Missouri Swinging Bridges Tour

[tim]

Sounds like a Clint Eastwood chick flick. Not so much. Coming from Kansas City Matt and I take out Friday about 5:30 headed for Hermann, the center of Missouri wine country, such as it is. Matt has a new GS1200 and I am on my trusty 89 Transalp. We hit some rain about Kingdom City but arrive OK. Meet up at the hotel with Eddie and Troy on their GS1200 and Wee Strom. We all head out for a drink and end up at the most hopping place in Hermann on a Friday Night. Everybody in the bar is drunk but us by this time, so its always fun to watch that while you try to catch up. There were three chicks dancing on the bar with each other and soliciting the patrons for tips. Umm OK! Troy ducks out because its too loud to carry on a convo, so Eddie Matt and I continue to imbibe and wait to see if anything else happens. Nothing does so we leave, walk back along the Missouri River which is pretty peaceful, but running high.

Next morning we have a good breakfast and saddle up. Eddie is leading and has the route mapped out. I had no idea whre we were going so will let him fill in the details. It was as much gravel and dirt roads as possible. We do about 120 miles and stop for lunch at this little gas station/diner. Meet a guy on a 919 and some dude Troy knows. We finish lunch and take out again. We are planning to end up in St Robert, right outside Ft. Leonard Wood. Along the way we see the Devils Well, a natural hole in the ground and a huge underground lake. Its cold and the dripping water felt good becuase its like 93 degrees and humid.

We end up on some sweet gravel roads through the dense forest. This is old hat for Eddie and Troy. Matt and I are fairly new to dual sporting done right. Matt is an AMA caliber road racer and I am a club level guy. We quickly learned you can't be trail braking to the apex and hope to make these gravel strewn corners. So its time to dial it way down and enjoy the scenery. I also learn to ride standing up ALL the time, even on the road sections when you dont need to; it keeps monkey butt away and feels really cool but I am thinking the oncoming traffic thinks we are a bunch of tools. Eventually we pop out at Devils Elbow bar along the Current River, where tons of people are rafting and canoeing.

We go in, have a pop and some mini tacos, then leave to go to the hotel a couple miles away.

Some Harley dudes have pulled up and all but one go inside. While we are gearing up, this one shriveled up geezer is sitting on his hog, motionless, hand on his brain bucket strap. He doesn't move for like three minutes and we are wondering what the hell is the matter. Then I hear a commotion and look over. The guy is pukin all over the place and keels back, arms over his head, still on the bike though, like a rodeo rider. I jog over and pull him off and lay him down sideways so he wont choke. His friends come out of the bar, laugh and go back inside. Some guy says 'I'm a medic' and steps in to take over. We bug out. I have oatmeal vomit on my jacket but am comforted by the knowledge we helped a drunk ass Harley d-bag live to ride blasted out of his mind another day.

Back in town, we walk down to a local restaurant and have dinner, watch the x-games and prepare for tomorrow when we will see the bridges.

Once underway, we are hitting more gravel roads when one jumps up and surprises us. Eddie takes a soil sample on a downhill off camber left hander and I stop to help him. I note mentally we are in the impact zone, and before we can get away here comes Troy drifting around the corner and misses us both by a few inches as we are standing between the road and our bikes. He could have bowled a strike and take us all out haha. Anyway, one running light made the ultimate sacrifice but that's it. Those big beasts bounce pretty well and so does Eddie. We continue on and see the four remaining swinging (by rusted cables) bridges left in the state. Get to play on a sand bar, get stuck and generally have fun. We ended up for lunch at Oscar's in Jeff City where Matt and I slabbed it home and Troy and Eddie took the scenic route.

All in all 725 miles, maybe 300 gravel for us and a damn good time. Thanks to Eddie for the tour services. Cant wait to see more stuff with those guys.

[ajayhawkfan]

Tim summarizes the trip pretty well. Only two corrections, 1. Devils Elbow is on the Big Piney River and 2. I don't bounce very well anymore. Breathing is OK but don't make me laugh.

I did not stop as much as I normally do because it was hot and each day we had lots of miles to cover.

We left Hermann after a late night,



and a large breakfast and headed south. The first hour was mostly blacktop getting to Sullivan. From there we were on gravel and used the black top only as connectors.

One morning stop was in what is left of Courtouis, MO. There was a small stream running nearby, I did not know it was the upper most part of the Courtouis Creek. This is all that was left of town:



From there we rode to Bixby for lunch. I always enjoy eating there. They really feed you.

We headed west after lunch with a stop at the Devil's Well in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways (U.S. National Park Service). I hope others will post pictures of the "big hole in the ground".

This barn was along the road to the Devil's Well. (We stuck it to the man by sneaking onto National Park property to take this picture and it felt good.)





Akers Ferry was closed because of low water so we headed north west to licking and then to Devil's Elbow. A few mile before Devil's Elbow you cross under this:



As described by Tim we stop at Elbow Inn in Devils Elbow for a beer and snacks. The Inn is along an original stretch of Route 66. And we got a little taste of the local color. Then to St. Robert for the night.

That evening Troy found store, I believe I over heard him call it a toy box. We would have had a late start if the place opened on Sunday.

[safiri]

Having canoed through Aker's Ferry quite a few times ... here is the skinny: just downstream of the ferry is a small riffle ("rapids"). On the uppermost end of the riffle (just above it), I have watched stock 4x4 pickups drive across the river so as to avoid the ferry. Yeah, they were deep, but the ferry was running.

So if the river was too low for the ferry, I'm thinking y'all missed out on a stream crossing!

Excellent ride, Eddie. Might have been able to do this with a bit of advanced notice. Keep me in the loop. The F650GSD is waiting for another adventure.

[ajayhawkfan]

Excellent ride, Eddie. Might have been able to do this with a bit of advanced notice. Keep me in the loop. The F650GSD is waiting for another adventure.

We are already talking about a Flint Hills Ride when it cools off a little or a ride to the Soldier In The Field in NW MO.



And don't forget we will be doing the 2nd Annual Bald Eagle Ride to the Mississippi River.

[troy]

Great ride, food, and friends. Matt, it was really good to meet you--you are a very good rider. It's fun to watch the the big 1200GS Adventure in a massive wheelie! Tim, it was great to catch up with you after a few years. Funny how the ride brought us together! Eddie, you are a primo ride planner, tour guide, and all-around fun guy to hang out with.

Mike, don't plan on much advance warning with Eddie's rides! As usual, Eddie called me Thursday afternoon to ask if I wanted to join him for the weekend ride leaving the next day! My wife and only child were out of town, so I had nobody to ask permission of! Bad news--my Vstrom was in pieces in the garage in the middle of a gas leak repair. 4 hours later: gas leak repaired, oil changed, cases packed. Gonna ride!

I rode the packed Vstrom to work Friday morning. I left for Hermann around 3:30 and enjoyed the ride over. I had to wear the rain gear for the last half of the ride, but the temperature dropped considerably, so it was a nice trade-off.

We never got rained on Sat or Sun. We enjoyed a dust free day on Saturday. By Sunday afternoon, the dust was kicking up, but still less than normal for a gravel ride. It was surprisingly cooler than I expected as we stayed low in the shaded river valleys for much of the ride.

On the way to Hermann, I crossed several swollen rivers and creeks. I figured this meant the ride route was doomed. However, just an hour South of Hermann, the creeks looked low and normal. Odd, I thought.

TIP: Don't order a cab in St. Roberts and expect to split the fare. We walked about a mile to the restaurant from the motel. We opted for a cab ride back because Matt's ankles were done for the day (he shattered both of them in February!). The 1 mile cab ride was $5/each for 4 guys! I called the cab company to be sure we were not scammed by the driver, but he confirmed the rate when I blindly asked how much it would cost for the 1 mile trip.

Tim, you wondered how much the big 1200 Adventures weigh? According to one source, and I find this hard to believe, dry weight only 491 lbs! Tim, dry weight on your 1989 Transalp is 452 lbs! My Vstrom weighs in at 417 lbs. The new BMW F800GS has a dry weight of only 392 lbs! I WANT AN F800GS REALLY REALLY BAD.

I rode my coworkers 2010 F650GS and thought, wow, this thing feels so much lighter than my Vstrom, has tons more power, and is easily as comfortable while being more dirt capable......turns out that thing only weighs 377 lbs. I'm jealous! ....of course the used Vstrom was half the price, and thus the allure.

[ajayhawkfan]

Troy, very nice slide show. I may snatch some of your pictures for my file. Your picture of Matt on the bridge is excellent.

[ajayhawkfan]

Sunday morning we meet at 7 for lunch. Two things are noticed right away:
1. Troy has a nail in his rear tire. Because no air was lost he decided to leave it un until he got home. Afraid pulling it out might cause damage.
2. Tim got a sponsor


After breakfast Troy and Tim needed to stop at Walmart for some lube, don't ask me why.

We head head in a northly direction to the swinging bridges but before we get there I have tire problems which causes my bike to take a dirt nap. If I did not have tire problems I would not have had any trouble making the blind, left hand, downhill, off camber turn at the speed I was going. Damn those tires.

My bike ground to a halt as I tumbled downhill. I was wearing armor and am very grateful I was. I landed on my left arm and shoulder. My arm got a little scraped, shoulder got bruised and my ribs hurt. Without the shoulder pads and elbow pads in my riding jacket it would have been a lots worse. My ribs still hurt. Damn tires.

After checking over the bike and myself we head towards the bridges. I notice my turns are a little slower the rest of the day. The Bible says "Pride goes before the fall" however while riding the fall come first. Damn tires.

Grand Auglaize Bridge over the Grand Auglaize Creek is the first swing bridge we encounter and is my favorite. http://www.historicbridges.org/missouri ... /index.php

Approach to the bridge:



Gaps in the planking and there are many:



Matt crossing the bridge:



The riders under the bridge:



That is Tim, Troy, myself and Matt.

Tim, it was great meeting and riding with you. I appreciate the genuine concern you showed for me after my spill (damn tires). Thank you very much.

Matt, you are the best rider I have ever been around. You took to the adventure riding like a hog to mud. I hope you will allow me to keep showing you around. I hope you will work with me on my riding and learn to handle my pig as well as you handle yours.

Troy, like always it was fun being with you. I know gravel rides put a smile on your face because you are always smiling. I am glad you joined me on this ride.

Another swing bridge we crossed was Buetcher Bridge over Tavern Creek:





Kemna Bridge over Tavern Creek was another bridge we crossed.







All of the swinging bridges we crossed were built by Joseph Dice. He was not an engineer. He would take string and stretch it across the creek and from that he would order the maternal and start building without plans. Many of his bridges are still in existence where other more modern bridges have been replaced. http://www.bridgemeister.com/list.php?t ... e=Missouri

Along Tavern Creek is where Matt buried his new 12GSA to it's rear axle.

Next stop was lunch in Jeff City. After lunch we split up. Matt and Tim took the fast way home. Troy and I took a more scenic way. We followed the river as best we could from Jeff City to Arrow Rock, MO. (If you have never been to Arrow Rock, GO it is worth seeing and an easy day trip.)

The Missouri was running full. The MS340, the longest canoe race in the US was to have been running this past week but was postponed a month because of high water.



This part of the ride was all new to me. I really enjoyed the road and scenery.





The route had me crossing this bridge.



There were no road closed or bridge out signs anywhere. There was a road plank in the water below the bridge. I think the damage happened over the weekend when the area flooded. It would sure be dangerous at night or coming from the other side.

Troy and I made it to KC around 6:30 had dinner and went our separate ways.

I had a great time rolling the hills with everyone. I'm glad you all joined me and lets do it again soon.

The rest of my photos with a map of where they were taken can be viewed here: http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/albumMap ... 437089#map

[tim]

You're right on Eddie; those tires looked to be heat cycled out. In addition the pressures were probably a couple pounds too high for the ambient temps and surface conditions. Barring those factors, you would have had no trouble navigating the turn and even grabbing a bit of a power wheelie on the way out. damn tires. Sell them to a street squid and spoon on some fresh rubber (soft compound front, medium rear) next time, and be sure and set your warmers for 185 degrees for 45 minutes.

[ajayhawkfan]

You're right on Eddie; those tires looked to be heat cycled out. In addition the pressures were probably a couple pounds too high for the ambient temps and surface conditions. Barring those factors, you would have had no trouble navigating the turn and even grabbing a bit of a power wheelie on the way out. damn tires. Sell them to a street squid and spoon on some fresh rubber (soft compound front, medium rear) next time, and be sure and set your warmers for 185 degrees for 45 minutes.

You just confirmed what I was thinking, damn tires.



Tim, looking forward to riding with you again.