Katy Trail Home  The Katy Trail and Rock Island Trail Rock Island Trail Home

Reply to Looking for some insight or “expert” opinion. Did we plan this correctly?


Cancel and Return to Forum
Scroll down to see the discussion
All submissions are reviewed for appropriateness. We reserve the right to remove or edit any comment that we consider incorrect, misleading, or inappropriate, at our sole discretion. Please remember that this is a family-friendly website.
Subject:
Reply to Looking for some insight or “expert” opinion. Did we plan this correctly?
Your Name:

This does not have to be your real name. It could be a "screen name", your initials, or just leave blank.
Your Hometown:

Optional - it's just interesting to know where people are from
Email Address
Comment:
So we know you are a human, please answer this easy math quiz:
1 + 2 =
Doug on 2/5/2021 9:50:39 AM:
Looking for some insight or “expert” opinion. Did we plan this correctly?
This summer, a small group of friends are going to bikepack Katy Trail from West to East, Clinton to Dutzow and Amtrak back to Sedalia.
We want camping not B&B. We are good for 40 - 60 miles a day. We don’t have a lot of interest in window shopping or fine dining. However we do want to enjoy the sights of the trail and enjoy the experience of the adventure. We will be looking to the local economy for meals. Our goal is not to ride end to end, but to travel a signification portion of the trail and enjoy what it has to offer. We decided to stop in Dutzow to catch the Amtrak to avoid the hassle of going to the St Charles station.
Here is what we have come up with.
Clinton – Sedalia (35)
Sedalia – New Franklin (41)
New Franklin – Mokane (60)
Mokane – Dutzow (50)

So now we are asking the experienced. Have we missed anything? Any glaring issues? Any recommended improvements? Any must see or must do while around any towns.
Thank you all for your insights.

 
Missouri Haus Vacation Rentals from Marthasville on 2/5/2021 12:23:52 PM:
Great plan! Maybe consider camping in Marthasville at the baseball fields or just past Augusta at Klondike Park as there are no campgrounds at Dutzow, unless you are planning to not stay in Dutzow but ride Hwy 47 and into Washington for the train.

Marthasville has the best pizza in the county at Philly's Pizza. If you plan to eat in Washington, there are several excellent places near the train station. The 1869 Draft Room, Marquart's Landing, John G's Tap Room, and Sugarfire Smokehouse are just a few.

Keep in mind that the Amtrak has limited spots for bicycles, so you will want to get advance reservations.

 
Bill in Houston from Houston on 2/5/2021 12:47:06 PM:
The big thing will be to call ahead and make sure that the services you are counting on are available on the day you want them. Like, actually pick up the phone and call on the day before. Because if you roll into Mokane at dark-thirty expecting to get dinner at the bar and grill, and for some reason they are closed, then what?

That said, here's where to eat if you choose to have nice simple local food amongst the nice local folks.
Windsor - Wagon Wheel
Sedalia - Bothwell, I guess.
Pilot Grove - Deon's or Casey's (sorry, man, that's the best food nearby)
Boonville - Main Street Diner
New Franklin - no idea.
Rocheport - Merriwether's for breakfast
Jeff City - Central Dairy for ice cream
Mokane - Mokane Bar and Grill
Food is kind of a blur after that, except that Treloar Bar and Grill was great.

As far as history or sights, buy Dufur's trail guide and it will point out all those.


 
Jim from St. Thomas on 2/5/2021 7:57:46 PM:
One option would be to cut day 3 a little short and stay at the Turner Shelter in Tebbetts. It has hostel type accommodations. For $6 you get a bed with a foam mattress, air conditioning, hot showers and flush toilets. The latter become a rarity east of Jeff City. The downside is that there are no dining establishments in Tebbetts although the shelter has a refrigerator, microwave, hot plate and a coffee maker.

 
John G from Dallas on 2/6/2021 6:23:30 PM:
So is the ride from Dutzow to Washington to catch the Amtrak on "busy" roads?

Curious for you, and for me since I like this destination to return to Sedalia via Amtrak.

 
Doug on 2/6/2021 6:35:59 PM:
For John G. I found this post under the Washington link.
We are going to catch the Amtrak using Augusta Bottom Rd. The other option was HWY 47 (busy)

By trail: The shortest and probably safest way to Washington is via Augusta Bottom Road, which crosses the Katy Trail around mile 70.5. You can see it as the white line in the map below, running from the Katy Trail to just north of the bridge.