Beautiful trail with great access and not crowded in early May. Many birds (including a turkey.)…read moreRent bikes right on the trail in St Charles from the Bike Stop Cafe.

For my thousandth review, I had to pick somewhere special and to me, there's nowhere more special…read morein the state of Missouri than the Katy Trail. My friend and I rode this trail in its entirety; just over 240 total miles of trail spanning Clinton, MO to Machens, MO east to west, and the three and a half days out here were paradise. The trees recently bloomed (mid-May) and formed a shaded tunnel for several miles along the ride. Aside from the occasional rural highway to cross, you'll ride free of cars in peace on this classic rails-to-trail state park. I don't know if it's the constant endorphins from riding, the unique sights and smells of nature, or just the unknown adventure of heading across the state by bike, but this equated to one of my favorite trips I've ever taken in my life. For the next trip, we're taking Amtrak straight to Sedalia so we don't have to get dropped off, plus, who doesn't love traveling by train? I want to break it down day by day below, as well as shout out to some great local spots that we found along the way. But first, trail details if you're planning a trip: It's crushed limestone, which can be dry and dusty some years, or a bit sloshy during others. I have a road bike but opted to take a cross bike for this one with 35 mm tires. While the trail packs down very well and is ridable from nearly any bike, I highly recommend at least 30 mm or wider tires. No need for mountain bike tires, but at least something wide enough to be more comfortable as you log miles. Day 1: We were dropped off at Clinton and had a destination of Boonville; all told it was around 78 miles with a break halfway in Sedalia. The Clinton stretch is a bit boring compared to the rest, with looser gravel and not a ton of scenery. Sedalia was a nice change of pace and we broke from the trail to find Kehde's BBQ in an old MKT train car, along with Ozark Coffee which is by far the best cup of coffee in Sedalia. There's a stretch after Sedalia with no trailheads, no water, no nothing, so plan accordingly. We finished our first day by staying in the historic Hotel Frederick in Boonville, ready to set out and get river views for day 2. Day 2: By far the most epic day. The bluffs as you approach Rocheport are towering and unlike most of Missouri's somewhat limited scenery. The Rocheport tunnel is amazing and you've got to get a photo there, and then shortly after you'll find Meriweather Cafe... the best spot along our trip. Not too far after that is the landing with music, Thai food (Chim's) and scenery. We dodged some thunderstorms in mid-May, but were able to get into our hotel at Jeff City right before the skies opened up. Day 3: Jeff City is not my fav, so we waited out storms and headed through a workmanlike, dodgy part of the trail. It got better as we got further away from Jeff City, and the sun popped out and the trail met the river again. Scenery slowly changes as you approach Hermann, MO, famous for all their wineries and festivals. Crashed at an AirBNB in the middle of nowhere that night, and got up before the sun to finish the trail on the final day. Day 4: My friend and I were up and out by 5:45 a.m. so we could make our train back to KC. Beautiful early morning ride through the country, then into Weldon Spring and a nature preserve just outside St. Louis. This was a beautiful stretch, but it starts to feel more suburban the closer in you get which feels weird after nothing but nature. We made it to St. Charles, took photos with the Lewis & Clark statues, and crushed some food at Bike Stop Cafe. All that was left is a somewhat odd 13 miles of loose track out to Machens, a total map dot. Not sure why the trail goes here, but we had to finish it all so we did it just this once. It would be a much more natural ending, or beginning, to situate in St. Charles as there are tons of places to stay and eat, plus a classic river landing. We got picked up from a scheduled shuttle with Bike Stop Cafe and they took us out to the Kirkwood Amtrak, about 45 minutes away for $80. We hopped aboard the train (only an extra $10 per person for bikes, but they can only accommodate 4 per train so make reservations) and took it back to Union Station back home in KC. This place is a win-win-win: A major win for cyclists/hikers/nature enthusiasts, a win for cars who hate cyclists on the road (c'mon man), and a win for Missouri as it showcases the longest rails-to-trails conversion in the entire US. They take good care of it overall, but I'd love to see some more water stops along the way as you really need to ration it at times. The Katy really is a special place, and whether you set out to do the whole thing, ride a day with friends to a winery/brewery, or take the fam to explore, I cannot recommend it highly enough. Typically when I take trips, I want to get AWAY from the state I live in, but having this one in my back yard makes for an unforgettable trip and one I'm hoping to make into an annual tradition.

A small but nice city park with bathrooms, picnic tables, playground, and exercise path.read more

For what it is--a small neighborhood park--Parkwood does its job very well. It packs in features…read morelarger parks can't boast. Besides a picnic pavilion with grills and restrooms there's a playground with rubberized surface and short, paved hiking trail (.7 mile). The trail includes fitness stations along its course. A smiling concrete lizard along the path will delight children of any age. There's even enough flat green space for tossing a ball or frisbee. It's located next to Parkwood Elementary School and across from Holy Spirit Catholic Church.

We decided to go to the lake. It was serene. It has a very peaceful vibe. People are kayaking,…read more walking and riding bikes. The lake is beautiful. Unfortunately I didn't feel like taking a stroll. Therefore I sat and watch people. There were some interesting people and families.

I come here often. Sometimes for solitude, sometimes to get active with friends. My only issue was…read morethat the restrooms were not available -- likely because it was out of season when I went. Love how BIG it is.. and I can get my steps in with one lap! If you go when it's cold, the portion of the trail not blocked by trees is very cold! Dress warm!

A very nice aquatic facility! I was invited by a friend who is a St. Charles resident. This pool is…read morefairly strict about non-resident passes, which I do understand and it is their right. It makes the pools less crowded, and I'm sure is easier on the lifeguards and maintenance staff. I have no complaints about my time actually poolside. However, I am knocking a star for their terrible online ticketing website. It appears they limit non-resident passes to twenty a day, which makes getting put into a que and then taken to another page, which was finicky, to pay with credit card quite annoying and also nervemaking, as I worried we had driven out for nothing as the number of tickets left went down... Anyway, I was impressed overall. Not sure I'll be back out before it closes for the season (mid-August, which seems early), but I was happy to invited once!

Blanchette Park was acquired by St. Charles in 1914, making it the oldest in the city's park…read moresystem. However, the updated park stands up well to newer parks. Its 44 acres include an outdoor aquatic center, baseball/softball diamonds, large playground (with rubberized surface), tennis/pickleball courts, horseshoe pits, football field, Ben Rau floral garden, picnic pavilions, and hiking trail. In winter, a park hill provides snow sledding. A serene spot in the park is set aside for the Angel of Hope statue, a memorial to all parents who have experienced the death of a child. Each December 6 an evening candlelight memorial service is held here.

Neighborhood playgrounds are excellent, but otherwise lacking for a park. Kids will have fun or…read moreeat and watch kids play plus use the nice amenities for a restrooms. But don't come for hiking if any other adult activities.

While on a family reunion we had downtime and needed a cheap/free activity for the kiddos. This…read morepark was AWESOME. It is built very smartly. There are shaded overwatch towers for parents to watch their kids in any part of the park, there is a splash park and multiple playground areas dependent on your child's size. We stayed for over two hours and the kids did not want to leave. Our kids ages range from 10-4 and everyone had a good time. My mother in law walked the trail several times. The other parents/kids were very friendly too, great park, great atmosphere. The only downside, which isn't even bad, it's expected, is that the bathrooms were not that clean, but it was manageable for what was needed for the kiddos to pee and go back to playing. When I'm St Louis again, we would come back!!

This is mostly a wide open community green space with a playground and a soccer field most people…read morecan't use (it's only available for rent). There's also a short paved path. The adjacent James F. Eagan Center has a rec complex with ice skating rink, gym, theater, indoor swimming pool, and community rooms. The playground is smallish, has a natural wood chip surface, and Is a short hike from the parking lot. Swings are closer. No benches are nearby. I saw no picnic facilities nor restrooms A McDonnell Douglas F-101 fighter jet in the middle of the park is a focal feature and veterans' memorial.

Good open area and easy to walk to from our house…read more Ends up being 2 miles there and back. Can't wait to run around this park with my Daughter when she get older.

I took visitors down for a tour and we had a great time! This was an amazing break from screens and…read morecars to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. Max knows so much about the swamp! He was personable and good about helping people with mobility issues get into the canoes and kayaks safely. This was an amazing break from screens and cars to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. We had older people who can't walk very far, so this was the perfect way to get out into nature like we used to. Caveat: the office is up some stairs, so if you can't do stairs you'll need to say so. The bathroom is primitive, try not to need it. -Mrs. Dan

Mark and Logan were awesome. Our tour was incredible. We took the sunset canoe trip and we were…read moregone a little over 2 hours. Logan was very nice and very informative. The water was a bit shallow and we got stuck a couple times in the river part of the swamp but through the swamp it was perfect. There were quite a bit of the Asian carp so something to be wary of if this freaks people out but we were just fine. Extremely beautiful and something I would definitely do again. Mark did a military discount. Kudos. Thank you for doing this. Well worth every penny.