June 18th – July 13th
July 12th
Last stop before Kansas!
July 12th
A stray dog I had to corrode back to their owner's yard
July 11th
A potential campsite. Didn't go through with it, a little too exposed, but scoped it out.
July 11th
A man at the library handed me $30 and a stun gun disguised as lip gloss. 😛
July 11th
A woman outside the grocery store in Harrisonville handed me this bag of goodies
July 11th
The eight children my Trail Angel's had were all so unbelievably sweet. They wrote me this note. Then, when I accidentally forgot it on the kitchen counter, the next morning they handed it to me AGAIN and squealed in joy when I took it.
To California it goes.
July 10th
A cyclist who passed me on my way to Cornerstone Church invited me to spend the night at his families house! "I have 8 kids ... and they're going to have questions."
July 10th
Downtown Harrisonville with its cobblestone roads
July 9th
After a few hours of scrambling, Cornerstone Community Church agreed to let me pitch my tent in their yard! Woooo!
July 9th
July 9th
New Walking Across America sign to replace my old, grimy one that got sliced nearly in half by the force of the wind from a tractor trailer
July 9th
Dan the Bicycle Man has been shadowing me for the last 2 days. Today, we part ways. For once, I asked a Trail Angel for their photo to remember them by.
July 8th
Dan picked me up new slime self-sealing tires! Designed to reduce the amount of flats Faith has been getting.
July 8th
Me & the worlds largest modern toothbrush on display in Harrisonville, Missouri
July 8th
Cranking out 25 miles today on RT 2.
July 7th
Said goodbye to the Rock Island Spur today. Spending the night outside another rural church-my go to spot.
July 7th
Only got 3 hours of sleep last night, prompting me to fall asleep on the Katy Trail. Man saw me and thought I might be a dead body so he came to investigate. Ended up inviting me to jump in his pool & have dinner with his family.
July 7th
Green snake!
July 7th
Someone left a cooler full of free, cold water bottles for Katy Trail users
July 7th
Patrons at Leeton Cafe paid for my breakfast, and the owner asked for my picture in front of their building! Greatest deal on steak & eggs this side of the Mississippi, and epic proportions.
July 6th
Camel crickets have invaded Faith!
July 6th
Windsor, Missouri, where I depart the Katy Trail for the Rock Island Spur Trail
July 6th
The hole in the bottom of my shoe is so large I can stick my finger through it - behold
July 6th
My shoes are a little worse for wear
July 5th
Sedalia, Missouri
July 5th
COWS!
July 4th
The Katy Trail is nearly always surrounded by a grove of trees-their protective crown provides nice shade from the summer height
July 4th
One photogenic snail
July 4th
A bump in the road
July 4th
A stout snapping turtle
July 4th
July 4th
The perfect tunnel to escape the random midday showers
July 3rd
A looooooong boy
July 3rd
July 2nd
July 2nd
An older gentleman at the library in Boonville had a small tupperware full of angel pendants. He let me choose one "for good luck."
July 2nd
July 2nd
Saying goodbye to the Isle of Capri
July 1st
Dan & his wife offered to book me a room at the casino in Boonville! 😭
July 1st
Dan & his wife showing me the extensive flood damage at Boonville, Missouri. The northern highway into town, and all of the surrounding land, is a lake.
July 1st
July 1st
Missouri River view
July 1st
Big Manitou Bluffs
June 30th
Dan, a new friend and cross-country cyclist, let me try out his electric bike. Saw more evidence of flood damage along the way-including a few trailer houses under water.
June 30th
Hindman Junction-I've been reunited with the Katy Trail!
June 28th
The most stunning sunset above the church/graveyard combo I'm camping at for the night
June 28th
A passerby stopped to snap a picture with me and hand me two drinks! Sweet!
June 28th
Was getting some respite from the tortuous RT. O outside this abandoned house when a police officer stopped me. I couldn't convince him entirely that I wasn't some homeless crackhead, pshh
June 27th
My host's dome house!
June 27th
RT. O tries to kill me on multiple occasions. By far my worst road in Missouri
June 27th
Passing the Callaway Nuclear Plant. Multiple workers stopped to ask if I need any water
June 26th
While sitting outside the bar in Portland, Missouri, the only place in town with WiFi, to reroute, a man brings me out a burger & chips
June 26th
The flooding in Missouri has been devastating this year, the worst in decades. Over 70 miles of the trail is underwater, starting at Portland, Missouri.
June 26th
More evidence of armadillos this far north!
June 25th
June 25th
June 25th
A flooded field is the perfect place to cool off
June 24th
Calcified turtle shell
June 24th
A gorgeous walk along the Missouri River
June 24th
Floodwaters
June 24th
CORN
June 24th
June 24th
Marthasville, Missouri!
June 24th
It's a bridge I don't have anything witty or interesting to say about it
June 24th
Rifling through the bag of goodies the couple with the golf cart graciously gave me!
June 24th
June 24th
A ring-necked snake -score!
June 24th
One of the thousands of frogs dotting the Katy Trail! All the rain this year must be the reason behind their invasion.
June 23rd
The trail is covered with hundreds-if not thousands- of snails. We try our very best to avoid them, but let's just say Faith is officially a murderess.
June 23rd
A family of raccoons rifling through the flood waters for goodies
June 23rd
Look what I weigh now! 144 pounds! WOOO! Down 50 whole pounds since March
June 23rd
This nice couple thought I was ditching a baby on the Katy Trail so they came to check the situation out. When they learned of my real intentions on the Trail, they gave me a golf cart ride back to their house for pizza & a shower
June 23rd
More flood damage
June 23rd
Rainy days call for Frogg Toggs
June 23rd
Faith's tire got a flat, time to tip her over ...
June 22nd
A 5-minute war was waged against this lizard to catch it. Bitey fellow.
June 22nd
June 22nd
"No person shall ... throw missiles at any mammal ... within state parks"
Wasn't planning on it
June 22nd
Katy Trail map
June 22nd
Weldon Springs, my first Katy Trail post! Such trail stations are usually equipped with a port-a-potty, bike pump, and a map w/ stats on the trail.
June 22nd
I've made it to the longest rail trail in America, the famed Katy Trail! Another milestone crushed.
June 22nd
"HI! Please take a piece below and write your name on a rock in the Love Heart-thanks!"
June 22nd
❤️
June 21st
The bridge over the Missouri River is COVERED in juvenile frogs!
June 21st
A carnival's in town. I wish I had known earlier. I wish I had the time to go. I admire it from a distance, so close to it yet in another world entirely
June 21st
I scrambled over boulders with Faith only to slip into the muddy water under the aforementioned bridge. Sigh.
June 21st
I have to go under this bridge to get on it. Only dilemma is, the trail is flooded.
June 21st
What looks beautiful is really devastating flood water
June 21st
One snapshot of a trail side mural
June 21st
I've never seen a water bottle dispenser before but I LIKE it
June 21st
I went out on a limb and asked a local church if I could pitch my tent in their yard for the night-they said YES!
June 20th
Chesterfield, MS!
June 20th
When you're on a perilous stretch of road and you stumble across the most random bench ...
June 19th
Walking Ruth's dog, such an orthodox of a thing to do, I could almost forget why I'm here
June 19th
"Each of us can save this burning world if we find some-body that's not on fire and fall in love with them"
June 19th
"The Billiken: according to legend, those who rub its belly will have good luck!"
June 19th
June 19th
Imo's Pizza! I tell myself I ought to try classic restaurant chains while passing through towns when, really, I just want an excuse to splurge on some hot food.
June 19th
The inner workings of the Arch, I had no idea it was technically a ride you can go inside until today
June 19th
Okay this sign really tickles me
June 19th
Inside the Arch's museum, a map of Routes of Principal Explorers
June 19th
The Arch up close!
June 19th
Inside Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
June 19th
St. Louis Courthouse
June 18th
Ruth, my grandmother's adopted sister and my host in St. Louis, treated me to dinner.
June 18th
A man cycling cross-country stopped to say hello! His dog was the chillest.
June 18th
No "Welcome To Missouri" sign on the Eades Bridge, so I had to settle for a snapshot of this department store