Katy Trail Forum

Hi all. Rocheport is HIGH & DRY! Current estimates predict that the Mo River will not even come within 1-2 feet of crossing the trail. In other words, other than some sandbags/flood preparation, the town is UP & RUNNING. All B&Bs, restaurants, businesses, etc. are GOOD TO GO! Most trail sections are bikable although a short stretch through town here does have sandbags covering one half of trail's width. Current river predictions having river levels quickly subsiding after Sunday. There's still plenty of biking to be done in the local community and some areas of the Katy Trail near town. We'll all be back to normal by next week. Please spread the word!!!! Thanks!!!!! The comment "The MO DNR recommends avoiding Rocheport, where sandbagging is being done on the trail" should read "MO DNR recommends avoiding 2,400 feet of trail in Rocheport, where sandbagging is being done. The rest of the town is fine!" Most people don't realize that 99% of our town is NOT in the bottom -- in other words, other than sandbagging a few low lying houses on the edge of town on Moniteau Creek, life here is continuing as is. Any questions please check back here. This weather offers a really great opportunity to bike a bit and bring your canoe or kayak. The local wetland areas are flooded with a few feet of water, and you will have a once in a lifetime chance to paddle areas not normally accessible, through cottonwood forests and towering river birch. No river current, no worries. I'll try to post once a day for the next two weeks. In two weeks this will all be behind us. Please come see us! Thank you! Brett Dufur, Mayor of Rocheport and author of The Complete Katy Trail Guidebook

Hi there again. Great news. Reduced flood stage levels are looking very promising. Current update now says the river will crest tomorrow (Friday) morning. It's going to only rise up about 2 more inches and then drop 10 feet by Tuesday. Didn't even make it to the Katy Trail. Looks like our sandbag walls aren't going to get wet this time. Come to town and you'll get a look you don't see very often --- the Missouri River has reclaimed the "old slough" which used to be the riverfront where steamboats landed in the late 1800s. Kayak & paddle through wetlands that might never see water like this again. THANKS TO EVERYONE who came to town to help us fight the good fight! It has been amazing to see so many friends come together to help protect this little river town. Neighbors, cyclists, Boone County Fire District, Boone County Public Works, Boone Electric, Boone County Sheriffs, on and on, I could never list them all. Thank you! To all of the volunteers that gave an hour or all day, thank you! We may never be able to thank each one of you face to face, but please know that you are all Rocheport citizens for life --- many hands made the reaction to possible flooding happen at an incredible pace. We are high & dry, our town is safe, and I hope anyone reading this will help spread the word that Rocheport weathered the storm. They say you never realize how many friends you have until you need them, and we are proud to remember that Rocheport is part of a much larger community that transcends local map lines and distance. As we say, Rocheport is a state of mind! ~Brett

The river will drop more than 10 feet by Tuesday. That means the river will be back in its banks by Tuesday. Regarding the Rocheport Park and most areas that flood along the Katy Trail, the main clean up to be done is debris removal. Barring any unforeseen damage, Katfish Katys (for example) will be up and open for business in a relatively short amount of time. Same for Cooper's Landing in Easley. The response time of Boone County services to protect Rocheport, Huntsdale, Wilton & Hartsburg was truly incredible. I will post more information as it becomes available. But this is an incredibly short-lived event who's longest-lived ill effects are actually the result of the media's affect on the public (OH MY GOD THE RIVER HAS WASHED EVERYONE AWAY!) rather than the flood's seasonal, albeit large, rise (72 hours). Keep in mind the river always has a spring rise. This one was just larger. Most river towns are pretty used to preparing for, and rebounding from, these types of events. ~Brett Dufur, Rocheport

Brett, thank you for the updates. I'm glad to hear that Rocheport is in good shape and still ready to offer its unique charm to Katy travellers. No trip on that part of the trail is complete without a visit to Rocheport.



You're not kidding about the media hyping this stuff - this morning on CNN they said that the Missouri River was "expected to reach record levels". Now, I've heard lots of predictions over the past few days, but none that predicted "record levels" (i.e. higher than 1993). Media's just trying to get people's attention, I guess.

Hallelujah! Am so glad the rumors of Rocheport's imminent flooding have been greatly exaggerated (to borrow from Mark Twain, former steamboat captain)!



On a sidenote, Mr. Dufur, I'm so pleased to finally put 2 and 2 together-- I've been reading your guidebooks a lot of late, the Nature one and the Katy one, but I didn't make the connection you owned the B&B we're staying in. Cool.



Thanks very much for the illustrative updates, and for all you've done for the Katy Trail and the town. I agree-- Rocheport's a gem of a place. See you soon.

Good news about Rocheport and the rest of the area. I guess the levee breaks in the KC area saved the folks downstream.



One note, though: Let's not take too much of a swipe at the media, Brett. I don't think anyone, at least in the print area, ever said the river has washed everyone away. It seems that NOAA and the National Weather Service were the ones sounding the initial alarm. Lets just be thankful that this time around, the water didn't get as high as predicted. This was a little more than the usual seasonal rise, at least in the 11 years that I have lived in Mid-Mo.

Hey GC I hear ya -- just a little venting from a hectic week -- when I opened www.msnbc.com and the first photo shows the back of a small girl in Rocheport holding a doll framed tightly against a backdrop that looks like a sea of a flood with no structures in sight, it gives you the sense of total destruction, not to mention Fox news saying things like "expecting record flood levels" etc. Fox also had a piece where they showed a bunch of houses half submerged and then moved to a shot of Rocheport and a reporter's comment about Rocheport so that did leave a very tweaked perspective on what was going on here. We were blessed that it dissipated like it did. I'm just saying that the lingering effects of all that press literally take a whole season to go away --- I remember how 1993 and 1994 seasons for all these little businesses were just snuffed out, and how after the 1995 flood it was flat. Just hoping to get on with our normal season..... Follow this link for a pretty good picture of how the flood didn't even get our sandbags wet: http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/May/20070511News009.asp



See you guys on the trail! Great website Ray!!!!! ~Brett

Rocheport is back to normal -- there were people riding their bikes on the Katy Trail through Rocheport again today (next to a wall of sandbags...) everything is back to normal -- the river is slowly dropping and I believe the robin's have eaten a year's worth of earthworms by now.... ~Brett

I agree, Brett. I will not bother anyone with my usual rant on TV news other than to say, it doesn't surprise me that they went over the top with all of this. I will say, though, that when the National Weather Service and NOAA start saying "near record river levels" you can't help but think 1993/95 revisited.

When all is said and done, I'm just happy to see the dry sandbags.



Now everyone get on the trail!!!

Hi all -- People are biking the trail in Rocheport. The Katfish Katy's at Huntsdale is 110% open for business. The trail in both directions is dry. There must have been 25 cyclists at their store this afternoon. I repeat: Katfish Katy's in Huntsdale is OPEN FOR BUSINESS AS USUAL. I heard Cooper's Landing in Easley had about 6 inches of water on their floor (and plenty of beer). I got to tour the river and wetlands today. All of the Katy Trail portions between Rocheport to below Huntsdale all appeared to be fine from the river. here's a link to Cooper's Landing newsletter with lots of great links of upcoming activities and "flood that didn't happen" links:

http://www.cooperslanding.net/newsletter.htm

P.S. The kayaking was otherworldly. Very incredible day!

See you on the trail! Brett

Get rid of your television and explore the beauty of all the KATY trail experience. Definately include the beautiful town of Rocheport and all of our friends there. Thanks Brett for all you do and have done to enhance one of Missouri's greatest treasures.

OK this is just wrong. This Friday is my birthday and I was going to ride from St. Charles to Augusta, camp at Klondike and come back Saturday. I just read that the Missouri River is going to rise by as much as 17 feet by this weekend and reach levels not seen since '95. They say parts of Hwy 94 in Defiance will be under water. Uhhhh, are my plans shot?

From stltoday:



<


Zerr said the Katy Trail, ravaged in 1993, probably would stay dry.>>



Hwy. 94 is lower than the Katy in places as I have seen sections flooded in both the Defiance area & Treloar on the highway many times, with the trail remaining dry. Klondike Park is certainly not going to flood, but if you want to camp there, I would call and see what they say. I believe that Park is run by St. Charles County.

Here's a link to the St Louis Post-Dispatch article about the upcoming river crest. The tone of the article goes back and forth between alarming and reassuring. The key quote, which stevek posted, is that they predict the Katy Trail will be safe. But if you're planning a trip in the near future, keep a close eye on the news.

Those of you out near or on the trail, please let us know what you see (if you're not too busy filling sandbags).

Here is a link to the NOAA site where you can watch the river levels. It also tells you what is
happening when the river reaches various levels...including what parts of the Katy Trail are
flooded at what stages (at least it does for the Jeff City area). The MO is out of its banks
around here in the KC area and I was told that I-29 was closed at Craig yesterday due to
flooding of the MO (that is north of St. Jo). Here's the link:

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/ahps2/index.php?wfo=lsx&view=1,1,1,1,1,1

What about other parts of the trail? Is there danger of flash flooding or flooding along creeks, etc.?

From the MO DNR website on 5/7 http://www.mostateparks.com/katytrail/conditions.htm



There are washouts between MM 174 (two miles west of Huntsdale) to MM 181 (three miles west of Rocheport). The trail is still passable but is very rough in those areas. Trail users should exercise extra caution.



On Weds., May 9, the trail will be closed from approximately MM 136.5 to MM 137.1 (east of Wainwright) for culvert replacement. Trail users should watch for the detour onto Hwy. 94.

helpful links, thanks

According to this article from the Columbia Missourian newspaper, Katfish Katy's and Coopers Landing are now closed:
http://digmo.org/stories/2007/05/09/bracing-high-water/

Also, the DNR suggests avoiding the Rocheport area, where sandbags are being placed along the trail.

Yeah, the water is surrounding Cooper's Landing and there is sandbagging in Hartsburg and Rocheport. I have heard that Huntsdale should be OK, but that the campground at Katfish Katy's is underwater.

The Columbia Daily Tribune website should also be helpful. It is columbiatribune.com

Hi all. Rocheport is HIGH & DRY! Current estimates predict that the Mo River will not even come within 1-2 feet of crossing the trail. In other words, other than some sandbags/flood preparation, the town is UP & RUNNING. All B&Bs, restaurants, businesses, etc. are GOOD TO GO! Most trail sections are bikable although a short stretch through town here does have sandbags covering one half of trail's width. Current river predictions having river levels quickly subsiding after Sunday. There's still plenty of biking to be done in the local community and some areas of the Katy Trail near town. We'll all be back to normal by next week. Please spread the word!!!! Thanks!!!!! The comment "The MO DNR recommends avoiding Rocheport, where sandbagging is being done on the trail" should read "MO DNR recommends avoiding 2,400 feet of trail in Rocheport, where sandbagging is being done. The rest of the town is fine!" Most people don't realize that 99% of our town is NOT in the bottom -- in other words, other than sandbagging a few low lying houses on the edge of town on Moniteau Creek, life here is continuing as is. Any questions please check back here. This weather offers a really great opportunity to bike a bit and bring your canoe or kayak. The local wetland areas are flooded with a few feet of water, and you will have a once in a lifetime chance to paddle areas not normally accessible, through cottonwood forests and towering river birch. No river current, no worries. I'll try to post once a day for the next two weeks. In two weeks this will all be behind us. Please come see us! Thank you! Brett Dufur, Mayor of Rocheport and author of The Complete Katy Trail Guidebook

good luck, 5/12 we'll be finding out for ourselves what conditions are like west of defiance and will post update pm.

Trail was perfect. Klondike was cool. Folks weren't kidding about that hill. Made it though.

Cooper's is high & dry. Front "porch" area flooded but main store is intact and dry. That means he'll be back in business within just days from this spring rise. Make sure you stop in and buy a beer! ~Brett, Rocheport

Hi all -- I heard Cooper's Landing in Easley had about 6 inches of water on their floor (and plenty of beer). I got to tour the river and wetlands today. All of the Katy Trail portions between Rocheport to below Huntsdale all appeared to be fine from the river. here's a link to Cooper's Landing newsletter with lots of great links of upcoming activities and "flood that didn't happen" links:

http://www.cooperslanding.net/newsletter.htm

P.S. The kayaking was otherworldly. Very incredible day!

See you on the trail! Brett

Hi all -- Katfish Katy's at Huntsdale is 110% open for business. The trail in both directions is dry. There must have been 25 cyclists at their store this afternoon. I repeat: Katfish Katy's in Huntsdale is OPEN FOR BUSINESS AS USUAL. I heard Cooper's Landing in Easley had about 6 inches of water on their floor (and plenty of beer). I got to tour the river and wetlands today. All of the Katy Trail portions between Rocheport to below Huntsdale all appeared to be fine from the river. here's a link to Cooper's Landing newsletter with lots of great links of upcoming activities and "flood that didn't happen" links:

http://www.cooperslanding.net/newsletter.htm

P.S. The kayaking was otherworldly. Very incredible day!

See you on the trail! Brett

Hi all -- Katfish Katy's at Huntsdale is 110% open for business. The trail in both directions is dry. There must have been 25 cyclists at their store this afternoon. I repeat: Katfish Katy's in Huntsdale is OPEN FOR BUSINESS AS USUAL. I heard Cooper's Landing in Easley had about 6 inches of water on their floor (and plenty of beer). I got to tour the river and wetlands today. All of the Katy Trail portions between Rocheport to below Huntsdale all appeared to be fine from the river. here's a link to Cooper's Landing newsletter with lots of great links of upcoming activities and "flood that didn't happen" links:

http://www.cooperslanding.net/newsletter.htm

P.S. The kayaking was otherworldly. Very incredible day!

See you on the trail! Brett

For anyone traveling the Katy Trail or Missouri's Lewis & Clark Trail, be sure to check out my book Exploring Lewis & Clark's Missouri. This guidebook was a true labor of love. For anyone wanting to explore the best that Missouri has to offer, this book will give you plenty of places to reconnect with Lewis & Clark's early Missouri. Whether you are looking for undisturbed stretches of river, or the best local museums to explore, this book will take you there -- with modern day trail commentary and Clark's original journal entries from the expedition. For modern day river explorers and paddlers this book may quickly become a favorite for its blend of area services as well as historical insight. By Pebble Publishing. You can learn more by calling (573) 698-3903 or visit online at http://www.pebblepublishing.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=PPOB&Product_Code=MG3427



See you on the trail! ~Brett

We have a furnished house available for nightly rent at our Katy Trail B&B called the Tree House. It is right at the Rocheport Katy Trail Trailhead. It is a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house up on stilts (hence the Tree House name!). Climb the stairs to begin a relaxing experience with a view!



Three bedrooms and two full bathrooms allow everyone room to stretch out, a spacious open floor plan combines one wide-open family, living room and kitchen for plenty of elbow space.



We have continued the relaxed style of our Katy Trail Bed & Breakfast here as we remodeled this house over the past two years. Open airy spaces and relaxing natural tones of earthy colors meld with the timelessness of oak hardwood floors and the curtain of trees outside every window. We created comfortable, unpretentious space where you can relax with family and friends.



A large kitchen with a new stove, refrigerator and coffee maker will help start your day. The expansive counter top with four bar stools offers a great place to play cards or prepare lunch for your Katy Trail outing.



The Tree House is perfect for your family's weekend trip to Rocheport, girl's weekend out or college reunion. The Tree House is located just a block down the Katy Trail from the Katy Trail Bed & Breakfast. Trailside Cafe & Bike Rental is located just across the trail, and the Children's Park and all of the shops, restaurants and galleries of Rocheport are within easy walking distance (2-4 blocks). The Tree House is the perfect place for large groups coming to town that want to stretch out.



We provide a hearty continental breakfast, stocked in the kitchen for your convenience. It will include coffee, juice, muffins, cereal, fruit and/or yogurt to give you plenty of pedal power for your Katy adventure!



Check it out at http://www.katytrailbb.com/rocheport_katy_trail_bed_breakfast_missouri_tree_house_rental_house.htm



See you in Rocheport!

We have a furnished house available for nightly rent at our Katy Trail B&B called the Tree House. It is right at the Rocheport Katy Trail Trailhead. It is a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house up on stilts (hence the Tree House name!). Climb the stairs to begin a relaxing experience with a view!



Three bedrooms and two full bathrooms allow everyone room to stretch out, a spacious open floor plan combines one wide-open family, living room and kitchen for plenty of elbow space.



We have continued the relaxed style of our Katy Trail Bed & Breakfast here as we remodeled this house over the past two years. Open airy spaces and relaxing natural tones of earthy colors meld with the timelessness of oak hardwood floors and the curtain of trees outside every window. We created comfortable, unpretentious space where you can relax with family and friends.



A large kitchen with a new stove, refrigerator and coffee maker will help start your day. The expansive counter top with four bar stools offers a great place to play cards or prepare lunch for your Katy Trail outing.



The Tree House is perfect for your family's weekend trip to Rocheport, girl's weekend out or college reunion. The Tree House is located just a block down the Katy Trail from the Katy Trail Bed & Breakfast. Trailside Cafe & Bike Rental is located just across the trail, and the Children's Park and all of the shops, restaurants and galleries of Rocheport are within easy walking distance (2-4 blocks). The Tree House is the perfect place for large groups coming to town that want to stretch out.



We provide a hearty continental breakfast, stocked in the kitchen for your convenience. It will include coffee, juice, muffins, cereal, fruit and/or yogurt to give you plenty of pedal power for your Katy adventure!



Check it out at http://www.katytrailbb.com/rocheport_katy_trail_bed_breakfast_missouri_tree_house_rental_house.htm



See you in Rocheport!

Is there shuttle service from Marthasville to Boonville?

Most of the shuttle services will carry you between any two points on the trail, although price may vary depending on how far they need to travel. Here's a list of the shuttle services that I know of for the Katy Trail.

Try Rodney O'Neil's Rocheport Shuttle Service - 573 698 2001.

We have camping reservations at Katfish Katys for Memorial Day Weekend. But I am seeing info that the campground is underwater. Attempted to check their website, which is linked here, and it appears to be down also.



Ray, perhaps you know, or someone else, what the chances are that they will be open for business on Memorial Day weekend.

I don't think anyone can answer that right now, even the folks from Katfish Katy's. If we see more rain over the next week or two, then it might be doubtful. But if we have sunny weather, hopefully the waters will recede quickly. The river should hit its highest crest this weekend (barring more rain), so that should give us an idea of just how bad things will get, and hopefully only improve starting early next week.

If I hear any information about trail businesses closing or reopening, I'll post it on this forum as well as on the home page. If anyone has any additional information, please pass it along. Let's all try to keep each other informed.

Those of you who have trips planned in the next few weeks may also want to check the local news websites often - they're closest to the action, and this will be their top news story for a while:
Columbia Daily Tribune
Columbia Missourian
Boonville Daily News
Jeff City News Tribune
St Louis Post Dispatch (St Charles area)

The river will drop more than 10 feet by Tuesday. In most areas that flood, the main clean up to be done is debris removal. Barring any unforeseen damage, Katfish Katys will be up and open for business in a relatively short amount of time. The response time of Boone County services to protect Rocheport, Huntsdale, Wilton & Hartsburg was truly incredible. I will post more information as it becomes available. But this is an incredibly short-lived event who's longest-lived ill effects are actually the result of the media (OH MY GOD THE RIVER HAS WASHED EVERYONE AWAY!) rather than the flood. Keep in mind the river always has a spring rise. This one was just larger. Most river towns are pretty used to preparing for these type events. ~Brett Dufur, Rocheport

Anyone hear any news of flooding along the Katy? The news reports don't supply very much information.

A group of friends and I plan to stay in Rocheport's Katy Trail Bed & Bikefest, and I know that area experienced huge problems in '93.

Am also concerned about the DNR ride coming up. Memories of how I wiped out on one little washed-out section are haunting me a little! I don't want to cause a multi-bike pileup-- maybe I should practice by off-road biking a little! :)

The link below is for the National Weather Service Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service river information at Boonville. We became pretty familiar with this site earlier in the week when we were at risk here in St. Joe.



If you click on Downstream Gauge, the next town that takes floodstage readings is Jefferson City. There are several listings for the Katy and when it floods.



http://www.crh.noaa.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=eax&gage=bozm7&type=0&view=1,1,1,1,1,1

Everything I know about the flood situation is on the home page. If anyone knows any more, please pass it along.

Hi all. Rocheport is high & dry. The anticipated flooding did not occur. Our B&B (Katy Trail B&B) is open for biz as is the rest of town -- rememeber 99.9% of our town is up and out of the flood plain. All of our restaurants, B&Bs and other shops and businesses including Trailside Cafe have been unaffected by the recent river rise. Come see us! ~Brett

What would you suggest to train for Katy Trail? The plan is to ride the entire trail from East to West in about 5 days. We have about 4 months to get ready.

The main thing in my opinion is to make sure you try to acclimate your body to the heat and humidity that will still be there in September. You will need lots of fluids. If you're going in late September, you may get lucky and the temperatures may have cooled some, but most likely not. The trail is flat, so you will not need much hill training. However, this will mean you will not be shifting your position on the bike much and your fanny and back will probably protest the first couple of days. When I did the trail, I tried to stop and get off the bike and stretch, even if it meant only 5 minutes or so, every 10 to 15 miles. Enjoy the KATY !!

Hopefully, this link works as there are lots of good advice here:



http://www.bikekatytrail.com/talk.aspx?thid=1099&full=&ascdesc=&pg=



Also, you have to keep in mind if you want to really say you did the whole trail, you have to go to Machens, which lenthens your trip to approximately 238 miles. It was also pointed out to me previously that because I did not go past the trailhead in Clinton(as it does technically continue past this point for a little ways), I really did not do the whole trail.

anybody ever ride the whole thing in the rain? I was thinking about riding the trail next week but right now the forecast is for "isolated t-storms" or "scattered t-storms" all week. I have one of those capes that clip on your handlebars----might be a good time to try it out.

Anytime you spend more than a day on the trail, you run the risk of getting wet. There are several things you have to think about. You need to keep yourself and your gear dry, or you will be miserable. The best way to keep yourself dry is with a good, high quality breathable rain jacket. You may also elect to get rain pants as I did. For the gear, I had all my stuff in waterproof bags (OR makes great ones) and my panniers had waterproof covers also. If you are camping, that makes things even more difficult as you will need a waterproof tent. Riding in the rain is miserable, expecially on the KATY trail surface. It can be done though, you just have to plan ahead and honestly, spend some money on good gear. Have fun!

I basically agree with the previous comment and have ridden many miles in the rain over the years on the Katy. The one thing not mentioned above is a need for a second pair of riding shoes for a rainy day. Once your shoes are drenched and covered with the trail the next day is pretty miserable with wet gritty shoes. I always take an old pair of shoes just in case it does rain. So just come prepared and enjoy the ride.



My next scheduled ride on the Katy will be the Katy Trail State Ride in June hope to see some of you then.

I would just add--expect decreased mileage if it is raining or has just rained a lot, as the surface gets soft, and harder going.

I rode the whole thing from Clinton to Machens in October and it rained every day but the last, and that day was very windy. Although I wouldn't say it was the best trip in the world it was enjoyable. Expect decreased mileage and that you will get filthy. A second pair of shoes to wear it night is a must and I found Goretex trail running shoes to have been a good selection to ride in.

Egad. I was afraid of this.



These capes: Do they cover both rider and bike? Am invisioning something out of a jousting scene, where a cape covers the horse's flanks.



I'm only slightly kidding. Is that what this cape does?

Ixnay the apecay. If you're concerned about riding in the rain, ride a bike with fenders and pack a rain suit. The poncho/cape limits your flexibility, the ability to see the ground under your feet, and can get caught in the wheels. If it were me, I'd even skip the rain pants.

Nails is right on. You are going to get wet. Even with the cape, you will get wet. My

guess is that you have been wet before. Just be wet... the temps should be warm enough

these days that you won't get cold so long as you keep riding. Capes and ponchos and the

like are usually made of plastic or nylon which means you will just get hot and sweaty and

wet. Riding the trail in the rain means you will be wet and dirty (but you will wash and

hopefully will have packed a fresh set of clothes and protected your stuff from the water)

and it will be slow going...when the trail gets saturated it is like riding through plaster of

paris that is not quite set up. It is different than riding in just plain mud. And, your bike

will be filthy . . . be sure to clean it up paying attention to those moving parts--the chain,

the pedals and the like. Carry some lube so your chain doesn't rust and you can ride the

next day moving smoothly! And, rain or shine, have fun!

Ixnay the cape and get a light weight hiking jacket like the Marmot Precip. The sleeves open for ventilation and it is hooded. Also performs quite well as a windbreaker. Everyone makes them. The ultra-lightweight biking jackets just don't cut it in my experience. They look nice, they are light, but they don't shed water.

thanks for comments. yeah I guess I'll just wait till we get some nice weather.

My husband and I will be on the trail Friday through Sunday riding from Jeff City to Sedalia. I am hoping that the forecast changes (call me Polyanna!) We will definitely be ready for the winery in Rocheport where we are spending our first night. I don't seem to be very good at planning these trips. Last year we rode during the hottest weekend of the year (in August) and it looks like I've chosen one of the wettest weekends for this years trip. Someone else is picking the time for the next one!

Way to go Polyanna! : )

I always carry a rain jacket with me on extended rides. Adding fenders to my recumbent was the very best improvment for those wet days on the trail. You still get wet, but not near as dirty/sandy. Riding a bent puts your head closer to the rear tire, and ALL that sand slings on the back of your neck and head. I actually enjoy some of those lighter showers now!