Ride to Washington (Missouri)

Once again we were faced with overcast skies, warm temperatures, and a threat of rain showers. However, westward we must go, so we started our ride. The Katy trail is surfaced with crushed-packed gravel and is easy to cycle. The beginning of the trail is in dense woods with a tight canopy overhanging the path. During our ride HP commented that with the chirping noises and thick forest he felt like he was cycling through a jungle. Joe and Jeff just nodded agreement until HP went on to say that he heard monkeys calling to each other. That is when Joe and Jeff started to peddle a little faster.

Mid-morning the temperatures dropped, the sky got black, and the winds increased significantly. These changes required us to put on our jackets and reassess our plans for the day. Tonight was to be our first night of camping but we decided that discretion was better than valor. Joe reprogrammed his GPS and headed us toward Washington, Missouri, a town with several motels. We made it into the motel just before the deluge started. If we were still outside we would have needed to trade our bikes in for boats.

We had 2 interesting stops along the way. The first was in Defiance, Missouri were we stopped to get coffee and decide if we would cycle to Daniel Boone’s Missouri home. As we pulled into town (3 stores, a bar, and several homes) we were met by the owner of the general store/bike shop/gift boutique (3 stores in 1). While very friendly she was also very cruel. She let us smell her special coffee beans that just came out of the roaster but then told us that her coffee service was not yet in operation. She sent us across the street to the bar for coffee. We were crushed. Adding to our disappointment was the fact that Daniel Boone’s home no longer existed and the nearby home really belonged to Nathanial Boone (Daniel’s son). That fact, the inclement weather, and the additional 5 miles off the trail (all up hill) led us to forego this historic experience.

A digression: Another historical experience occurred about 15 miles out of St. Charles. We saw a historical marker reporting that Lewis and Clark reached this point after 2 days or arduous effort on the Missouri river. Joe commented that Lewis and Clark should have used the bike trail since it took us less than 2 hours for the same distance.

Back to the interesting stops we had today: We stopped for lunch in Augusta, Missouri at a trail side restaurant. Joe, not wanting Jeff to feel bad about not getting the great blueberry pie (see our report on getting to St. Charles) sacrificed and ate the last 2 pieces of “just ok” strawberry-key lime pie. HP and Jeff were satisfied with just eating healthy sandwiches

Photos
Maps