Katy trail part 2

Today on the Katy I saw "standing rock", pictured here. Written on the side of it were records of high-water marks from several floods of the Missouri river. Turns out track damage due to flooding was the primary reason the track was finally abandoned by the railroad.

These cows had the right idea.

I saw my first snake today. This one was nice and long, maybe 5 feet. It did not threaten me at all, just slowly wiggled off the road. It was weird watching it move... I watched a point in the middle of the snake for a while and was surprised to see it get skinny and disappear. The snake kept the same shape but just sort of moved through the curve and continued it forward. Neat.

I also saw a really enormous bean pod today. Check them out, and the enormous beans that were inside. They smelled like sugar snap peas and I was really hungry, but I resisted the urge to taste them. Anyone know what they are?

The place I stayed this night was really great. This is a photo of it from the next morning. It's the Rendleman Home bed and breakfast, owned and run by a great guy named Doug. He is himself a cyclist, and he really does a great job catering to cyclist clients. Unlike most b&bs it is a very relaxed place. Sort of a bachelor-pad version of a b&b, though without the squalor. The decoration is very simple and minimal, but nice.

Doug and I chatted pretty much the entire time I was there - he's a really interesting guy. He let me help (a little) with making dinner, and he was very accomodating to my vegetarianism. He's trying to sell the place now because he wants to start a new venture where he does something similar but on a boat. Anyone want to run a b&b in rural Missouri next to a great bike trail?