive and helpful posts here too without focusing on the negatives.

That is the way it always works. Those who are critical make the most noise and those who are satisfied say nothing. I love the Katy and have enjoyed every minute I have spent on or near the trail.

I’m just not seeing that much negativity here on this web site. Sure, there is an occasional “don’t eat here”, “the service is bad there” or a warning about the dogs in one spot, which is always good to know, but they are not major problems. It could be that I just don’t pay very much attention to the grumblings of some people because it is just the way people are. Not being directly connected to the towns and businesses along the trail I have the luxury of not taking the comments personally. At the same time, if someone unfairly “bad mouths” a town or business that doesn’t deserve it I, like many people here, will have an opinion to express.



I come to this website everyday to see what is going on and what people have to say and the positive things that people from all over the country have to say far outweigh the negatives. When someone flies to St. Louis from California or farther, rides the trail from end to end, goes back home and writes about how much they enjoyed the trail and almost always pointing out how well they were treated by the people of Missouri, that is something to be proud of. So, if someone doesn’t like a particular restaurant, shuttle, B&B, winery, etc. or the distance between them , well, these things happen. It doesn''t take much negativity to be too much, but a negative comment can, and often is, a motivator for a positive change.



The Katy Trail is a great place to be, and this website is a great place to see what people think and to do a little research for an up coming trip, short or long. I value both.

Mike, it could also be that the people having a good time are too busy having fun to gripe; and the ones that do... well, that's how they enjoy themselves.

Trek doesn't get it; I read all the comments, good and bad, and as much as I like the Trail I'm turned off by all the negetivism. If I can be soured on this forum think what the average first timer must think. All I ask is think before you go negative. Who are you really hurting?

Oh...I think I do get it. read down the list of posts. How many of the last dozen or so are neutral or positive? And how many of the past dozen or so are negative?



I see mostly positive or neutral.

"If I can be soured on this forum think what the average first timer must think. All I ask is think before you go negative."



Good point Michael! And don't get too soured, we need you as the resident ambassador to Hartsburg. No tongue-in-cheek, seriously. Hartsburg is a nice place, love to do an out and back with a stop at Dotty's in the middle.

If you dont like the Katy, you just need to go for another ride. Whats not to like?

As a lover of the Katy Trail, I have to ask the following. What is with the "high-born" comment? I have had great service and less-than-perfect service as I have been on the trail but have always cheerfully given my money. Money which I have worked hard to get so that I can enjoy a bike ride now and then. Hartsburg has been great, even if most everything was closed when I have gone through.



I am saying it in a roundabout way, but I think that this sort of class warfare between "townies" and "bikers" is quite silly.

Class warfare is quite silly no matter where you are or who it's between. Quite typical though.....always seems someone didn't get all they expected, had to pay too much, didn't get the thank you they deserved and so on and so on. Someone always has something that you don't have or can't afford. That really jerks a knot in some folks tail....others could care less that the folks next door last name is Jones.

i do occasionally get tired of the negativity, but i also look at where it is comin from, and what the complaint is. speaking from our experience, we have never had a bad experience on the katy or from any business establishments we have stopped at, and i /we are thankfull for them, whether it be a stop for a quick snack, or just a place to rest our back sides. there will always be negativity, we cannot escape that, but look at the main picture. good will always shine through. happy holidays to all.