Katy Trail Preface: August and Hermann, kind of
Hops at Augusta Brew Haus
The trail begins just outside St. Louis, and the city of St. Charles is a fine place to start. Very cute, right along the river, plenty of shops and places to get lunch. But I'd done that before, and I wanted to see new things. So I drove to Augusta, home of the Augsta Brew House and a bunch of wineries (that'll be a recurring theme here...)
I drove to Missouri from Louisville, and got to Augusta about 1 p.m. Since I spent a lot of time in my car that day, my plan was to bike only 10 miles, split between two stops. I really wanted to see Hermann, too. It was a Sunday in October, and it was Octoberfest, so I had to get there by 4 or so to take in any of that.
Immediately, I realized I made a very rookie mistake by leaving my good bicycle pump at home. I had a tiny travel pump, but this occasion called for the best equipment possible. I spent more time that I wanted trying to inflate my rear tire, which has softened driving up and down the Allegheny Mountains. I didn't fare well, and was probably under-inflated by 10 or 15 psi or so. That made this stretch harder than it had to be. Plus, it was freezing. Literally. Sigh. All those bike shirts I'd brought were going to be useless.
I flipped a coin and started west on the trail. Immediately, it was obvious that recent rain had softened the crushed rock and made pedelling even harder. A couple of miles in, I was already tired, and wondering about the wisdom of my 100 mile challenge. This stretch was just ok, and I turned around to get foor at Augusta, then drive off to Herman.
Dogs on both feet
That drive produced an immediate surprise! In a few minutes, I passed a sign that ominously said "county maintenance ends." And I was suddenly on a dirt road. I'd been having a little car trouble, so the rough ride made me nervous. It was all the rougher because rain had cut little ruts into the dirt, and they were now frozen. So I was driving on a rumble strip. Fortunately, in a couple of miles, county maintenance began again, and I was off.
Hermann was adorable, a much bigger town than I expected, with far more wineries than I thought. I got to Stone Hill just as music was ending -- bummer -- and pressed on to find other fun. Down by the river, I found a one-man German band and a pretzel, and some good old midwestern friendly.
I'll pause here to quickly say people in Missouri are relentlessly nice and friendly. Which is delightful. Everywhere I went, folks chatted me up and asked what I was doing there. At every bike stop, every restaurant, every bar. It was such a refreshing change from my usual east coast struggle to connect. That alone is worth trying this trip.
So I overstayed in Herman, until about 6, when the sun went down and the overcast skies finally opened. I had to skip ride No. 2 for the day. I was already behind. Five miles down, 95 to go. Not such a great start. It was supposed to be a preface anyway, a travel day. So I drove on to Columbia and checked into my hotel, vowing to make up for the lost mileage tomorrow.