Reply to Sedalia to Rocheport

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Reply to Sedalia to Rocheport

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Troy from Neenah Wi on 2/19/2017 8:02:13 PM:

At the end of April I'm taking the Amtrak to Sedalia from Kirkwood. The train gets to Sedalia at 12:45pm. My first night is in Rochester about 50 miles away. My question is will I make it before sunset at 8:00pm? I'm using a gravel bike with 700x32 tires. My average pace is between 12-14 mph on the country roads back home but I've never really ridden on limestone and I'm a bit nervous with that first day, also being the only day going uphill most of the time.

Hank on 2/19/2017 8:29:24 PM:

You should be fine. Get some food in Boonville and then cruise into Rocheport by early evening. If you are an experienced cyclist you really should have no problem.

ArkyKenny on 2/19/2017 9:18:35 PM:

Agree with the others. You'll be fine and you'll average 12-14 on Katy too: 1) its a railroad grade 2) crushed limestone is easier than gravel roads, 3) it's downhill, 4) prevailing winds are likely to be on your side.

There is no water between Sedaila and Pilot Grove, so bring plenty.

Sedalia to Pilot Grove is one of my favorite sections of the trail: Lots of tree tunnels and cut throughs. It's very easy to imagine the old steam engines there. Once you cross over the interstate, there is a long downhill section into Booneville that is the hill where a widow had a pig get killed by a train: She wanted to be paid by the railroad for her pig, and she put grease (from her hogs) on the track making the trains spin out as they attempted to climb the hill. The railroad eventually paid her. I think of that story every time I climb that hill out of Booneville.

Anonymous on 2/20/2017 7:07:17 AM:

Thanks for the responses! Does anyone know how easy the train ride with a bike is? Do I have to make reservations, should I be worried about spots filling up, etc.? I have purchased my ticket already.

Allen from Shawnee on 2/20/2017 7:28:57 AM:

Yes you definitely need reservations for you bike as there are a limited number available and they often fill up.

Allen

Anonymous on 2/20/2017 8:08:01 AM:

Said pig grease is lard. Lard Hill is the long hill in Boonville.

BikerBoy from Edwardsville, IL on 2/20/2017 2:59:22 PM:

You should have a backup plan. What if the train is late? It shares the track with Union Pacific freights and is "on-time" (within 30 minutes of schedule) 88% of the time. But that means that 1/8 of trips are late -- sometimes very late.

What if you hit a thunderstorm or even a long rainstorm? That could slow you down considerably.

Your backup could be to stay in Sedalia or Pilot Grove. But if you can make it to Boonville, you can probably make it to Rocheport the same evening.

But you should not count on things going perfectly, especially the first day out (spoken from experience!).

Jim from St Thomas on 2/20/2017 6:46:31 PM:

At the very least pack a good bike light. I am not condoning riding the Katy after it closes at dark but sh*t happens and if you need an extra hour in the dark to make Rocheport a light would be a good thing to have.

Hank on 2/20/2017 8:08:25 PM:

Just to be clear, you MUST have a bike reservation with Amtrak or you won't be able to take your bike.

Mark from Lee's Summit on 2/20/2017 11:05:35 PM:

Here is a link to my Sedalia to Rocheport gps summary and profile map during the fall of 2015:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/926250577

I really enjoyed spending time at both the Sedalia and Boonville old train depots (they are two of the best old stations along the whole Katy Trail), so you might miss out on some of that scenery if you are in a big hurry during your first day. The rolling hills are significant along this section, but you do get to enjoy some really nice downhills too...and those aren't really around once you start riding along the Missouri River.

Allen from Shawnee on 2/21/2017 7:02:03 AM:

I would like to add my 2 Cents to this discussion, you can pay me later. Making a couple of assumptions here. 1- since you are going to Rocheport you are doing B&B's. 2- you are also eating out most of time. 3- you are not carrying camping and cooking gear or a lot of food. If these assumptions are correct then you are only carrying clothing, water, and a few snacks. A fit rider loaded like this should be able to navigate the Sedalia to Rocheport 50 miles within the allotted time limit.
After you leave Boonville the weight you carry isn't so important because it's mostly level to downhill. The ride from Sedalia to Boonville the weight will matter a lot. I am a self contained fully loaded tourer and many of the hills on this section are long and reduce my speed to 6-8 mph. I personally couldn't maintain a 12-14 mph average in this section. Rain for a long period of time can make this section a nightmare if you are heavily loaded.
Anyway have a good trip and don't forget to stop and smell the roses.

Allen

Dave from Kirkwood on 2/21/2017 4:15:23 PM:

FYI about riding on Amtrak with bike: You definitely need a ticket. There is an option to "Add a bike" for $10 when buying your ticket, not sure how to add one after already buying ticket.

Your bike will be in a passenger car, fitting into a limited number of spots at the end of the car (hence the limited number of bike tickets available per train). Be prepared to lift your bike (and all other stuff) into train car up a couple steep steps. You can access your bike easy enough during long train trip, assuming you are seated in the same car.

The Kirkwood trains usually leave right on time (starting in St. Louis, so no delays usually). Boarding is done efficiently, so be ready to load and go.

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