Friday, May 31, 2013

Katy Trail: day 7

Friday 31 May
Columbia to Jefferson City - 32 miles NOT by bike. It looked like we might have a 4-5 hour window to ride to Jefferson City today before the next line of severe thunderstorms arrived. However there were also reports of widespread flooding and the Missouri River was nearing flood stage. So the trail that was so bad coming into Columbia would be worse and today's section of the Katy Trail is along the edge of the Missouri River. We decided to play it safe and rent a vehicle that could handle all our gear. 

Billie called every possible rental company but nothing was available. Finally she put on her jacket and headed out the door and said, "I'm going fishing." She was back in about 15 minutes with a big smile, "Pack your gear. I got us a ride." Aldo is the concierge at the Tiger Hotel. He'd provided us with amazing service during our stay. He did a load of laundry for us, ran to a local restaurant to get us a sample menu, brought us extra treats, and much more. When Billie told him of our dilemma, he said, "My cousin has a truck, I'll call him." We were so grateful.


Because this solution was probably out of the scope of Aldo's job, we were discreet. While cousin Edgar waited down the street at the corner, Aldo helped JD load everything into the truck and tie everything down. Then JD drove the truck to where Edgar was waiting to do the real driving. 


We were soon in Jefferson City.  Trail angels Aldo and Edgar, thank you!


State capital:


Lunch at Downtown Diner where it was


Free Pie Friday.


The governor's mansion looks a lot like Rivercene B&B. One of the Kinney daughters had a good friend who spent a lot of time at Rivercene.  Later that friend married a man who would become governor at the time when the mansion was designed and built. The similarities were deliberate.


The mansion overlooks the Missouri River. 


A great place for ice cream, all made on site.


At about 3 pm the severe thunderstorms began, the street in front of the hotel flooded. Even the cars in the parking lot were relocated to higher ground. Again, I'm so glad camping was not on the agenda today. 







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