Katy Trail mm 169-162 McBaine to Easley

My wife and I took advantage of a beautiful late June day in Missouri to ride a nice section  of the KATY trail.  It is between McBaine and Easley through the Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area.

McBaine is very close to the intersection of the MKT trail coming from Columbia and the KATY coming from Huntsdale.  The McBaine trail head is at the end of HWY K coming down from Columbia.  In college I use to really enjoy a ride down K then back up KK to Green Meadows Road.  A few years ago I tried to replicate the ride and found that the roads and terraine had changed so much that I could not even tell where I was once I got back into the subdivisions.  What once was a nice peaceful back road was now a road with significant traffic.  Lots of cars is not good when there is nothing on the side but a ditch.  They added a few more feet to the road bed a year ago, and it is better, but not great.

I did see an eagle along the trail.  It was sitting on a large rock.  As I tried to maneuver for a better picture it decided to leave...I should have taken the picture I had, not the one I wish I had!

This section of the trail also has a strong connection to the Lewis and Clark Expedition.  The KATY trail has many signs commemorating the Expedition, but this section was important because it was at the site of the natural arch.

There are several other interesting things along this section of the trail.

Missouri's own Boat Henge!

And the renown Coopers landing!

Coopers Landing is a nice place to camp, has good food and on occasion good music!

The trail has good scenery

This was an interesting spring that was quite remarkable in how loud it was!  It reminds me of when we were on our recent vacation trip.  We stopped to see Falling Waters, Frank Lloyd Wrights remarkable house.  I had always assumed that it was named because of the falling water that was under the house.  Instead it was the sound of falling waters that was always present on the property.  You could not get away from the sound.  I know some like the sound of water falling, and so do I.  I just don't appreciate that sound when it is constant.....

I do not know what the reason is but I have ridden the entire trail, and many sections many times, but have rarely seen snakes on the trail.  I often think a stick or weed is a snake, and it is not until I am on it that I realize that it is only a stick.  But I have seen big black snakes a couple of times, each was close to this section of the trail...

 This section of the trail is also where Providence Road ends.  A central road in Columbia, it was originally a plank road that ran from Providence on the Missouri River to the new community of Columbia, that I think was called Smith at the time....probably wrong on that, but it came out of the mind as if I was correct.... :) need to look that up...

There are a number of benches along this section of the trail....

John Drew has one of the best set benches I have seen on the trail.  It has a nice view, and is set in flagstones.  Good thing, since this portion of the trail near Coopers Landing is prone to flood.  In fact during times of high water the locals use the trail as the road, since the road is lower than the trail....

This bench has particular importance to me....

The high water this spring has just about made this bench inaccessible.  To the credit of the DNR this is the only time I have seen a bench that was not accessible....