Trail Update - Boonville to St, Charles

Having been bumped off the trail when we hit the river in Boonville in May, we returned the week of August 18 to complete the trek, as you would expect from stubborn Irishpeople.

Posted detour from Boonville to Franklin is easy to navigate. Bike lane over the bridge is on the west side (facing traffic if you're biking the KT downriver), so we chose to bike opposing traffic on US 40 till you hit the county road. Wide turnout lane, so there were no problems.

There is no official detour at Davisdale, but we crossed US40 and rode with traffic for a little over a mile to County Road 440 for the trip into Rocheport. 440 is gravel and the last downhill is extremely steep - if you don't have disc brakes, opt for another mile on US 40 to County Road 240.

GRIPE HERE - I am sure the highway folks have those nifty electronic / solar signs for traffic announcements. Placing them between on 40 between Davisdale and 240 with a message alerting drivers to bicyclists would be a nice touch. Our host in Rocheport says the bridge at Davisdale is just a part of the problem. DNR Engineering has an ongoing argument over the potential of falling rock just upriver from the Rocheport tunnel. This section could be closed for a LONG time. C'mon, man. You are KILLING these river towns depending upon Trail traffic.

From Rocheport we got all the way to Easley / Cooper's Landing, but the trail got quite soft and we retreated up the MKT trail to Columbia for a shuttle to Hartsburg. You can get about 3 miles upriver from Hartsburg before the trail is blocked. Downriver to Jefferson City was fine, and the bridge access ramp was a hoot.

The "no detour" blockage west of Portland at MM 117-118 forces a ride to MO 94 on Schmidt (?) Road, okay gravel. There are two hills into Portland - the second one is a real groaner, even for bikers like us used to the hills of East Tennessee. We walked up the second. The right turn to the Portland TH is clearly marked.

The closure west of Case at MM 96.9-97.1 was clear when we passed, but they were doing work on the trail and I managed to puncture a tube on the big gravel there.

The closure at Treloar on the DNR website is new. Whatever you do, find your way to the Treloar Bar and Grille. Nice folks.

The detour upriver from Augusta is a breeze.

The detour between Augusta and Matson, through Klondike Park, is a bit more challenging. There are some washouts and a steep (85') climb on the upriver / west side of the detour that required walking the bikes. Once we got to the park roads and around what looks like an abandoned quarry, the biking was a bit slow, but quite managable.

From there to St. Charles was generally in good shape, with the exception that we could find no water hydrants from Klondike to St. Charles.

If you were considering a fall trek on the Katy, DO NOT CANCEL YOUR TRIP!! Generally speaking...with those two highway detours...the trail remains quite passable with tires 28MM or wider. Don't attempt road tires like the guy on the official map! The businesses along the route need your business, and they were consistently friendly despite having such a lousy season.

I have an upcoming ride from Clinton to St Charles and I have a question for you since you've recently ridden it. Hopefully you can help.

On the blocked trail between Easley/Coopers Landing and Hartsburg... I've read that this section is closed, but I've also read that people are making their way through that section. Getting conflicting information. Can you elaborate on that section? When you say "blocked" - do you mean that there are trail closure signs? Or is it blocked by debris and unrideable?

Also, I'm a little nervous about the Hwy 40 detour from Davisdale into Rocheport as I'm not comfortable riding on the highway. We will be going through that section midday during the week, so we are hoping the traffic won't be too bad. Did you have any issues on that section of highway? I've read the shoulder is small and the cars are zooming by pretty fast.

Thanks!

TO HP - We did not go downriver from Coopers Landing / Easley. The sand and silt was much too soft for our 28 / 32MM tires.

There was a fence up about 3 miles upriver from Hartsburg.

I've read people have snuck around and ridden / walked over the 4 - 5 miles that appear to be closed on the DNR website.

We're in our sixties, so we chose to go the legal route.

Good luck. It is an awesome ride!

Oops - second question. We were on 40 about 3 in the afternoon on a Sunday. Cars and trucks were courteous. We are road bikers and have LED lights that poke drivers in the eye pretty good, so taking on a little over a mile to 440 wasn't too stressful.

As I mentioned, if you don't have disc brakes, the last downhill on 440 would be SCARY. It's another 3/4 mile to 240, which is paved and much less hilly.

If you're spending the night in Rocheport, ask your host about picking you up in Davisdale. Might only cost you a few bucks.

Huge thank you!!! I appreciate it!

I looked at the detour to Rocheport on Fri. at 2:00 and there was a lot of traffic. I am pretty brave but it looked to dangerous for me. It's a narrow road with 60mph traffic. I agree, get a ride if you can.

The trail 3mi. up river, at gravel road to Cooper's is passable with a few short stints of walking your bike thru silty/rocky areas. The key is to ride the packed part of the trail which includes the grassy edge. There is an alternative route at the gravel road to avoid area into Wilton. Turn right and follow gravel road into Wilton. There are a couple hills and nice views above the river. Coming down the hill into Wilton you will cross a bridge, just past the bridge turn left onto the connector back to the trail. This next 1/4+ mi. section is the worst imo. Heavy silt, original railway rock bed, tree over trail easy to walk under. From here to 1/2 mi or so East of S.River rd. is not bad. The rest of the way into Easly is where you will run into deep silty areas. At Easly, to the right of trail(where there are two homes on left) there is a fresh gravel drive that takes you to main gravel road. Turn left on gravel road back to trail or follow gravel road to Coppers. Last week they were laying fresh gravel on road into Cooper's so could be pretty harsh. I'd take the trail. Just keep an eye out for numerous potholes. The above is about a 5.5 mi section. Depending on your skill level I. Would say it adds anywhere from 10 - 30 minuets to your ride.

This is SO helpful! We have a Sedalia to St. Charles trip planned, and are not experienced road riders. Sounds like we’ll walk a lot. We are planning to ride the MKT into Columbia for a night, then get shuttled to Hartsburg the next day. Does anyone have recommendations for a hotel near the MKT?

Bill and Bonnie - Who did you use to shuttle you from Columbia to Hartsburg?

Boonville to Rocheport has two separate problems. #1 is a washout of trail surface and railroad bed including a trail bridge at the point where old highway 40 crosses over the Katy Trail. This is a big problem and will probably require heavy equipment, etc. to repair. #2 is some kind of issue with the Katy Trail tunnel at Rocheport, not the Moniteau Creek bridge at the Katy Trail tunnel. We have not had success getting information about either of these problems from DNR. The problem at Hwy.40 and Katy Trail is obvious. Less obvious, in fact, not clear at all is what the problem might be at the Katy Trail tunnel. No information has been made available to us and this is concerning. We would like to know what the problems are and what plans are to fix these problems. September and October are the highest traffic months on the Katy Trail. Several of our businesses are dependent on Katy Trail traffic. These trail blockages are serious problems for Rocheport businesses and Katy Trail users. Information is needed for trip and business planning. Heads UP!, DNR Staff. What is going on? All of us want to know.

Thank you for info I have Portland to McKittrick and then will have covered to full length of the trail. am 74 years old and this is on my bucket list.I plan to finish this fall, not excited about the steep hills near Portland but I'm not to proud to walk along side my bike .