Katy Trail, Missouri

Katy Trail (July 31, 2009)

The Katy Trail is a rails-to-trail bike trail that extends 225 miles from Clinton, MO to St. Charles, MO (just outside St. Louis).  My daughter and I have been talking about a long bike ride for a couple of years, but with our usual busy weekends and many other travels, it is hard to find an extended weekend.  We decided to make a one day trip.  Our original plan was to travel from McKittrick to St. Charles (about 61 miles for the day).  We ended up completing McKittrick to Weldon Springs (about 45 miles).

As we drove, I was a bit nervous about the goal of riding bikes 60 miles, given I had only completed a couple of 10 miles rides around Indy and had done a couple of 5k runs.  Also, knowing that central Missouri is known for its rolling mountains, I wondered how many hills we may need to complete on our trip.  Railroads never have more than a 6% grade, so I knew none of the hills would be too steep, but had no idea on how many hills to expect.

We left Indy on Thursday night after my daughter finished work and drove to Hermann, MO, (about 2 miles from McKittrick) arriving around midnight.  Hermann is a neat German town known for its wineries, architecture, and bed and breakfasts.  Knowing the day was not expected to get to hot, we woke around 8 and started on the trail around 9 am.  The weather was great, sunny and only around 80 degrees for a high. 

My two boys, my daughter and I started the trail.  My wife decided to visit antique shops instead of biking with us.  Our first stop was Treloar, about 16 miles from our start.  The trail is made of pea gravel and was much flatter than I had envisioned.  Much of the trail runs along the Missouri River, so there are few hills.  Much of the trail has trees along the sides providing good shade to keep us cool as we biked.  Treloar is a small town of about 80 people.  We called my wife to meet her at the next stop for lunch in Marthasville, a town of about 800 (23 miles from the start).  We ate a nice lunch at one of the local restaurants and relaxed.  My daughter and I went on for the rest of the bike ride.  In Augusta, we stopped by a local brewery and in Matson, we stopped at a local winery (Montelle Winery), where I picked up a case of wine to remember the trip.  The winery was built on a hill with a beautiful view of the valley and vineyards below.  It was great area to take in the views and enjoy the beauty of the rolling mountains of Missouri.  Fortunately, my wife met us with the van to take our treasure home.   From there my daughter and I travelled to Weldon Springs.  At Weldon Springs we decided to call it a day and join the family for supper. 

We went to St Louis to have supper with my sister-in-law, nephew and niece.  My nephew is with the army and his next stop will be Germany.  My niece received an offer to teach English in Moscow and is making her final decision about this new adventure.  We spent the rest of the weekend with family eating and catching up.  It was a great weekend.

45 miles was a bit of a stretch for me.  My legs were very soar, but as I write this on Sunday, I would say I am pretty well recovered.  We'll be ready for our next bike ride.  I hope that we can finish the Katy trail next year.  The beautiful woods, hills, river, wineries and quaint little towns provided great scenery.  Maybe the next trip, we can take more than a day and travel from McKittrick west toward Clinton.

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For more information on the Katy Trail, visit www.katytrailstatepark.com

For information on Montelle Winery, visit http://www.montelle.com/