A beautifully clear day. Also hot! We rode about 50 miles today. My Uncle Wes Peterson picked us up at our Motel in downtown St. Louis about 9:30 and took us to our starting point. With last minute packing and adjustments, we didn’t get of until almost noon. We started from the Lewis and Clark Bridge in Alton and rode along the Mississippi and then Illinois rivers. There is a bike trail which is well maintained in many places.

Approaching Gafton we saw a little Visitor’s Center and decided the appeal of a break in air conditioning was very tempting so we stopped in. After looking at the usual visitor’s center items, we spied a half completed, 300 piece puzzle on a table and decided to finish it for them. It was just the break we needed.

We crossed the Illinois River on a ferry. The area between the Illinois and Mississippi rivers is very rolling. Some of the hills are killer climbs, but fortunately short ones. The rewards and the great descents! The last one, though, we couldn’t take full advantage of because the steep descent ended in the Mississippi River. We took another ferry across the Mississippi and began riding to St. Charles.

Approaching St. Charles, we stopped for rest in the shade and met Jordan, Marc, and TJ (thanks Marc for posting a comment) on their bikes. These kids were riding to Jordan’s mother’s house nearby and had many questions about our trip and equipment. We had a fun time chatting with them.

Once we made it to St. Charles we were pretty tuckered out from riding and the heat. We looked for a place to stay, but all the motel rooms were full in the entire town and no pace to camp. We looked for stealth camping opportunities, but didn’t see anything we liked that was free of poison ivy and trash. We finally were directed to a Bed and Breakfast. The sign in the window said they had rooms. So we called and left a message. While we were waiting for a return call, two ladies stopped by and talked with us and helped us call for other lodging. We successfully confirmed that all motels in the areas were full. We really appreciated their help. It was nice to have some helpful after a long day.

We got a call back from the B&B and took the room. Shower, air conditioning, and a soft bed – with breakfast!

See GPS Track on Day 2.

Today we parked the van in front of the library in Hartford and took the Confluence Bikeway to Alton.  We discovered a great museum on the way up.  The National Great Rivers Museum is a new museum that Keith and I both enjoyed.  It’s right by a navigational lock and dam on the Mississippi and you can watch the barges travel though the locks.  It’s a new museum with many interactive displays,  Both Keith and I wished we had more time to spend.  Unfortunately, we had to get back to the convention so we couldn’t stay as long as we wanted.

We traveled on up to Alton.  Someone in the visitor’s center told us about an eagle’s nest that we could see from the trail.  We looked for the nest but couldn’t spot it.

In Alton we rode across the Lewis and Clark Bridge.  It’s a neat suspension bridge across the Mississippi with a bike lane both directions.  Unfortunately the it’s not well maintained for bikes and we had to always be on the lookout for debris and broken glass.  The bike path on the other side wasn’t all that well maintained either.  Too bad.  It’s a beautiful place to ride.

On the way back we were able to spot the eagle’s nest, but didn’t see any activity at the time.  A great section of trail to ride!

Today we drove up to the Missouri side of the Chain of Rocks Bridge and rode our bicycles across to the Illinois side and connected to the Confluence Bikeway trail.  We were planning on getting water at the Lewis and Clark park just south of Hartford, but discovered upon our arrival that the Vistor’s Center was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.  So we rode on up to Hardford and got water in a convenience store restroom.

To get to Hartford, we had to cross Hwy 3 which is a 4 lane road.  We waited at the light, but our bikes were not heavy enough to trigger the sensors so we had to wait until a vehicle came to for the light to turn.

Part of the ride was along the levy that runs right beside the Chain of Rocks Canal that the shipping traffic runs though.  It was neat to watch a tug move down the canal.  We rode faster than it traveled down stream.

We decided to start our trip with short day rides during the GC Session.  This is the first of three of those rides.  I’m calling this day 0.1 as it is part of our ride, but we are not fully self sustained yet. We are riding with panniers but not competely packed and loaded.

Yesterday we rode from our motel across the street to the arch and we touched the arch.

Today we rode fro our motel up the Saint Louis Riverfront Trail to the Chain of Rock Bridge.  We crossed the bridge to the Illinois side and then returned to our motel in downtown St. Louis.  It was about a 25 mile round trip.  The trail itsself was nice all the way and resonable well maintained.  The secenery for the first 4-5 miles left something to be desired.  The trails followes the edge of the river though the industrial area north of downtown St. Louis.  So we passed though scrap yards, junkyards and by factories and processing facilities of all kinds.

The Chain of Rocks bridge is a rather nice bridge.  It is the old Route 66 bridge that is closed to moterized vehicles.  It is open during the day for walking and riding across.

UPDATE

Today’s GPS Track