After Thanksgiving Tour

[indysteel]

I recognize that last picture as a place my DH and I stopped for a food and potty break on our Katy Trail end-to-end tour this past September.

I'm sorry about your mom; I hope she's doing better. It sounds like the trip was a bit of a mixed bag. I commend you for the miles you did each day. The trail, while flat, can be tiring in my limited experience.

[Catrin]

I hope your mom is starting to feel better. Thank you for posting the pictures and the lessons you learned. At some point I want to do something like this.

DebW and IndySteel, did either of you have problems with dogs on the Katy? My assumption is this would be more of a problem on rural roads passing in front of their "territory" (their front/side yards) than on a rail trail or tow path. Not that it couldn't happen there...

[indysteel]

I hope your mom is starting to feel better. Thank you for posting the pictures and the lessons you learned. At some point I want to do something like this.

DebW and IndySteel, did either of you have problems with dogs on the Katy? My assumption is this would be more of a problem on rural roads passing in front of their "territory" (their front/side yards) than on a rail trail or tow path. Not that it couldn't happen there...

Only one dog gave chase in six days of riding. Squirrels and snakes are a bigger issue. We saw a Copperhead eating a squirrel btw!

To me, the biggest issue along the trail is a lack of services--food, mostly--in some areas. Three of our B&Bs provided a bagged lunch, thank goodness. We might have otherwise had to take would we could find, which was often fried or convenience store food. This holds true for some of the towns where we stayed as well. I had to laugh when we stopped at a convenience store in Booneville. I asked if they had any fresh fruit. "No," she replied, "but we have pizza." Uh, not similar but thanks! Anyway, it put a damper on the trip because I underestimated how hard it would be to get a decent meal. The B&Bs had wonderful breakfasts, but I don't want to eat a heavy meal at breakfast before spending the day on the bike.

I hate dissing the Katy because I know a lot of people really love it, but it just wasn't my favorite vacation.

[DebW]

Only one dog gave chase in six days of riding. Squirrels and snakes are a bigger issue. We saw a Copperhead eating a squirrel btw!

To me, the biggest issue along the trail is a lack of services--food, mostly--in some areas.

At least I missed the copperheads by riding in cold weather. I agree about food on the trail. I would have carried lunch food and eaten it rather than bar and grill food if the weather had been warmer.

[Reesha]

Wow, Deb, you are a trooper! I'm in St. Louis and have the poorest excuse for not doing the Katy... delicate road bike. I really need to get something slightly tougher and take to the trails! Thank you for sharing

[Crankin]

It sounds like an adventure! We have considered doing this, or part of it, but I am not sure if my new bike could handle the surface. I definitely would need different tires, although from what I remember, the surface looked pretty hard packed. I was in the area in September, a few years ago, and the weather was really nice.
Hope your mom is doing better.

[Sky King]

Thanks for the great share. Glad the parents are okay , hard when they have issues and there is nothing you can do but keep riding, then again, riding certainly cuts down on the stress.

[indysteel]

It sounds like an adventure! We have considered doing this, or part of it, but I am not sure if my new bike could handle the surface. I definitely would need different tires, although from what I remember, the surface looked pretty hard packed. I was in the area in September, a few years ago, and the weather was really nice.
Hope your mom is doing better.

I was pretty happy to be on a touring bike with 32 cc tires. Yes, it's generally hard packed, but there are enough twigs, leaves and what not, plus some rutty/rough areas to warrant wider tires. Fenders are nice, too.

[redrhodie]

Wow, Deb, that sounds like a hard trip. It sounds stressful. I hope you're parents are okay.

[DebW]

Thanks for your concern. My Mom is OK, though a somewhat sore hip and stressful situation with my Dad's dementia.

I didn't have any problem with dogs. One squirrel came within inches of hitting my front wheel, and I was warned of crashes caused by squirrels. The cold weather and short daylight made the tour more challenging than it might have been, and many services along the trail were closed for the year, but still a nice tour.