Day 21 – Saturday – 6/18/22

Washington, Missouri to Jefferson City Missouri – 80 Miles

Today was the end of the third week on the road and the beginning of the ride to the Pacific Coast. The weather was clear, and the heat had dropped from the intensity of previous days to “comfortable”. Best of all, since the route followed the Katy Trail, the hills had disappeared due to its proximity to the river. Even the wind was blowing in the direction I wanted to go. I predicted a good day.

The night before I’d noticed three BMW motorcycles with Indiana plates in the parking lot. At breakfast this morning, two guys had a “motorcycle rider” look to them, so I asked them if they owned the Beemers. They did and had just come from a motorcycle rally in Springfield, Missouri. We talked for twenty minutes about everything related to two-wheel travel and wished each other well on our continuing journeys. They were going east to northern Indiana, while I was heading in the opposite direction.

Shortly after leaving the hotel, I came to the bridge across the Missouri River. Crossing the bridge was symbolic in that I’d be following the river westward from here. The Lewis and Clark Trail is the major component of the five cycling routes that will take me across the country, and the one I most looked forward to. 

A few miles later, I arrived at the Dutzow trailhead. The name “Katy” is derived from its former use as a railway line. The original name of Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad was shortened to “KT” when speaking of it, and inspired the trail’s name when it was opened in the early 90’s. Today it is the longest bike trail in the country at 240 miles, running from Machens, Missouri to Clinton, Missouri.

Because it follows the route of a former railroad, there are many 100-year-old bridges along the way that have been left in place to enable travel over streams and uneven ground.

The trail isn’t paved, but is hard-packed soil with some gravel mixed in. It’s easy to ride on but creates a lot of dust that will stick to you and everything you own, so bring clean clothes and a bar of soap.

The Katy sometimes runs along the river and other times swings back toward the forest a little way inland. It’s generally scenic, with a mix of small villages and farmland typical.

When the Missouri River does appear, it’s worth getting off the bike and taking a look around. I would have thought it had some recreational or commercial uses but haven’t seen either pleasure boats or barges on it yet.

Early in the ride, I met another cycling tourist named Mark, from the Bay area of California. He’d taken a train to Pittsburgh and had ridden from there to Washington D.C. following old canals and towpaths that had been converted to trails. He then took the train to Saint Louis, and was following the Katy Trail to Jefferson City, where he’d catch another train to begin his trip home.

With about ten miles to go, Ishmael was losing air in the back tire. Not wanting to take everything apart and deal with it on the trail, I pumped it up and rode another four miles before pumping it up again. Even with that annoyance, it was still a great day for cycling.

I walked around downtown Jefferson City, the capital of Missouri, later in the day. It’s a place I’d only passed by on earlier road trips, but I was impressed by the look of it and what they had to offer to visitors and residents. The Capitol overlooks the river and is kept in beautiful shape for a 105-year-old building.

There’s a nice commercial district near the Capitol, and Mark and I met for BBQ at restaurant near our hotels. The subject of conversation was bicycles.

Tomorow’s plan is to spend some time exploring the city, then continue down the Katy Trail towards the west, eventually arriving near Kansas City mid-week. Totaling up the miles left to go, I think I’m looking at around 2,500, which might mean another six weeks on the road. I’m enjoying the experience and have adapted to the lifestyle over the past three weeks, so it’s just a matter of putting in the time each day to make it happen.