Bicycling the Lewis & Clark Trail
Rocheport to Rhineland, MO

Sunday, September 5, 2004
Distance Cycled: 75 miles
Average Speed: 12.7 mph

We rode our bicycles 75 miles on the KATY trail today. There was almost no elevation change all day. Once in a while we would need to go up to get over the top of a flood levee but most of the time it was just flat. We rode along the base of several cliffs. The KATY railroad was built on the very edge of the Missouri River flood plain.

We had a few problems with rain erosion in a few places. The bicycle would bounce from one rain rut to the next until we would finally get past them, and the leaves had started to fall so places it was hard to see the bumps. In the last 5 miles we came to a section of the KATY trail that was not in very good shape. In several places new limestone was placed on the trail but they were not packed down. In one place Mary Kay caught the front wheel in 3 inches of very soft material and the bicycle was down in less than a second. Mary Kay landed on her behind and now has a very sore back. I hope she will be able to ride tomorrow. Tonight we are at a B&B and because the local restaurant is closed tonight our hostess cooked us an excellent dinner and dessert, we all feel very spoiled.