May 21, 2010

After an evening at a campground in St Charles, MO, the bike trip began on the Katy trail, a 225 mile stretch along the Missouri that is the longest bike trail in the US. It is the old railroad bed on the Missouri, Kansas, and Texas line. I decided to use my mountain bike on day 1 since I was told that the recent rains had the Missouri at an extraordinarily high level and that there would be wet places along the trail. It turned out that a road bike would have been fine, and I paid the price, pedaling 65 miles with knobby tires on hard-packed gravel. My legs were feeling weary at about 45 miles, but I just willed them forward. The ride was amazingly beautiful. I saw more bluebirds and indigo buntings than ever, easily more than 100. There were also many finches and cardinals and numerous other birds I couldn’t identify. At my first resting point, there was a plaque commemorating the Lewis and Clark Expedition which began out of St Charles on May 21, 1804. I was amazed. I had no idea that my start date coincided with theirs. That just made things a little extra special. At about mile 50, I saw Jamye passing by in the Airstream on highway 94, which parallels the trail and Missouri. I called her on my cell phone, and she stopped a few miles ahead. We visited for about 10 minutes. I thought how 206 years had allowed such conveniences, with cell phones, GPS systems, 4runners and a stop for provisions the evening before at target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. Thanks to our courageous forefathers, we can enjoy the many fruits of their labors!