The shuttle trailer was not quite long enough for my bike. I had to show the guy a couple things about securing a bike this long in a short trailer. Once secured, it made the trip fine.
This is one of several stretches where the park crews scraped off the silt deposit, seen on both sides of the path, and re-surfaced with fresh crushed rock.
The trailhead to North Jefferson. After leaving here going eastbound, I met 20 or 30 dayriders pedaling westbound. One couple I spoke to was part of a supported bicycle tour told me about a detour just west of Portland and to look for the "pink arrows" to get around the blocked trail. Seems there was a section of one of the bluffs between mile marker 118 and 117 that collapsed and completely blocked the trail. I got off the trail okay, but missed the turn to get back on and ended up riding a couple miles on the highway to Portland, where I got back on the trail.
By the time I got here, it was late afternoon and I had not seen any other riders since about 2:00 pm. It was warm, but as long as you kept moving, the "wind" in your face was enough to keep you comfortable.
Portland, MO, where I stopped at Holzhauser's Bar and Grill and got a bacon cheeseburger and three small bottles of chocolate milk for a late (4:00 pm) lunch. Portland is also where I got back on the Katy Trail after missing the turnoff to get back on.
I got to McKittrick at about 5:15 pm and had not seen any other riders on the trail for several hours. I spoke to a local here and was told about several places to stay in Hermann, one of which was the motel I finally settled on.
About 53 miles worth of dust I had to brush off before moving the bike into the room. I also dusted off the top of the tailbag and each of the panniers all over.
Some leaves I had scooped up along the way. It took about 15 solid minutes working with a wisk broom I purchased in Boonville to clean the dust off the paniers, tailbag, bike frame and wheels. That new crushed rock that has been put down to repair flood damage is lots more dusty than the trail between Clinton and Boonville.
