The Katy Trail was spectacular. Stretching 237 miles across the state of Missouri, the crushed limestone trail is the longest bike path in the nation. Although it’s not paved, I had no problem at all riding on it with road bike tires. I would recommend it to anybody interested in bike touring, especially beginners. The majority of the trail is shaded which makes it ideal for riding during the heat of the day. There are some parts of the trail without overhead cover, but the great views make up for the lack of shade.
The shaded parts of the trail provide for some ideal cycling conditions.
A great part of the Katy Trail was how accommodating it is towards cyclists. The state park department does an excellent job maintaining it and there’s plenty of amenities along the way. For those seeking a laid back peaceful ride through some nice countryside, I can’t think of a better option. There are even plans to make the Katy Trail even longer!
In addition to the peacefulness and beauty of the trail, there are also some cool cities that it goes through such as the capital of the state, Jefferson City.
Although I didn’t get a great photo of it, the town of Hermann was one of my favorite towns of the trip. The town sits just next to the Missouri River and is situated on some rugged terrain with lots of hills. The town was originally settled by Germans and was intended to perpetuate traditional German culture in the heart of America. Today the small town acts as a perfect vacation getaway while showcasing the architecture and history of its interesting past. We stayed with a really nice family in Hermann that fed us a great meal and a delicious ice cream dessert.
After completing the trail, Erika and I continued our journey to eventually join up with the Adventure Cycling Association Trans America Trail, one of the most popular routes cyclists take to ride coast to coast.
On our first day leaving the Katy Trail, I decided to take us on a backroads route on a road that was permanently closed. The road ended up being more of an obstacle course because it was full of fallen trees and broken pavement. Despite the obstacles it was absolutely beautiful and I’m glad we took it.
That night we were planning on staying in Appleton City, Missouri, however we hadn’t figured out where we were staying. I called up a few churches and left voice messages introducing us and requesting to camp on their lawns. A couple hours later I got a call back from the United Methodist Church. The pastor was super friendly and told us we were more than welcome to stay there.
So we continued riding to Appleton City, happy to know that we could stay with the friendly pastor. The remainder of the ride was on some beautiful country roads with almost zero traffic.
The pastor was one of the friendliest upbeat people I’ve met. I don’t think I’ll ever forget this man. His energy level was through the roof. His wife was a sweetheart and his two little kids were cute. They were about to move out of Appleton City so their belongings were scattered throughout the house, but they made space for us and were very hospitable.
Erika and I ended up helping him move his treadmill out of the basement to give to one of his neighbors. The treadmill was big and heavy so it was not easy to move. We ended up working together to get it into his neighbor’s truck. It felt good to do the pastor a favor considering the favor he was doing for us.
The pastor and his wife were kind enough to feed us. They ordered a pizza and subs for us from a place called Casey’s. It was delicious and we had a great time talking with them. Also, that night happened to be Game 7 of the NBA finals so I was really happy that they had a TV and let us watch it. I would have been bummed if we ended up missing the game and I was happy the Cavs won.
Kansas
The next day we took off to go to Fort Scott, Kansas. As the day progressed we had a tough time dealing with the rocky gravel roads, however, the host for that night made up for any difficulties we had encountered that day. It turns out that the Warm Showers host was an upscale bed and breakfast. We lucked out and got the premier guesthouse that usually goes for $225 a night and we got it for free. The deals you can get from riding a bike are out of this world!
It turns out that there was a bike race called Race Across America (RAAM) that was going through Fort Scott during our stay there. These people ride continuously day and night across the country. Many of them only get a couple of hours of sleep per night, if any at all. A lot of them do it for causes but some of them just do it for the fun of it.
We went to visit the station where the racers could take a break and we met a team of about 10 German people. We approached the group of people and started talking to them to learn about their story. There was 1 rider and the rest was the support team. Unfortunately the rider got injured so he was unable to continue, however the support team decided they would finish the ride as a relay race.
We started chatting with one of the friendly Germans. Turns out this guy has biked all over the world, including extensive riding throughout Australia. We linked up on Warm Showers and I enjoyed reading his blog later on. I thought I had ridden through some pretty remote places in the US, but that’s nothing compared to riding through the Australian Outback and Nullarbor Plain.
Fort Scott was a great visit especially because of the amazing accommodation, but we were ready to continue onwards. The ride out of town was amazing. We found a nicely paved road with rolling hills that paralleled a busier road so there was very little traffic. It got a bit windy, but the wind was mostly in our favor as you can see by the leaves of the tree.
After riding through some tough gravel in the heat, we finally arrived at Yates Center, KS and used their swimming pool to cool off and shower. Unfortunately their swimming pool was hot so jumping in wasn’t as refreshing as we hoped.
That night we didn’t know where we were going to stay but we were hoping to somehow find a host because it would have been miserable camping in that heat. Of course we could have stayed in a motel, but we were trying to complete the entire trip without paying for any accommodation except for the occasional campground. We were successful up to that point and had no plans of backing down.
Funny how things work out because just as I was changing a flat tire on the side of a road, a woman walks up to us and offers me help with the tire. I kindly pass up her offer but we strike up a conversation. One thing leads to the next and she invites us to sleep in her air conditioned house and feeds us dinner. Her name was Kate and she even gave us some delicious peanut butter cookies for the next day. What a kind woman.
The next day we reached our first point on the Trans America trail at Lizard’s Lips Grill & Deli. They had given us toy lizards as souvenirs. I had lost mine almost instantly, but Erika held on to hers as a good luck charm.
I first noticed we were on the Trans America trail because there was a guest book for cyclists. I was excited to be on the trail because I knew we would meet more cyclists and also navigation would be easier.
That night our destination was Cassoday, KS, a town with a population of just 128. The road there was so peaceful.
Upon arriving in Cassoday, we discovered it was the prairie chicken capital of the world. Unfortunately, we didn’t see a single prairie chicken while we were there. Although the great bird was once abundant in these plains, habitat loss has greatly reduced the population. Luckily, conservation efforts are underway to save the species.
After grabbing some food at the only store in the town, we found a nice gazebo to pitch our tents and the next morning we were delighted with an awesome sunrise.
The next day we made our way to Newton, KS. We arranged a Warm Showers host for that night so we were excited to have the comfort of a home. The ride there was short but it nice and scenic.
Anyways, we checked out a bike shop in Newton that also operates as a hostel for touring cyclists. They refer to themselves as “THE OASIS IN THE GRASS DESERT TO ALL TOURING CYCLISTS”. Shortly after arriving, we learned that there was another race that crosses the US called the TransAm Bike Race. I met some racers at the shop and enjoyed talking with them. The race is still young and has only been going on for a few years but I think it’s gaining traction.
We stayed with a woman named Janet in Newton. She was really nice and friendly. Also, we met another cyclist who was staying there named Colin, an author of a great cycling blog.
The next night we stayed at a church in Hutchinson, KS that is also a free hostel for cyclists. I love places like this. Not only is it a great way to travel cheap but it immerses you in the community of folks who bike tour.
Turns out the pastor was an avid cyclist. He used to have a bike shop in town and wanted to help touring cyclists along their journey.
The next few days we stayed in some tiny isolated towns in Kansas. Most of the days we showered in the town pools and camped in the public parks. We found some Zebras on one of our rides. I’m not kidding.
After Dighton, KS we rode to a town called Leoti, KS. We had a good amount a headwind that day and were happy to arrive to a Warm Showers host. It turns out that our host wasn’t even home but she told us we are welcome to use her house. I’m always amazed by how generous and trusting some people are. We made ourselves some good food in her kitchen.
The next day I went over to the library and found an awesome watercolor picture book along with some history and information about Kansas. The information in the book was fascinating and the paintings in it were beautiful. The book showcased the love that people have for Kansas. Although some people may find the state boring there’s definitely beauty in its peacefulness and serenity.
Colorado
The next day we made it to Colorado. Almost immediately we noticed the scenery starting to change from farms to shrubby things which is likely a result of the farming legislature. When we reached Ordway, CO we stayed with a kind woman from New Zealand that we found on Warm Showers. This woman also happened to be hosting about 15 other touring cyclists the same night, so it was a bit hectic at her house. Somehow she managed to house all of us and we had a nice meal together at a local restaurant.
The next day, Erika’s tire blew out and we had to resort to hitch-hiking. A nice man with a pick up truck helped us out and brought us to Pueblo. He was a funny, talkative guy and told us some interesting facts about the area including something about an alligator farm nearby. As we arrived closer to town, we finally saw the mountains far in the distance.
For next thousand miles or so we would ride along the Rockies, criss-crossing over them seemingly every day.
I’ll always remember one encounter that we had along the homestretch of Kansas when we stopped off at a gas station to get some supplies. Given how friendly folks are in that part of the country, a trucker made conversation with us. He asked us where we were going and we told him going out West and heading to Colorado next. He looked at us sternly and replied, “It’s not bad here in Kansas but once you hit them Rockies in Colorado, that’s God’s country.”
He wasn’t wrong.