Day 63, Aug. 1: Farmington, MO to Chester, IL. Distance 52 miles. Sunny morning temps 70s and 80s.

Our last day in Missouri is a 52 mile morning ride over scenic rolling hills. This was one of the nicest rides of our tour with great vistas, low traffic and modest climbs. Our route took us through the Missouri countryside passing through Coffman and Ozora. At the Ozora/Interstate-55 exchange we found some services and had a late breakfast. We then followed State Road J to US 61 and traveled through St. Mary where we connected with State Road H taking us to State Road 51 and a narrow 2 lane bridge across the Mississippi into Chester, IL, birthplace of Elzie Crusker Segar, creator of Popeye.

Day 63, Aug. 1: Farmington, MO to Chester, IL. Distance 54 miles. Sunny morning temps 70s and 80s.

Day 62, July 31: Koniania B&B to Farmington. Distance 42 miles. Weather: Foggy-Clearing 70-80s

Humidity was high as our ride started at 7:00 AM with the fog increasing through the climb up to State Route 32. By 8:00 AM the fog became overcast and we had a cool ride for most of the morning. Our route took us through Belleview, Iron Mountain Lake, and over misidentified State Road ‘W’ through Doe Run and into Farmington. Our Adventure Cycling Maps and State Maps showed a State Road ‘W’ which Missouri recently changed to several different routes including; NN and 221 at various locations. So we had fun using a compass and mileage to figure out where we were. Again we were on State Route 32 for a short time and some folks did have trouble with the big trucks. All in all it was a great ride with mild climbs, good roads and low traffic with that exception.

Day 62, July 31: Koniania B&B to Farmington. Distance 42 miles. Weather: Foggy-Clearing 70-80s

Day 61, July 30: Potosi to Koinania Cottage B&B: Distance: 54 miles, Foggy and clearing 80s and 90s.

A foggy morning on good roads through the Mark Twain National Forest, The route was a relief for all as we enjoyed less challenging climbs and a shorter ride. Some big trucks were intimidating on Highway 32 but fortunately we only had about 7 miles on that road. The highlight of our ride was meeting Duane and Mary Wiltberger from the Koinania Cottage B&B. To cool us off in the hot afternoon Mary made us some sweet raspberry tea and iced tea. For supper we had a delicious home cooked meal including pasta with meatballs, salad, cherry cobbler and ice cream. Our breakfast was superb with eggs, sausage and bacon, fresh cantaloupe and so many delights I can't remember them all. Thank you Duane and Mary! Check them out at: http://www.koinaniacottage.com/

Late Addition: Today Betty and Bruce announced they were leaving the ride. It was an emotional moment for all. Bruce has been riding in pain from arthritis in his hip. This and the demanding hills and close encounters with traffic have brought them to this decision. We hope they will rejoin us in Mobile, AL to finish the ride. Please check out their blog:
http://mysite.verizon.net/ressuoib/bjebre/index.html
I wish them many smooth and flat rides and will miss them!

Day 61, July 30: Potosi to Koinania Cottage B&B: Distance: 54 miles, Foggy and clearing 80s and 90s.

Day 60, July 29: Washington to Potosi. Distance: 55 miles, Foggy start clearing w/ Temp in 80s-90s.

An early morning start to beat the heat found high humidity and fog. Our group took two different routes. Those that stayed with the planned Adventure Cycling Map route found extreme climbing while entering the Ozark Mountain range over winding and narrow roads. This route placed them on State Route 185 through Sullivan. The worst climbs were on 185 east of Sullivan along the Pea Ridge through Ebo. Also, this route had more miles than expected with riding over 70 miles. Ron, Jim and I elected to take a more direct ride over State Route 47 and State Route 21 through Union and St. Clare. We were lucky with wide shoulders on most of our route with only a few climbs on a low traffic road.

Day 60, July 29: Washington to Potosi. Distance: 55 miles, Foggy start clearing w/ Temp in 80s-90s.

Day 59, July 28. St. Louis to Washington. Distance 52 miles. Wet then clearing by mid morning.

Early start this morning was delayed because of rain, Some folks took the Metro out to the Bike Trail about 15 miles west of the hotel and avoided a lot of city traffic. Some folks rode the Adventure Cycling Map route to Washington. Ron, Jim and I rode State Route 100 which we found to be old US Route 66 out of St. Louis and then County Road T through the country side. County Road T offered us 3 good climbs where we totaled about 2200 ft of climbing over three hills. The day turned sunny and our arrival at Washington was 12:15 and 75' F. All in all today was a very enjoyable ride.

Day 59, July 28. St. Louis to Washington. Distance 52 miles. Wet then clearing by mid morning.

Day 58, July 27: St. Louis, MO Rest Day. No cycling today just some pictures of the city.

Sunday is a great day to walk the town of St. Louis. Low traffic gives the city a comfortable silence and opportunities to take pictures from the streets. It was a beautiful day with afternoon temperatures reaching the high 80s. I took pictures of the city's skyline and different locations of the town. My favorite places visited were the World War Museum and Union Station.

Day 58, July 27: St. Louis, MO Rest Day. No cycling today just some pictures of the city.

Day 57, July 26. Marthasville to St. Louis. Distance 60 miles, Sunny w/ temps in the 70s and 80s.

A foggy morning welcomed us as we left Concord Hill along the Katy Trail to St. Louis. The Katy Trail took us about 38 miles through the small towns of Dutzow, Augusta, Matson, Defiance and skirted Harvester where we connected to a paved bike trail, Creve Couer Park Connector Trail, that took us to into the suburbs of St. Louis. Once off the bike trails we followed urban streets through Olivette and Clayton into St. Louis. Our hotel was located down by the famous St. Louis Arch on 4th St. and Market.

Day 57, July 26. Marthasville to St. Louis. Distance 60 miles, Sunny w/ temps in the 70s and 80s.

Week 8, July 19 to July 25: Dyersville, IA to Marthasville, MO

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Click on the picture for each day to link to Picasa Web Albums then click Slide Show.

Total Mileage to date: 3,013.5 miles

Day 56, July 25: Louisiana to Marthasville. Distance 77 miles, Morning rain and temps 70s & 80s.

A wet Missouri morning greeted us as we left Louisiana, on route 79 about 6:30 AM. After a 10 mile ride we stopped in Clarksville for a hearty breakfast. While there we learned that we could avoid some traffic and hills if we took a different route than planned. So our new route kept us on State Road 79 through Annada and on to County Road B to US-61 into Troy, Missouri. From Troy we took County Road J through Wright City following other rural routes to Marthasville. In Marthasville we traveled on the Katy Trail, a hard packed old railroad line, to Peers and Concord Hill. Because of lack of motels and accommodations, our team was split into three groups. The married folks stayed at a B&B in Marthasville, three folks stayed at a B&B in Peers and us guys stayed at a B&B in Concord Hill.

Day 56, July 25: Louisiana to Marthasville. Distance 77 miles, Morning rain and temps 70s & 80s.