Day 2: Sedalia to Boonville

Sedalia to Boonville has both down hill and up hill areas. We went from 905 feet in Sedalia to 725 to 835 and then down to 615 feet in Booneville. The weather forecast called for sunny skies, so we were hoping the trail would be drying out from all of the rain. Our plan is to pedal to Pilot Grove and stop for lunch at Katarina's Homestyle Cafe (which used to be Becky's Burgers and Cones and still serves up the best burgers and cones). I messaged her the week before just to make sure that they are open on Mondays and they are. I figured we are going to need some protein and a little treat after using up so much energy!
We both woke up early from a restless nights sleep at the Hotel Bothwell. We headed down to the lobby to check out and I asked about the Sunrise Cafe. I had read great reviews and the Hotel Bothwell attendant agreed that it was wonderful. I had read on-line that it was open on Mondays and I verified that with the attendant. Hotel Bothwell had coffee and muffins (from a local bakery) out, so I grabbed a muffin for the road. The Sunrise Cafe was .61 miles out of our way, but that didn't seem like too far to go for a delicious breakfast.
We snapped a quick pic inside the lobby and then we were off! After the first day adventures, I decided I needed my "We Can Do It" shirt! Sal opted for "Skeletons"!

So, off we go riding to Sunrise Cafe. We find it after what seemed a bit longer that .61 miles. We are in what looks like a residential area, Hmmm...the parking is EMPTY and it seems to be CLOSED. This makes me very sad because I know there's nowhere else in the vicinity to eat breakfast. We can't figure out why they are closed!? Well, there's nothing we can do, but move on.

We decide to head towards the Sedalia trail-head (3.77 miles away) and hope we can scrounge up some breakfast along the way. Well, you may not know this, but I am a super freak when it comes to CLEAN EATING....I do not eat artificial colors, preservatives, chemicals or basically anything that comes from a lab and not a farm. You can check out my Clean Eating Fitness Junkie page if you don't believe me. We are riding along and realize we are only going to pass neighboorhoods full of houses, and I'm pretty sure these families might frown upon me knocking on their door and asking if we can join them for breakfast, so we pedal on.  I suddenly realize why the Sunrise Cafe is closed. I mean I know most everything in small towns is closed on Sundays, but this is Monday. 

Monday May 25, 2015....MEMORIAL DAY! Oh SH!T...everything is going to be closed. 

After .85 miles we see a Casey's General Store, which is actually a gas station that also sells food. I check the GPS and realize this is the ONLY PLACE we pass before reaching the trail-head. Then this happens....

We have some healthy protein bars packed, but I'm assuming we are now going to need those for lunch. I know we can not bike without some sort of fuel in our bodies, so we accept that we are having gas station food for breakfast and decide on some breakfast sandwiches and I find some fruit. OH, and I remember the bakery fresh muffin I grabbed earlier~ YAY! We eat standing outside of Casey's General Store.

We then make our way to where we left off the trail yesterday and shortly afterwards we encounter the Sedalia Trail Head, which is also the Sedalia Convention & Visitors Bureau. We are super excited to explore it, but shortly realize the inside is closed...for Memorial Day. That's ok, we explore the outside, look in the windows, and take some pics.

After the Sedalia trail head, the trail leads you through a neighborhood along the street for a little bit before converting back to an actual trail.  You can see there's still standing water from all of the rain the day and night before, BUT the trail is a different texture and it's not as "thick"...so it's a much easier ride today! 

We make it to Pilot Grove and sure enough, the ENTIRE TOWN IS CLOSED. It's truly like a ghost town. People aren't even out in their backyards playing and Bar-B-Q-ing!? It's very eerie. We sulk for a moment, our mouths watering for the best burgers and cones.... We eat our protein bars for lunch at the Pilot Grove Trail head where they have picnic tables and bathrooms.  

We hopped back on the trail, and went through Prairie Lick. 

We make it to Boonville just in time for dinner. Booneville, that't right, where everything is closed, except for the Main Street Diner. I ate worse that day then I had in the last previous 365 days combined!

We had perfect weather and a great 41.7 miles on the Katy Trail for our 2nd day! I didn't even want to cry a single time. I was feeling confident and ready to tackle the rest of the trail.

We learned that small towns completely shut down on Holidays.

#‎ProteinBarsForLunch‬ ‪#‎DinerForDinner 

Oh, and 25 years ago on this day, Sal & I started dating ❤! 
Yes, we were like 10 years old ;)

I chew some tums after dinner and we head just over the bridge to our Bed and Breakfast, the Rivercene Mansion which was built in the 1800's. 

(Just over the bridge is actually considered New Franklin.) 

The Mansion is very beautiful. They had some construction going on out front. The Inn Keeper showed us the shed and said we could store our bikes in their, so we did.

This is our first time ever staying in a Bed and Breakfast and we aren't certain what to expect. We arrive and find out we are the only guests. The Inn Keeper, Joe, is very polite and has us sign our agreement and pay for our room and then proceeds to take us to Margarets Room, where we are staying. He reminds us that this is a residence too and tells us the "rules" of the house. He asks if we've had dinner and we confess to all of the horrible things we had to eat. He grimaces and promises us a fabulous made-from-scratch breakfast in the morning and then leaves us. Hmmmm...We aren't sure what to do. Are we supposed to stay in here? Can we leave our room? Isn't there supposed to be a " gathering/sitting room". Can we explore outside? Where is the other inn keeper, Don? Can we have a glass of water? We read such fabulous reviews about Joe and Don being so warm and welcoming, like "old friends" and "telling great stories", etc, etc. 

We decide to take showers. The room is huge and very nice...the bathroom is in the bedroom but is very tiny (the sink is actually OUTSIDE of the bathroom, in the bedroom, because there's no room for it to fit inside the bathroom). We take turns showering in the mini shower with very low water pressure. While each of us take a shower the other reads the "book" about the mansion. The history is very interesting and there are also more reminders that this is a residence. We also learned that they are planning several updates to the property, including a hot tub. We were scared to leave our room, but didn't want to stay trapped in there, so we ventured out to explore the beautiful grounds. We then went back to the front of the house to sit on the porch. Joe pulled into the driveway carrying what looked like carryout. I have no idea where he got it, because everything on Main Street is closed!? He nods and goes around back. A HUGE spider crawls out of the cushion of the bench we are sitting on, I scream and we head inside. We check out the front foyer and look to the right and see some creepy mannequins dressed up. We feel like we are intruding so we don't explore any further. I desperately want some hot water to make some green tea that I had packed. We hear Joe in the kitchen and cautiously make our way back there to ask for hot water. We notice that there's an enormous hole in the kitchen ceiling, but try not to let Joe know that we notice. Joe boils some water and pours it into cups and looks like he wants us to go away as quick as possible. I ask if it would be possible for me to throw a small load of laundry in, and he says Don is doing laundry, but I can use the washer and dryer as soon as he's finished. We drink our tea in the front room without ever seeing Joe or Don. As we head back upstairs Joe says that I can use the washer now and shows me where it is...it's just across the hall from our room. I throw our laundry in and we precede to hide in our room. I decide to look at our plans for the next day and see we are staying at another Bed & Breakfast and wonder if we should!? We were wondering if THIS was how all B&B's are run? I decide to take another peek at the reviews of the Globe Hotel Bed and Breakfast. I was really looking forward to meeting Jeanette, the Inn Keeper, and all of her cats & chickens. She sounded so wonderful and sweet on the phone. OMG! I read a review that Jeanette literally packed up the house and JUST sold the B&B 2 days before! Oh man, we didn't know what to do. The new owners literally JUST started their business 2 days ago and we had just had a "not so great" experience at our first B&B. We talked it over and decided since we were going to bed early, we would be getting an early start and could probably make in into Jeff City, which would be fun. I called and talk to the owners. I spoke with Mark, and let me just say that he was incredible! It sounded like they had so many amazing plans for the B&B, but I wasn't sure how many of those plans would be in place in the 2 days since they bought it. I told him we were going to try and go all the way to Jeff City the next day, but promised to stay with them in the future. I just checked recent reviews for the Globe Hotel Bed and Breakfast, and just as I expected, they are excellent!  

After I put the laundry in the dryer, we decide to turn in. Just as I am falling asleep...I hear three loud knocks on our door. I an startled fully awake, jump out of bed, and open the door. Nobody is around!? Sal wakes up and I tell him what happened and I decide to grab our clothes out of the dryer in case JoeDon needed to use it again. (We never did see or hear Don...we decided that Joe and Don are the same person with a split personality, hence the name JoeDon). We hear a cat crying. We go back to sleep, wake up early and go to the shed to retrieve our bikes so we can start loading our gear up. Joe appears and states that we are up early so he will speed up cooking our breakfast. Excellent, I was super excited for some REAL FOOD!!! Joe did not disappoint. Breakfast was outstanding!

Homemade cinnamon rolls, fruit, fresh squeezed orange juice, tea for me and coffee for Sal.

 Egg Souffle with multiple cheese and smoked bacon.

 We were so ready to hit the trail! We originally planned to stop in Hartsburg, but since we were getting such an early start, and we were leery to stay at the next Bed & Breakfast that had JUST been bought by new owners, we decided to try and make it to Jeff City.
Bye Riverscene Mansion!

Supporting Pedal The Cause along the trail!
Note: When we ride the Katy Trail again, we will stay and eat at the Hotel Fredrick in Boonville. Later, on the trail, we meet a really nice lady who works there...and the reviews are great too!