Best Connection to the Flint Hills Nature Trail

About halfway in between the Depot Museum and the Ottawa trailhead is 7th Street. Turn East on this street crossing Main Street and continue one for approximately one mile. The road will become gravel and about two blocks after this point you will pass South Mason Street. You will see a trail crossing here. South is developed, North not so much.

As for the FHNT itself, it is a nice change from the PST. Since if follows the course of the Marais de Cygnes, it is flatter and much more shaded. It can be a welcome relief on a hot day from the openness of the PST. However, make sure that you are well packed with water on your way out of town. Rantoul is the only stop between here and Osawatamie. It has vending machines on North McGuinnes Ave around the corner from the Post Office. The Cafe seems to have gone the way of the dodo.

See you one the trail, well, one of them,

Timon

Also, a pickup truck with a flat bottom boat was traveling down the trail going west, as well. Probably on the way back from early morning fishing on the river; the temp was probably 99 degrees at that time. They were polite enough and did stop for us to pass and even said, “howdy.”

And even further down at the Pressonville road area someone had placed a nice big bunch of freshly cut tree limbs 3 to 4 inches in diameter neatly across the trail.

On a more positive note – it was something and somewhere different, after riding most of the summer on the KATY and occasionally the Prairie Spirit. It was evident that someone had been out, cut and removed fallen trees just west of Rantoul which is awesome. We will ride again. Recommend lots of frozen water in these hot temps and hybrid or mountain bike. Cannot wait for it to connect through on to Vassar and on pass Lyndon.

I think that both trails suffer from their newness. People don’t know about them and the locals haven’t seen and benefits to themselves from the trail yet. This leads to activities that can damage the trails, like the car, or just outright sabotage like the treelimbs or the picnic table I saw last week in Welda that had been set on fire.

I think that the bet thing we can do is USE the trail and be visible doing it. Stop at the local businesses and spend a little money for a soda or burger or ice cream or Gatorade. Trust me, they remember the idiot bike who came in from the trail on a 100 degree day and spent a little money. I have had a business owner defend me and the trail from another local disparaging the trail.

I think that this is actually a whole topic unto itself. I will start a thread when I get the time.

Sam