Reply to Rock Island Riders - your help needed

If you have ridden the new Rock Island trail, or plan to in the near future, I would appreciate any help you can offer regarding businesses and services between Windsor and Pleasant Hill. This section officially opens this weekend, Dec 10.

I'd like to keep BikeRockIsland.com as accurate as possible, but I live in eastern MO, and unfortunately probably won't get out there until spring. I've gathered what info is available on the internet, but of course this can be incomplete or inaccurate.

If you know of any relevant businesses/services between Windsor and Pleasant Hill that are not already listed, please post something here so we can get them listed for the benefit of future trail users.

Of course we have all the Windsor businesses that were already there for the Katy Trail.

In Leeton, I know of a Casey's and the Sunflower Bank (for ATM).

Chilhowee used to have a grocery store, but I believe it was destroyed by fire a few months ago.

I understand there's a trail parking lot in Medford.

Most of the Pleasant Hill businesses are about a mile up 7 Hwy from the trail, but there is a bike shop and a BBQ place along the trail.

That's a pretty long 36-mile stretch from Leeton to Pleasant Hill without any services. I'm hoping there are at least some vending machines and trailhead restrooms in between.

Thank you in advance for any input you might have.

Happy trails!

If I do make it to the dedication (very iffy as of today), I will drive through the towns on the way back and make notes.

A suggestion for this site: Edit the top image of the page to show the Rock Island intersection at Windsor and make that a clickable link that takes us to the BikeRockIsland site (and vice versa).

That's a great idea to add a Rock Island link to the top map. It will take a while to edit the map graphics, but in the meantime I added a "quick and dirty" link right under the map.
Thanks for the suggestion!

The fact that you named it BikeRockIsland.com not BikeRockIslandTrail.com is triggering my OCD big time.

Hi Ray. I appreciate you jumping on this and getting some information. I used your site a couple years ago for a ride from Clinton to St. Charles. I'm putting together a group for a ride next year, probably taking Amtrak to Pleasant Hill, then riding the spur to Windsor and on to St. Charles again. Places with names like Pleasant Hill and Lee's Summit can be a little intimidating for bikers, especially geezers like me. I was looking for a place to overnight on the spur, but it looks pretty desolate. Do you know if there are any camping opportunities?

Lee's Summit, Warrensburg, then Sedalia. There is no station in Pleasant Hill.

Ray, I realize you are soliciting west end info but you mention on the Rock Island website the east end will eventually connect with Washington. They have announced a contractor for the new Rt 47 bridge to be completed in 2018. The trail goes through Union to end at Labadie east of Washington. There could be a spur coming back to Washington from Labadie or one from Union north to Washington?

Denny...just so you know...(if you don't already)...the Katy won't take you to St. Louis. It will take you St. Charles. You'll need to figure out some kind of shuttle to get you to the Amtrak Station in St. Louis...or at least to the commuter train at the Airport that you can take downtown (near the Amtrak Station). Hoping to be help here. Have a great trip.

We drove to the towns between Pleasant Hill and Windsor. Medford has trail head parking lot with a portable bathroom and that is the only one I saw. The Casey's in Leeton is about a mile from the trail. It would be nice if there was some type of water available. That is a long distance on a hot summer day not to be able to refill your bottle.

I rode the RIT from Windsor to Medford. I planned to ride to Pleasant Hill but ran out of time and energy. Medford, Chilhowee, and Leeton all have trail heads with porta-potties. I think only one had a couple of picnic tables but I'm not sure. The Casey's in Leeton is about a 1/2 mile from the trail. I didn't see a grocery store in Chilhowee but I did fine Stimpy's Roadhouse. I'm not sure if a person should eat there. :)

When I Googled Stimpy Roadhouse it showed several health violations in the last few years. But, they were all corrected. Just sayin.