Wednesday;
Another 50 miles day today, from Jefferson City to Boonville. Saw a few things along the trail I hadn't seen the last time through. One, at least, by accident. Up at 5am and packed up, took our gear to the trucks and rode a few miles to breakfast. We were hungry when we got there. The pancake man was there with french toast, sausage, and fresh cut fruit ..... yum! The local TV station was also taking video of us coming down the new bridge ramp, and at breakfast, and of course, the Pancake Man put on a bit of a show for them. He is such a showman, with a personality that won't stop.
I think it's impossible to go across the Jefferson City Bridge without stopping for a picture of the Capitol, especially in the early morning light.
Breakfast with the Pancake Man!
Restricted Parking ....... that means no cars, bikes only, right? Works for me!
Kelley and Rob leaving out ahead of me in the morning light with looonngg shadows.
Another early morning shot of a pretty farm right along the trail, and freshly mowed hay.
I know everyone has heard of the Cadillac Ranch, this must be the "Boat-au-Lac" ranch.
"For sale, in quaint Missouri town. Small town charm, quality built solid brick home with fireplace and front porch. One owner with many unique features including a comfy front porch chaise. Beautiful shade trees in back, and overlooking the Katy Trail with instant access, reduced price on this unique home if you buy today"
Last time around I looked for the "Old Burr Oak", a tree that is estimated to be around 375 years old, and thanks to good directions from Kathy, this time I found it. It's about a quarter mile off the trail, and even from a distance it's impressive. If you compare the trunk to my bike, you can see that it's probably close to 12 feet in diameter. Still very healthy looking, it was already an old tree when Lewis and Clark came by. Quite an amazing sight.
I didn't want it to fall over while I was there, so I thought I'd hold it up for a bit.
This area is noted for towering limestone cliffs on one side of the trail, and trees and the river on the other side. A very pretty area to ride through. The scenery changes constantly as you ride the trail, from one end to the other, so it's very hard to get bored.
A little break waiting for the others to catch up. A pretty little bench overlooking the river, time for a little rest and ....
A little snack! Grabbed an extra bag of freshly made granola from the last rest stop, it was delicious, so I ate it all!
Before long we were in Rocheport, and this is the Main street. As you can see, the flag is standing out to the east from the pole. A reminder that we have had headwinds every single solitary day this week. All the bikes you see are at the Rocheport General Store, a good place to eat and drink along the trail. We decided to push on to Boonville, however and eat lunch there as it was only 10:30am here.
Rocheport of course is famous for having the only tunnel on the Katy Trail, and here is yours truly exiting the tunnel. Picture courtesy of Kelley.
New Franklin, Missouri, is known as the Mother of the Santa Fe Trail. The monument here depicts early pioneers along the trail. This must be new as it is right on the trail and I never saw it before. Some beautiful art work etched on polished granite. I only wish my camera would have picked it up better.
I've known there was a campground in Franklin called the Katy Roundhouse, but always thought they were just using the name.
But then ..... I found this ...... an original engine turntable, not in the best of shape anymore, but still holding together well enough to tell what it was. I didn't find any actual roundhouse to go with the turntable, but it had to be right here with it. This, I never knew was here either. See what you find when you venture off the trail even just a little ways?
We rode the short distance from Franklin to Boonville and into town across the dedicated protected bike lane on the bridge over the river. At the bottom, we stopped at the restaurant where we were planning on eating only to find a "closed" sign. I swear, this luck is going to follow us everywhere. fortunately, Boonville has several restaurants, and just up the street was a nice little place where I had a salad from a very fresh, nicely stocked salad bar. Something cold just hit the spot. We then headed to the park and set up camp for another night. I think I must have set up a bit too close to the woods as I ended up with some very itchy insect bites to go along with my red ankle rash. Oh well, tent camping isn't for the timid.
Dinner here was another $10 Boonville Bucks check, and a bus trip into town. We did find a restaurant that had good food and was a bit trendy and atmospheric, and the food was good, although I think when it said "special menu and pricing for Katy Trail riders", what that really meant was that they doubled their normal prices just for us. The ten dollar check helped though, and the food and drink was good. A quiet night and a good nights sleep, and I never knew about the new bites until after we got going in the morning. Ah me, burned nose, rashy ankles, itchy bites...... it's all part of the experience.
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