Klondike

I stayed at Klondike Park the next day for a little R&R. I got up, ate, and hung all the contents of my pack on a clothesline I made. The pack contents were dry but they really needed aired out. Left the line up all day, the Park officials never said a word. I just laid back, read, and generally relaxed. Klondike Park has a lot history associated with it; it's a nice “weekend with the kids” kind of place and well worth the stop. The park is very rocky and really reminded me of the Badlands in South Dakota. You'd never expect to see that in Missouri. I've stayed there many times and really like the place. There's another long hill behind the conference center leading up to a scenic over view of the river. You have to see it to fully appreciate it. There are still a lot of rocks up there but no climbing is allowed. Once I saw a longhaired goat grazing there and just couldn't believe it. I later read on the comment forum at www.bikekatytrail.com that there is a herd of Ferrell goats in the area.

Mile Marker 88 to Augusta

My original plan was to camp at Marthasville. I arrived at Marthasville at 1:00. I had been bedding down for the night at 9: when it gets dark so I really didn't want to hang out for 8 hours. I've been there before so I decided to move on to Augusta. My feet still hurt but always seemed to loosen up about a mile or so into the trip. This would be a 22-mile day to Klondike Park in Augusta (mile marker 64) but I felt confident. Be careful on this leg it's pretty open especially around Nona. The clouds were getting very black in the west. I picked up the pace trying to beat the impending storm. Lots of thunder but no lighting. I was managing to stay just ahead of the storm so I didn't dare stop even though I was exhausted. I reached the trailhead in Augusta at mile marker 66. I had covered 20 miles at a quick pace so I dropped my pack and collapsed on the bench at the Kiosk. It was at that moment that I realized 46 years old was too old for this and I should have done this crap 15 years ago. After 20 minutes I told myself it was only 2 more miles to Klondike and it was over so I needed to go. I felt like I'd just been mugged when I got up. I made it about 20 feet when the rain started coming down in buckets. I went back to the kiosk and put the cover on my pack and my rain gear on. The cool rain was quite refreshing after a long day of hard hiking. I'd hiked this stretch many times but forgot about the big hill going up to the park. This was one of those stop and rest every 10 steps kind of hills. I thought I was going to die.
I made it to the top and grabbed the first campsite I saw. The basic sites have covered picnic table, and a fire pit. I managed to get the tent up and it was nice and dry inside. Here's the trick: Lightweight hiking tents are relatively small. A 2 person actually only holds one person and their pack. I managed to erect the tent on top of the picnic table under cover and merely walk it out to the spot and stake it down. The rain stopped so I walked to the shower house, paid my fee and had a nice hot shower. The hot shower, change of wet dirty clothes for dry dirty clothes and fresh socks, and a nice hot meal of beef stew made me feel like a new man. I hung the food bag, crawled into the tent and immediately fell asleep into a deep slumber.

On the road to Mile Marker 88

Jill dropped me off at Blufton, I was kind of down about leaving the trail yesterday. It was late afternoon so I took a short 5 miler to Rhineland and stayed in the city park. They keep the water on and the restrooms are kept open. There's a very nice designated camping area that's open and flat. A cop came by and waved, he must have just been patrolling. I regret not camping at Steamboat Junction I've heard it's a really nice place. All day I've seen bicyclist going down Highway 94 with vans behind them playing music. They kept coming by all night. Some vans even had spotlights illuminating the road ahead of the bikers. I later found out they were racing across America, coast to coast. These guys ride a minimum of 20 hours per day and usually eat while riding. They're better folks than I am. Rhineland is at mile marker 105 and I had made previous arrangements to camp at mile marker 88. It would be a long day but I guess that's my penitence for wusing out at Blufton. It was a really hot walk but still along the river, making for a very scenic hike. I stayed at a church that's about a mile from the trail that night. The minister used to live about an hour away from the church in Moscow Mills, which is only about 10 miles from my home in Troy. The church at mile marker 88 is one of those quaint, small rural churches that only have services every other week.
The caretaker was a super nice guy. I called him just to let him know I was there. He shows up 5 minutes later to open the fellowship hall so I would have restroom facilities and running water. He even said I could sleep in there if I wanted. The women of the church had a quilt stretched out on a frame they almost had finished. I'm not a big arts and crafts guy but it was beautiful. I filled my water bottles and set up my tent outside, don't want to overstay my welcome. The only requirement was to lock the door when I left. It's refreshing to know there's still good people out there.

Blufton

The first part of the hike to Blufton was really nice. My feet finally stopped hurting about Mokane. Mokane is a very nice trailhead and a nice little town to wander around in. There was a Department of Natural Resources worker at the trailhead that was a nice, polite, funny guy. He warned me about possible mosquito issues down the trail and wanted to make sure I had water and bug spray.
You're right next to the river on the trail to Portland. Nice scenery and a very pleasant trip. There is a nice mowed field with benches as you arrive in Portland. The campground that's supposed to be in Portland looks like it's non-existent. The trailhead is nice but only has a restroom, no water. There's an old abandoned looking white building just up the hill. It looks boarded up from the trail head but isn't. Walk around the front and you'll see it's actually a bar and grill with coolers full of beer and soft drinks. The food selection is super and good. I talked to a guy whose chicken eggs just hatched. His kids thought it was great until they found a snake; now the chicks have taken a back seat to the snake. A really funny guy if you hear him tell the story. The road to Blufton was like something out of a Hitchcock movie. As I walked I noticed a few mosquito buzzing around. I bought some great bug repellant and it seemed to be working. I felt a bite on my back and took off my pack to spray myself back there. My back was black with mosquitoes biting me through my shirt. I looked at my legs. The bare legs were fine but my pants were almost black. The swarm grew with every mile. I had mosquitoes flying in my ears, up my nose, in my mouth, even into my eyes. I couldn't stop so I picked up the pace. I was almost at a jog the last 5 miles; they were relentless until I reached Highway 94. I called Jill on the way and asked her to please come and get me. I admit that I broke the cardinal rule of survival, I panicked. I was dead tired when I reached 94 when the mosquitoes stopped. They were all located at the low, damp portion of the leg from Portland to Blufton. Jill arrived after soon after as it was only hours drive from the house. I value my life so I didn't tell her I was okay and didn't need her to pick me up. Once indoors I wowed and amazed my son by q-tipping dead mosquitoes out of my ears and seeing more dead mosquitoes when I blew my nose. My back was covered with bites. I've camped a lot in the past, including a stint in Panama with the Army. I've never encountered anything like that.

Ahh Tebbets

STAY AT THE HOSTEL!! It's basically a bunkhouse but it's clean and is just beautiful. The best $5 you'll ever spend. There was young couple there who were very nice. Down town Tebbetts basically consists of the Hostel, a church, a bar, and the Post Office. Jim's bar is also a must. The food and conversation were super. Jim keeps a sign in log of all the people passing through to about 2002. They have live entertainment on Kareoke night but you have to wait until the patrons are really drunk to appreciate it. It was a nice respite. Tomorrow I'll embark on a 20 miler to Blufton.

On the road to Tebbetts

Left N. Jefferson today. The view of the capital from the trail is stunning. It was a nice cool day, great for hiking. My feet hurt bad but were better after a 1/2 mile down the trail. Gotta be old age. I met 2 other backpackers on the trail today. These are the first backpackers I've ever seen on the trail. They were going from Hermann to Sedalia and back via Amtrak. The older guy was nice but the younger one was a real piece of work that looked like he just came off the cover of Backpacking Today. He made it a point to convince me that I knew squat about hiking and totally ignorant about the proper equipment essential to all backpackers and how only a total idiot would use the equipment I had. He showed me his pack and gave me the make, model, and year of manufacture of his. Of course it just came out last year. I bet that baby ran him about $500 bucks. Of course my external, aluminum frame pack was all-wrong even though I bought it 2 years ago for $50 bucks. His new water bottles were also the only way to go. Probably $ 15 per bottle. I used Gatorade bottles wrapped in duct tape. Price: about $2 last year. He couldn't believe they were even remotely durable. I mean how was I supposed to know that experienced hikers don't use hiking staffs anymore? I thought mine had a 1001 uses but I guess I was still an idiot. We went our separate ways, the old guy waved, the young one sneered. What a butthead.

North Jefferson

A word of warning to all hikers going from Huntsdale to North Jefferson: Go to the gym and walk on an inclined treadmill as part of your training. It actually became comical when I came to the conclusion that this long constant uphill terrain was somebody’s idea of a cruel joke on hikers. It's amazing how desolate it is when you're only 10 miles away from the state capital. We stayed at the Best Value Inn in Holt's Summit. These people were super nice and very accommodating. They even provide a free roundtrip shuttle service from the trailhead. Nate was bummed out because they didn't have a pool. It's close to a Laundromat and numerous restaurants to choose from. Tomorrow on to Tebbetts.