After our first day on the Katy Path, Josh and I knew that if we have been ever going to trip throughout the state of Missouri, we have been actually going to have to select up the tempo. The day past we had traveled simply over twenty miles, and it had taken us a number of hours – for much longer than we initially estimated as a result of a late begin, too many photograph stops, and most of all, a moist and soggy path.
So once we woke on our second day, we shortly packed up our gear and cycled out of Windsor, heading again within the path we had come.
For 3 hours straight we did nothing however put our heads down and trip. Our purpose for the day was to backtrack to Sedalia after which push on from there a further forty miles to town of New Franklin. But when we have been ever going to get there, we would have liked to do some severe using. And seeing how moist the path was, we knew we had our work reduce out for us.
The picture under exhibits a path crossing, the place the Katy Path jumps throughout an everyday paved highway. Within the sand on the backside of the path you’ll be able to see plenty of twisted tire tracks, bending and sloping in each path. I took the photograph as an instance simply how troublesome it was to cycle in a straight line and acquire any form of momentum on the path.
It was on this present day that I spotted simply how a lot I like hills. Whereas they might be troublesome to climb up at instances, the benefit of a hill is that after you attain the highest there may be normally a chance to coast as you finally hit the downhill. Right here on the Katy Path, nonetheless, the place the whole lot was flat (and the path was close to mud) there was no alternative for coasting. I attempted a number of instances to face and coast on my tiny purple folding bike, however I’d solely make it about fifteen toes earlier than my tires would sink in to the tender earth and my self-powered car was delivered to a standstill.
After three hours of continuous using, we lastly reached Sedalia. Whereas we felt as if we had simply accomplished a leg of the Tour de France, we had (in actuality) coated barely lower than 22 miles. Once we did the mathematics, we have been depressed to study that we have been averaging solely seven miles per hour. At this charge, it will be dusk earlier than we reached New Franklin.
“And who is aware of how lengthy it’d take us to achieve the east facet of the state,” I believed to myself.
In Sedalia, we stopped and rested, ate some lunch and started to speak about our plans for the subsequent few days.
We determined that we might attain New Franklin by dusk, however we’d have little time to do anything however trip, trip, trip.
Josh and I mentioned it and we agreed that we needed to do extra in Missouri than simply spend numerous hours biking the Katy Path. I needed to go sluggish; to cease and discover every of the tiny cities we got here throughout; and actually study concerning the historical past of the path and the encircling areas. And we each agreed that we’d be unable to try this if we spent the subsequent 4 days with our heads down, pushing our bikes by water, grime and dust.
So after consuming our lunch, discussing our choices, and inquiring with the lady contained in the Sedalia station, we determined to pack up the bikes and head again to Josh’s – with plans of returning to the Katy Path in a day or two – after it stopped raining.
Our plan was to return to Josh’s home, get showered up, and recoup. Within the morning, relying on the climate, we’d both 1) drive as much as New Franklin and proceed our journey from there… or 2) (within the case of an excessive downpour) discover some small Missouri cities in Josh’s automobile – thus enabling us to do the sluggish wandering historic stuff we each had dreamt about once we initially started our tour.
We have been each bummed to have deserted the route after simply two days, however I used to be glad that we’d now have the time to do different issues. On the drive again to Josh’s we talked about our choices and determined that there was nonetheless lots to do. We’d get again on the Katy Path in some unspecified time in the future over the subsequent couple days. However within the meantime… because the rain started to fall as soon as once more… we made different plans.
Keep tuned for the subsequent submit in my collection of posts on Missouri and the well-known Katy Path. It might sound just like the journey is over at this level, however we do hit the path once more… and there’s extra tales to inform. So test again in a couple of days for extra moist and soggy Mid-West adventures.