Yipes! Good thing the business end is pointed away.

No doubt, long days of riding a rail trail through endless miles of view-blockers would drive me to the same conclusion as you and Noe. Trees are cool for a while, but they get monotonous. That's why I intend to keep my mileage down to the 30-40 mile range on my U.P. tour. Instead of pounding out the miles, I hope to mix my cycling with other activities--like camping, cooking, hiking, exploring towns & cities, etc.

P.S. The Feeshko and I got married in Jefferson City. It's a weird place to elope to and it's a weird story. But I think it's a good place to end a tour on the Katy.

Yep. A would-be do gooder tried a couple times to move it off the trail and got snapped at for his pains.

The Turtle, by Ogden Nash

The turtle lives 'twixt plated decks,
Which practically conceal its sex.

I think it clever of the turtle
In such a fxi, to be so fertile.

That won't make you popular in Scotland. It's their national flower, I think.

I'd have guessed, but am glad for the confirmation from an expert. 😀

Always disliked those spiny thistles!

https://www.missouriplants.com/Carduus_nutans_page.html

Box turtle

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_box_turtle

Keith
I am staying Friday night in Town and Country Missouri with friends. There house is about 7 miles from the trail
Are you staying in downtown St. Louis?
I will coming across the Eads bridge and stopping at the Arch on Friday on the way to friends house

Dames rocket. An invasive, but edible and pretty good tasting.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesperis_matronalis

Snapping turtle. Stay clear of the bitey end! This time of year, females leave water looking for a good spot to lay eggs. They are primarily aquatic.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle

Box turtle. Front and rear are hinges on the underside so they can close completely.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_box_turtle

Dave

Our plans have changed. We elected to make yesterday, the 21st, our final day of riding. On the other hand we have baseball tickets for Friday's Cubs/Cards game so we won't clear town until Saturday.

Could be that we could link up Friday during the day or Saturday morning depending on where you are.

Camping was viable everywhere we were. Some places are more deluxe than others. Jefferson City has numerous hotels. We made reservations early in the morning of the same day we stayed, no problem. At least three other Katy riders / groups are here as well.

I have several unopened backpacker meals to give you if we can connect and you want them.

I seen this before, too many times

Yep, although I'm inescapbly reminded of a homeless person's mound of possessions when I contemplate the pile.

Not really, because I heard it when Wil rode past ahead of me. I also know that real crossings activate well before the train actually arrives, so I was mostly curious.