Day 27: Topeka, KS to St. Joseph, MO

85 miles, 2251 feet climbed

I started the day wearing all my colder weather gear due to a predicted start temp in the very low 50’s and Dean’s report, about 45 minutes before the start that it was quite cold. It must’ve warmed quickly because once I brought my bike out, I immediately ditched my jacket in favor of my lightweight wind vest. Staff collects things we want to discard during the ride for us to pick up at the hotel; that’s where my jacket went before the ride even started. I wore the vest until the second SAG, at a Dairy Queen.

The winds, though not as strong as recent days, picked up a bit after the first SAG and then a little more after we crossed the Missouri River and turned to the northeast toward St. Joseph.

Most of the route again used the Federal highway system. The later shoulders were adequately sized but some of the early roads out of Topeka had narrow shoulders with a rumble strip taking up the middle. Aargh!

An expanded view of the route through St. Joseph, including two switchbacks on the Southwest Parkway (to the south of I-229)
I offer this not because the winds were terrible today (only 3 – 6 mph with gusts of 6 – 12 mph) but to show how they were to shift in the middle of the route. Nothing about the terrain explains it.
A waterway in the vicinity of the first SAG
Crossing the Missouri River
One last look back at Kansas
The eastern edge of the Missouri River plain from the northwest leg heading to St. Joseph
St. Joseph’s Southwest Parkway