Jefferson City rest day

We couldn't find a room in our next stop, Hermann, because of the Memorial Day weekend so we decided to take a 0 day. Got up late and walked to a nice cafe called the High Rise Bakery. Just up J's alley. She had 2 croisants with a latte and we sat at an outside table. So European. After breakfast we window shopped along old town street and then walked to the Capitol. It was open so we saw the exhibits on Missouri history. Beautiful building inside. Tall dome, everything a capitol building should have. But we didn't see any homeless people camping on the lawns. I wonder if they bus them to California. We walked back to the hotel and napped and blogged and that was what a 0 day should be.

Boonville to Jefferson City

I'm sorry to say I just noticed you can't read all the history stuff I' been showing. I can read it in the originals but it's bluured on the blog. It's interesting history so I hope at each one of the towns you'll google it. So I'll stop showing any of those but I'll mention the town. The Pedalers Jamboree is a bunch of concerts held at various places in and near Boonville over Memorial Day. We were lucky enough to get caught in it. After leaving we cross the Missouri River bridge getting our first sight of the river. We rode thru New Franklin and on to Rocheport and thats where it started. That was one of their concert venues and it was just getting started. So the people start pedaling in from Columbia, home to the University of Missouri, and end in Boonville and along the way there are venues. From Rocheport it was a steady stream of bikers and we were going against the tide. Every shape of bike, ice chests, sleeping gear, costumes, animals and kids in trailors, it was all there with a lot of dust. 8.3 miles of this before we got to the spur trail leading from Columbia. Johanna's bike developed a grinding squeak which I thought was in the rear brake pad. At Coopers Landing I found a hose and tried to blow it out water water pressure and that worked for a mile and back squeaking. Finally it wore itsself away and quit. We passed through Providence, Easley, Wilton, Hartsburg, Claysville and finally to N. Jefferson, the railroad siding across the river from the Missouri capitol of Jefferson City. Then had 3 miles to get to the hotel. We followed some guys that knew the area they showed us the hotel. Huge place with a 9 story atrium inside like the Hyatt in SF. And then 2 very dirty bikers show up pushing their bike thru the lobby to the desk. We went to Paddys pub for dinner and I had a pork tenderloin sandwich which was a lb of meat deep fried and in a bun. J had a hamburger and we got some good Austian dark lager. I paid the price with a GIRD attack that night.

Sedalia to Boonville

We left our beautiful hotel and the tire held up overnight so we got on the trail. Rode to Clifton City with birds chirping all the way. We rode mostly in a tree tunnel. Supposedly this was the hardest section on the trail as we passed into the Ozarks and it got a little more hilly but we didn't notice much difference. We passed thru Pilot Grove and on to Boonville. Since there was the Pedalers Jamboree going on the weekend the lodging was dear so we ended up at the Victorian Manor for a more then mosest fee. It was nice and the hosts were great but it's not our style. We ate next door at the Fredrick hotel which was where we wanted to stayed but it was booked as was everything else. After a walk thru town we retired to our sumptous surroundings in the Manor.

Clinton to Sedalia via Katy Trail

Parked the truck at the rec center, unloaded, set up and biked off to the trailhead. The first few miles of the trail were iin the open but then we got into like a tree lined tunnel. The birds were tweeting, the squirrels were running along the trail, and a couple of turtles were crossing. The honeysuckle was blooming and the smell was delightful. The first town we came to was Calhoun. The main town and the trailhead were off the trail so we just sat on a bench and had fluids. It was warm and a little muggy. We rode on to Windsor where theres nice shady benches with the history of the town and how the RR affected it printed on walls above the benches. Most of the towns have this sort of thing. Plus there's toilets and water taps. About half way to Sedalia I noticed my rear tire seemed spongy. Finally got to a point that I was slipping in the gravel. I stopped and pumped up the tire and made it to the train depot in Sedalia. There was nice pump the but when I tried to use the valve stem came off in my hand. I googlrd 'bike shop near me' and there was on about 500 feet away. Pushed the bike there and the owner Ebbie said he couldn't get to it till noon the next day. He had a bum collarbone and couldn't lift the bike up and had to wait for his helper to come in. So Johanna rode her bike to the hotel and I walked carrying my panniers. The Bothwell hotel was beautiful inside. Seven story red brick and the interior was like the old days, oak bannisters, marble floors, and lots of comfy plush chairs. We got a nice room an the 7th floor. Went to dinner and then walked down to an ice cream parlour for dessert. While I was getting my cone Ebbie called and said my bike was ready. A helper had shown up looking for something to do so Ebbie told him to fix my flat. We walked over and go the bike and had a long chat with Ebbie and then I rode while Johanna walked. Thanks Ebbie for the good job.

Norfolk to Clinton

Drove fron Norfolk Ne to Clinton. Got in about 1700 and got a nice room at the Parkfield Inn for 95$. We drove down to the fabled town square for a look. The square was a long city block on each side with the county courthouse in the middle. We walked around the square window shopping. Most of the places had some sort of business in them and a few were vacant but all in all it was a semi vibrant downtown. We then went looking for the start of the Katy trail and the rec center where I can leave my truck long term. Atfer some missed turns we found the trailhead and the rec center. We went back to the motel and walked over to a mexican restaurant and had dinner. Long drive so it was an early bedtime.

Neligh to Norfolk

Snuck away from the Neligh motel at 0830. Wind blowing from our right quater. There was a washout on the trail below Neligh so we took the highway. Stopped at Oakdale to to call shuttle guy. All set upfor tomorrow. Rode on thru Tilden to Meadow Grove where the trail veered away from the highway. The vegitation got more lush as we were near the Elkhorn River and there were a lot of marshes in the area. It also got more humid. We crossed the elkhorn again and in 2 miles we were riding on a nice concrete 12 foot wide trail. The trail ends in Ta-Ha-Zouka Park. At trails end we got a local to take our pic. So then rode to motel only to find most the motels were full due to major construction woing in the area. The nice lady called around and got us a room not to far away luckily. We enjoyed the trail in some sections while other parts were a slog. It's depressing to see those nice small towns dying. The people we met were friendly so all in all it was a good ride. On Tuesday my shuttle guy picked me up and drove me back to Valentine to get my truck. I drove it back while Johanna stayed at the motel to supposedly work on the blog. Looks like what happened was she napped, looked at her device, and ate a pound of gummy bears. Wednesday we drove to Clinton Missouri to start the Katy Trail on Thursday.