"Ain't nothin' wrong with it" the grumpy looking man with an apron says. He had plugged in a sawsall turned it on and off then walked away. We have returned to the Sharps Corner for breakfast and joined by Mark. Patrick tried a plug by a table and it didn't appear to work. After asking the waiter about another plug, Patrick got a surly reply of basically no. Then this guy comes out to check the plug. Such a difference from our experience here last night. Short story is that Patrick and the waiter had a "stand-off", we did not get refills on our coffee and the waiter did not get a tip.
After a short cruise around downtown Hermann to check out the buildings, we say goodbye to Mark and head back across the Missouri and onto the Katy Trail headed west. The wind has dropped off and there is plenty of sunshine. We ride along farm fields, through forests and past old barns. There are a couple of trailheads and small towns on the route, but it seems the Katy is not bringing in enough business to sustain any that would cater to the tourists.
The restaurant we planned to eat at is closed. Many of the towns look dilapidated, nice old buildings falling into ruin. We eat most of our remaining food and arrive in Jefferson City hungry. The capitol building of Missouri is visible from a long ways away, but the town is located on the south side of the river and we don't see any food places on this side. So we head up the hill to our "Warmshowers" host. We have arrived earlier than expected, but Nick arrives home shortly after five. He works for the Missouri National Guard. We have a very nice evening talking with him. He barbecues up a nice burger and brats and the local IPA's are good.
We meet some cyclists that do not believe in light-weight touring. Dan, check-out that cooler! Can you imagine how much beer and ice you could carry in one of those?
