Reply to logistics to and from trail

We're planning to fly from California to St. Louis in June so we can ride the whole trail. Can anyone recommend the best way for us to get from St. Louis to St. Charles with our bikes, and then after the ride, get from Clinton back to St. Louis to fly home?
Huge thanks for any suggestions--
Marty and Joe

A shuttle service will get you where you need to go. These services operate like taxis for the trail, shuttling you and your bikes and gear from one point on the trail to another point on the trail (or beyond). Here is a list of shuttle services.


I know that at least the two services based in St Charles (TC Tours & Katy Trail Shuttle) will take you between the airport and the St Charles trailhead, for somewhere in the neighborhood of $30. They generally charge by the vanload, so it’s the same price for one passenger as for two.



Any of the shuttles will take you from Clinton to St Charles. I don’t know what they all charge, but you might expect about $250-350. Again, this is per van so it’s not so bad if you can split it with other riders.



Another option for your return trip is to take the Amtrak train back to your starting point. Amtrak stops at Sedalia, which is on the trail but 35 miles from Clinton, so you’ll have to back-track 35 miles from trail’s end to get to the station. The train does not stop in St Charles, but it does stop in Kirkwood, which is in St Louis County. Either of the two St Charles-based shuttles mentioned above will take you from the Kirkwood train station to Lambert St Louis airport, again for something like $30. Here is a web page with more details on the Amtrak option. Amtrak is a popular option with many trail users.

Another option involving Amtrak, is going to the Saint Louis station instead of Kirkwood, then hop onto Metrolink, ($1.50) to the airport (bike free on Metrolink need to go to the back, or front of each car)