About

Trail Happy Cycling celebrates cycling on bike trails, in all their various forms.              

  

    Paved, Gravel, or Dirt. 

        Urban or Rural. 

            Short or Long. 

                Rail-Trail or Greenway. 

 

The wonderful thing about cycling is that there is a style for everyone. For me, the best kind of cycling is when I'm on a long trail and I can experience nature, arts + culture, and tasty food and beverages along the way. That's the feeling of trail happiness.


I wanted to create this site to share my love of trail riding, document my travels, and gather resources into one place. And hopefully inspire others to go on some bike trail adventures!

 

 


 

 

 

 

 


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Madison County Transit (MCT) Trails - August 2020

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Even though I have lived only a short car ride away from the Madison County Transit (MCT) Trail System for years, this August was my first time ever riding the trails. And I'm pretty mad at myself I waited so long!  This trail system is gigantic - at least to me! Over 20 years ago, Madison County, IL started acquiring rail rights-of-way, which they have now transformed into around 130 miles of trails, a lot of them paved! There are a total of nine different trails, yet many of them intersect and create a number of loops of varying lengths. MCT Trails highlights 7 of the loops on their website and printed maps. Speaking of maps, MCT will mail you a paper map if you request one online. I ordered mine a few days before my ride and it came in time for me to bring along. I think the design is super clever - the covers are glossy, which keeps moisture out when packed into a bag, and the heft of the covers also makes folding and unfolding super easy. I'm a nerd for maps!  So cute fol...
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First Multi-Day Bike Tour! - Katy Trail - September 2020

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I don't know how the seed got planted, but I've wanted to try bike touring for years. The idea of riding my bike all day, sleeping, then doing it again the next day, while seeing new places and meeting interesting people, sounded like a dream. With COVID-19 disrupting my 2020 travel plans, this year seemed like the perfect opportunity to dip my toes into multi-day bike travel. In July 2020, I started seriously planning my trip and settled on a basic itinerary - 3 days and 2 nights along the Katy Trail in Missouri . For those not familiar, the Katy Trail is one of the longest rail-trails in the country. The whole thing - 240 miles - is a state park and there are no entrance/trail fees associated with using it. I chose the Katy Trail as the location for my first trip for several reasons. Obviously, Katy (Katie) is a great name. It's close to my home in St. Louis. And lastly, a lot of people tour on the Katy, so there is good bike travel infrastructure and a lot of planning re...
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Welcome!

Welcome to Trail Happy Cycling!                                                     My name is Katie and I love riding my bike - especially on trails!  Here's my cycling origin story: I moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 2008 to start nursing school and I got a bike - a Giant hybrid (which I still have!). I rode a little bit here and there and over the years I did more and more riding, mostly on the greenway near my apartment. In 2014, I bought a second bike - a Giant Anyroad - and a bike rack for my car. In 2015, I moved to Madison, Wisconsin to start graduate school. Grad school was just okay, but the cycling was amazing! I had a bike trail right outside my apartment and from my front door I could bike over 40 miles one-way in multiple directions, almost all on bike trails! In 2018, I moved back to St. Louis but it took me ab...
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