K Brand from Missouri City, TX on 9/13/2017 8:49:21 AM:
This is a travelogue that I wrote from one of my Houston friends, who wanted to ride the Trail. My original Word document included photos, which did not paste into this reply, so that's why some of the text, which are photo captions, may seem out of place. We are riding during the last week of Sept 2017, and this will be our 8th "end-to-end" trail ride. I am 63 and an avid road cyclist.
The Katy Trail – The Whole Enchilada
It’s a great ride, and there are countless options open to riders.
First, here's a bit of background. We began riding the Katy Trail about 15 years ago. We started with short rides with family and friends from Missouri. My wife and I are from Missouri, so we have always had a base of operations, and we could combine a trip on the trail with visits with my brothers and sister. Our first rides were based from Franklin, where we camped at the Katy Roundhouse Campgrounds.
Everyone would arrive during the evening on Friday, and after a big breakfast, we would ride to Rocheport, which is just ten miles to the east. Rocheport has numerous B&B’s antique shops, a winery just a couple of miles further east, and burger café/bike shop (this year the café bike shop was closed/out of business). Most of our group stopped for lunch and shopping, and then they returned to Franklin. Some of us biked further and went on to Columbia or to Easley before returning to the campground. We spent Saturday evening at Franklin, and Sunday morning we broke camp.
After the first trip I was hooked, and I bought a hybrid bicycle. Since my wife’s mother lives in Knob Noster, which is only about 30 miles from the trailhead in Clinton and about 20 miles from the trailhead in Sedalia, I started riding the Clinton-Sedalia segment every time we visited my mother-in-law. After several solo trips, between Sedalia and Clinton, I talked my brother into riding from Clinton to Franklin on the Friday before our annual family Katy Trail ride. This laid the groundwork for what came to be our annual Katy Trail Ride – The Whole Enchilada. Seven years ago one of my brothers became an empty nester, while my other siblings became more involved in high school and collegiate athletics. I proposed to my empty nester brother that we ride the whole trail. Our wives were more interested in riding short segments, antiquing, and visiting the wineries. They were more than happy to let us ride, while they provided any SAG support. The first year, they were almost bothersome, and they called often to check our progress. Of late, they are riding more, but by themselves, while Paul and I travel at a faster pace. They like to stop and visit the numerous wineries. Originally, Paul had trouble obtaining enough vacation to do a four-day, so we rode the whole trail during a span of three days.
The Trail attracts us because of its history, and especially its railroad history. My brother and I like trains. I am a geologist, so there are things for the geologist to see. We also enjoy cycling and the out of doors.
Our ride itinerary has become an annual routine. We ride every year during the 3rd or 4th week of September. Those weekends correspond to my grandson’s and son’s birthday, so it allows us to celebrate with them before or after we ride. The trees are starting to turn color, and the scenery can be very beautiful. During this time of year, the Missouri weather is variable. This last year, the temps were in the low 90’s by afternoon, and during other trips, our starts have had temps in the upper 40’s before climbing into the upper 50’s or lower 60’s.
During our last seven trips across Missouri, we have had rain of varying duration and intensity during each ride. This year the rains began just 3 miles from the end of our ride. It poured, but by the time we reached the Boat Landing in St Charles, the rain had stopped. During one ride, a front pass