Reply to KS/MO border to Pleasant Hill trailhead?

Hello. A small group of us are planning a border-to-border trip in mid-June. Would anyone be able to recomend a route from the KS/MO border to the Pleasant Hill trailhead? We scouted a backroad route starting at about 175th and State Line that is hilly and narrow roads. We're also thinking about Hwy 150, but concerned about traffic. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Use Google maps. Enter State Line Station (shopping center at 135th & State Line to Pleasant Hill and check the bicycle option. 150 is about the ONLY way you can get there. I have driven 150 from state line to US 71/I-49 with biking in mind. There is a nice wide shoulder. There are rumble strips but I believe you can ride clear these. There is the usual small debris on the shoulder, but nothing significant that I saw. I did not find the traffic significant, except in evening rush hour. MO has Share-the-Road laws for cars and bikes, and this route is signed for that. East of 71/49 there is a paved bike trail along 150 most of the way to Greenwood. From Greenwood there are back roads into Pleasant Hill. Post a ride report for the State Line- Greenwood segment. Many would appreciate it.
You should have no trouble leaving cars in the shopping center. It is never full. Park to the south near Lucas Liquors.

Follow up on the above RE the 175th street route you scouted: Missouri back roads can be very dangerous. Often no shoulders, hilly, narrow, and traffic when you don't want it. MO rural drivers are often not used to cyclists, and while they give them plenty of room, are not always looking for them because they are usually not there. In some areas cyclists are considered targets. Particularly along the highway that parallels the Katy east of Jeff City.

95th and stateline to colbern rd would be another option. 95th turns into colbern rd in lees summit

This is not a direct answer to your question, because it involves getting to Clinton rather than Pleasant Hill... but I'll throw it out there anyway.

When my son and I rode border-to-border back in 2012, we started at 299th and State Line. We headed pretty much directly east on some gravel, mostly blacktop, about 25 miles to Garden City.

Then from Garden City, we rode the shoulder of hwy 7 to Clinton - about 30 miles - and picked up the Katy Trail from there.

It was a weekday - we saw maybe 10 cars the entire ride from State Line to Garden City. Hwy 7 had a high volume of high-speed traffic, but the shoulder was wide.

We spent quite a bit of time looking at Google Maps in satellite mode, and especially their "street view" feature. Even most tiny rural roads are now available in street view. It's a great way to check out shoulders and road characteristics.

Again, I know you're looking for a Pleasant Hill route, but I mention this in case someone else out there is looking for a border-to-Clinton route (or if you decide on Clinton instead). The highway 7 portion was not ideal, but overall it was a decent route and I'd do it again.

Good luck and happy trails!

Ray, so total distance from State Line to Clinton is how much?

Well the route we took was about 55 miles: ~25 from state line to Garden City, and ~30 from Garden City to Clinton. But if you look on a map, Garden City is northwest of Clinton.

A straight east-west line from the state line to Clinton would be shorter, maybe 35 miles, but we could not find a good starting point due west ofClinton, with a good east-west route.

The part from state line to Garden City was directly east-west, but Garden City to Clinton was a diagonal.

Happy trails!

In response to the person who suggested riding on 95th/Bannister/Colbern and then down to Pleasant Hill -- I would not recommend that whatsoever. Colbern gets very curvy with minimal shoulder and cars flying. In addition, bridges are out over HWY 291 right now for repairs and the work zone is very congested.

HWY 150 is wonderful for biking once you get east of 71 Hwy, as the other poster noted there are wide bicycle paths/sidewalks, but I have seen many bicyclists riding on the road itself so cars will be used to this if you decide that. Getting from the shopping centers to State Line might be a bit hairy. Starting at the state line, initially there are no shoulders for probably a mile, then there are wide shoulders but also very fast traffic. From the Quiktrip at 150 & 71 to Greenwood is very nice, but hilly. I'm not sure past Greenwood. I second using back roads to get from 150 to the trail head as 7 seems like it could be dangerous with the minimal shoulder.

All,

Thank you for the tips and suggestions. Our group successfully rode border-to-border over four days on Father’s Day weekend. A couple of us succumb to the heat and skipped some short portions that we’ll make up later, but all of us rode every day nonetheless.

Here’s the detailed route we took from the KS/MO border to the Pleasant Hill trailhead. We departed about 7:30am on a Friday morning. Except for a couple short stretches noted below, we were comfortable with the traffic. Overall, we found this route moderately challenging and would ride it again.

Route: KS/MO Border to Pleasant Hill Trailhead
Total Distance: 24.5 miles
Start: 136th and State Line (mustered in the Target parking lot)

--E on 136th/135th: (136th becomes 135th after crossing Hwy 150. Street riding)
--S on Holmes: (short segment, downhill, limited shoulders, potential for traffic)
--E on 139th: (big hill at start, quiet country road, no shoulders)
--S on Prospect: (quiet country road, no shoulders)
--E on Hwy 150 (to Botts Rd): (Note: There is a paved sidewalk/trail that runs on the north side of 150 in front of the Nuclear Facility campus. The trail ends at Botts Rd.)
--E on Hwy 150 (to I-49): (At Botts Rd, you’ll need to ride on Hwy 150 for less than a mile. Heavy traffic. Wide shoulders. Use caution.)
--E on Hwy 150 (to Ward Rd): (After crossing under I-49, a wide paved sidewalk/trail starts on the north side and runs parallel to Hwy 150. Hilly. Comfortable riding)
--S on Ward Rd: (A sidewalk is available for about the first third of this segment. Last part is street riding. No shoulders. Moderate traffic.)
--E on 171st: (Quiet country road. If you have time, stop and see the large outdoor model train layout just short of 291. Very friendly gentleman.)
--S on Hwy 291: (Short segment. Heavy traffic. No shoulders.)
--E on 175th: (Quiet country road. Challenging hills.)
--S on MoPac Trail: (The entrance to this trail is easy to miss. If you find it, take the trail south and it will deposit you in the heart of downtown Pleasant Hill. If you miss it, 175th turns into Boardman and will drop you in roughly the same place downtown.)

Note #1: I’m leaving off specific directions to the trailhead as it’s only a few blocks from downtown. Be sure to start at the official trailhead. The trail signage in PH is bad. We followed some Katy Trail/Rock Island signs and ended up miles off course.

Note #2: Amenities immediately adjacent to the trail from PH to Windsor are scarce. The small towns along the way have stuff available, but signage is lacking and directions are not readily apparent. Do your research ahead of time to know exactly where to go from the trail crossings. This cost us dearly on a 95 degree afternoon. MDC: How about some simple yard signs with arrows and distances to amenities?

Hope this helps and happy riding!

Northern Front