Rocheport to McBaine - Rocheport, MO
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member YoSam.
N 38° 58.653 W 092° 33.654
15S E 538034 N 4314376
Another guide and highlight marker at the Katy Trail Trailhead, this one in Rocheport.
Waymark Code: WM15WVX
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 03/12/2022
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Geo Ferret
Views: 1
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County of marker: Boone County
Location of marker: 1st St. & Ward St., Rocheport
Marker erected: 2010
Marker erected by: Missouri Department of Natural Resources

Traveling east along Katy Trail State Park, the next trailhead is McBaine, 8.8 miles away. Beyond Rocheport depot, the Manitou Bluffs tower above the trail to the left, while the Missouri River runs to the right. Benches dot this section of trail, offering visitors a chance to relax or enjoy the birds, other animals and plants. At milepost 176.8, the trail passes under Interstate 70. In the summer, several species of swallows fly around the bridge catching insects. In winter, watch for Bald Eagles.

Some of the plants found in this area include trumpet creeper, touch-me-not, poison ivy, bittersweet, ironweed, poke and blackberries. In the summer, listen for indigo buntings and watch for hummingbirds visiting the trumpet creeper flowers growing along the bluffs.

Around milepost 174.4, Torbett Spring exits from Lewis and Clark Cave on the bluff side of the trail. Please don't enter this cave - it is on private property and is home to endangered bats. While here, look up and to the left of the cave. Partway up the bluff are the remains of American Indian pictographs.

At milepost 171.7, the trail passes the town of Huntsdale and into a Missouri River bottomland. Just before reaching McBaine, an 8.8-mile spur trail on the left - the MKY Natural & Fitness Trail - leads to Columbia.

Web link: [Web Link]

History of Mark:

The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (MKT)
Begun in the 1870s, the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, also known as the Katy, ran through much of the Missouri River valley by the 1890s. With the Pacific Railroad running from St. St. Louis to Jefferson City by 1856 and the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad becoming the first cross-state railroad in 1859, the Katy was a relative late comer to the railroad game. However, it provided a vital link between the agriculture of central Missouri and the quickly developing American southwest. The Katy added to Missouri's prosperity, supporting towns along the corridor and causing several new towns, such Mokane and Tebbetts, to spring up almost overnight.

The Katy Ceases Operation
In the fall of 1986, the Katy experienced severe flooding that washed out several miles of track. Due to the cost of repair, the fact that railroad use was in decline, and the company was in financial trouble, the company decided to cease operations. On Oct. 4, 1986, trains 101 and 102 became the very last trains to use the corridor and the Katy ceased operations on its route from Sedalia to Machens.

The Railroad Amendment
The National Trails System Act Amendments of 1983 provided that railroad corridors no longer needed for active rail service can be banked for future transportation needs and used on an interim basis for recreational trails. When the Katy Railroad ceased operations, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources filed for a certificate of interim trail use for the corridor from Sedalia to Machens and it was granted in April 1987. The department used the opportunity to develop one of the most successful rails-to-trails conversions in the United States.

The Development of Katy Trail State Park
The first section of the trail from Rocheport to McBaine opened in April on 1990. In August of 1990, another section from Augusta to jut northeast of Defiance opened. The rail corridor from St. Charles to just past Sedalia was developed by 1996. Through a donation from the Union Pacific Railroad, the department then extended the trail to Clinton, opening the section between Sedalia and Clinton in September of 1999. Funds from the Missouri Department of Transportation will be used for construction of the final section of Katy Trail from St. Charles to Machens. Future plans include the Rock Island Trail-Katy Connector, which will connect the trails at Windsor to Pleasant Hill.



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