Exercise and Exploration

As I’ve said before, summertime in Kansas City can be hot and sticky. This year, it was also rainy. Hiking is tricky when there are puddles to jump and insects to avoid. Some of us humans serve as gourmet meals for chiggers, and after getting their fills, they leave nasty bumps that itch for at least a week. The good news: insect repellant works wonders and muddy shoes can be cleaned. Go for it, summertime hikers.

Here are some Summer hikes we took and some of the great eating establishments we found:

1. Powell Gardens and Café Thyme– We visited to see the impressive Lego and butterfly exhibits. Thousands of Legos were used to build these amazing works of art placed among the plants and flowers of the gardens.

   But the rest of the gardens are so gorgeous that a visit with no special reason makes a hike into a day in Wonderland.    Our unusual amount of summer rain helped keep Powell Gardens green and blooming this summer.

As an added bonus, we discovered that Powell Gardens has its own café that uses fruits and vegetables grown in the gardens. Café Thyme’s food is as fresh and appealing as the gardens themselves. Yum!

2. Tomahawk Creek Hiking/Biking Trail— South of 135th Street in Overland Park, the Tomahawk Creek Trail follows the creek through woody green spaces near parks and south of the Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead and St. Andrews Golf Course. Its shade makes a summer walk a pleasure. Some of my favorite trees live alongside this trail.  To me, the mature trees represent my connection with nature. I want to hug them or climb up into them and visit often. I’d tell you their names, but they’d prefer you go visit them so they can tell you.

There are tons of eating places near 135th and I-69, but we chose to eat at the Gaslight Grill near 147th and Nall. The lunchtime specials are very special. YUM!

3. Gregory O Grounds Park at Lake Remembrance  east on I-70 in Blue Springs, Missouri– This is a beautiful new trail that we walked for the first time this summer. It’s a ways if you live on the other side of the Metro, but the beautiful views and shady asphalt series of paths make it worth the drive.  After the hike, we drove to old downtown Blue Springs to find lunch. Lucky us, we also found Inklings Book and Coffee Shoppe. The lovely proprietor of the Bookstore took six copies of my books to sell, and I will be signing my books there December 2. What a great place to browse for books, trade in you old ones, and find books by local authors (such as ME, yay!) We also found yummy gelato in the coffee shop. Great day!

4. Turkey Creek Streamway Trail — One of our favorite trails passes along Turkey Creek through greenways and parks. We began the trail at 75th Street and I-35 and walked north to a Sonic where we bought diet limeades as rewards for the hot walk. Yum. The walk is pretty in the good ol’ Summertime, and much of it is shady.

Because it’s one of our favorites, we drove to the Twisted Sisters Coffee Shop on Johnson Drive for lunch. Yummy and very reasonably priced lunches.

5. Kansas City Streetcar tracks — We hadn’t walked in downtown Kansas City for a while, and we wanted to see how the new streetcar tracks were coming along. So, instead of our usual downtown walks, the Riverfront Heritage Trail, Union Cemetery, or our winter Crown Center and Union Station walk, we decided to follow the streetcar line. We started in the City Market parking lot, walked to the beginning of the line and followed the tracks to Union Station along Main Street. There is still plenty of construction going on at this writing, so we had to cross and recross the street a couple of times, but we made it to Union Station by walking across the pedestrian bridge that crosses the tracks between the freight yard restaurants and the back of the station.

The bridge led us into the station through the model trains display–fascinating. After pausing for a short history lesson from one of the Union Station volunteers, we crossed the street to Portfolio, a kitchen design store. If you want to remodel your kitchen or design a new one, they have impressive ideas.  

On the way back to the City Market area, we stopped at Bob Jones shoe outlet. (We are shoppers as well as hikers, you know.) Then we stopped to see our attorney friend, Michael Dailey, at his office. (I think he missed his lunch by taking time to talk to us, but he didn’t complain.) Finally, we crossed the highway into the River Key area and ate at Harry’s Country Club. My spinach salad was delish. Yum.

My goodness, next week we’ll be starting our Fall, 2015 walks. Ever onward, fellow hikers.

Summer Walks, 2015

The summer arrived here in the metro area, and the weather turned hot. Not dry, just hot. In the heat, my walking group starts earlier and finishes earlier, trying to be inside by the time the thermometer almost melts and we have to slide into a café in our perspiration. We still walk every week, though. If it’s too hot for man or beast, we walk indoors. The Oak Park Mall is one of our favorite walking places whether it’s because of too much ice or too much sun on the trails. We’re not the only ones. There’s a space filled with tables and chairs and a lovely little coffee shop where many walking groups or couples meet to walk.  Then it’s down the hallways and up the escalator and around and around. It’s fun for window shopping, stopping at the restrooms, and finding whatever we’d like to eat at Panera or in the food court.  Ah, air conditioning, aren’t we lucky?!

I’m not saying we have to walk indoors every week. We aren’t completely allergic to sweat. One day we rubbed on the sunscreen and the insect repellent and struck out on the Gary Haller Trail. We met at the parking area near Shawnee Mission Parkway and Midland Drive and walked south toward Shawnee Mission Park–a nice shady walk with some invigorating hills, bluebirds, and some relaxing flat path. This trail is asphalt and therefore easy on the feet and joints.  When we got back to the cars, one of our members told us about a place to eat in Bonner Springs. We popped into one of the cars and over to that little town where we hiked a little path starting in the city park and snaking along a creek at the edge of town. Then we walk to the business district where we found the Cowtown Cheesecake Company. Inside are a few tables and a choice of tasty sandwiches for a reasonable price to eat before enjoying a piece of their cheesecake of the day or a piece of pie. How fun to find new places to eat and to explore new suburban towns close to the metro!  Yummy cheesecakes for sale there, people.

Of course, after all the rain, we had to walk the Indian Creek Trail starting at 103rd and State Line. We’ve walked that trail many times, but the water was higher and faster than we’ve seen it.  Pretty!

Mission, KS Walking and Twisted Sisters Eating

This morning the group walked a trail starting south of I-35 and Metcalf. It’s a continuation of the Turkey Creek Trail in Merriam, KS, but the trails don’t connect under the interstate. The map of Northeast Johnson County trails shows the disconnect and also the access points. It’s hard to believe the highway is only a short distance away on the other side of those beautiful trees. It’s a nice walk, though traffic noise makes conversation a little difficult for a group of people.

After enjoying the short walk, we drove south on Metcalf to the Target parking lot south of Johnson Drive. Then we set off along the trail on the south side of the Target, along Turkey Creek, and into Mission. It led us close to Johnson Drive and Nall where we found the delightful Twisted Sisters Coffee Shop.   We each had a satisfying (YUM), well-priced lunch and enjoyed the cozy, convivial atmosphere. The service was fast and friendly.    One of the owners, Sandi, took the time to talk with us and tell us about the shop.

Tomahawk Creek Trail in the Springtime

In the high sixties, low seventies by the time our hike was finished, dry, and sunny–beautiful–perfect. Springtime at its best. We hiked the Tomahawk Creek Trail from 119th Street almost to Metcalf and back.

The creek looked clear and running but not overly full. The trees were in blossom and almost leafed out, and the trail was mostly asphalt. Now what could make for a better hike?

I forgot to mention the conversation and picture-taking opportunities, plenty of both. And then lunch at The Corner Bakery Café in Camelot Court shopping center.

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Don’t mind the construction. It’s still open and serving up good food. I really liked the lemon-chicken-orzo soup. Yum!

Winter into Spring

Ah, springtime. Time to get out of the malls and into the great outdoors. This winter we often hiked at Oak Park Mall and Crown Center. Once we went to Independence Center. Those are the three indoor malls big enough for a good walk left around the K.C. Metro. Crown Center and over the skywalks makes for a dandy walk. Union Station always slows us down because there are so many things to see. It was beautiful at Christmas time. The shops at the Mall draw our attention, too, but we try to wait until after the walk to do our shopping.

On one of our Crown Center walks, we drove out of the free parking after three hours and drove to Thirty-ninth Street where we ate some fabulous food at The Blue Koi. At the Oak Park Mall we usually eat at Panera, always a good choice for nutritious soups and salads. Independence Center is farther for all of us, but it was fun because it was different for us. We traveled to downtown Independence and found a nice restaurant new to all of us.

That’s not to say we were too wimpy to walk outside during the winter. Everything looks stark, but one can see more of the surroundings on winter walks because of the lack of foliage. The gray and brown landscape has a beauty of its own. Indian Creek Trail can be good in winter when it’s dry.  The Basha is a good choice for a place to eat after a cold hike.  All the outdoor trails can be walked in the wintertime. Just be careful of ice and wet places, and dress in layers. Enjoy.

 

Indian Creek Trail in the Wintertime

There is an advantage to walking a familiar trail during the winter–no leaves. During the summer, leaves shade the trail and provide pretty surroundings. But they block the view. During the winter, the hiker can see back into the woods, the streams, the stumps, rocks, and hillsides.

Indian Creek Trail from the tennis courts at 103rd and Marty, East to Roe, and back provides some shelter from the cold winds and nice views of the creek side during the winter.

 After a winter walk, a person is hungry. We found a good Mediterranean restaurant called The Basha. We each ordered the yummy lentil soup and shared the appetizer sampler, a feast of hummus, pitas, Baba ganouj, and stuffed grape leaves. The location at 7016 W. 105th Street, tucked away inside the block of businesses, is hard to find but worth hunting down. Pretty décor and excellent food.

 

James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area Walk & Greenwood Tea Room

 Autumn. The season, this year, of warm, dry weather and gorgeous colors. The season leading toward the excitement of the holidays. Such was the setting for our walk in the James A. Reed Wildlife Area near Lee’s Summit and Greenwood, MO. This can be a true wildlife walk, as was ours, or it can be a leisurely stroll on the roads and trails through the fields and woods. Our walk turned into quite an exploration after we parked near Bodarc Lake  and took the clearly marked trail  into the wildlife area.  Soon we were walking into the woods on not so clearly marked, but wild and beautiful trails where we weren’t sure how to get back to the beginning.  That’s what always makes it more fun! We finally found a place to ford the creek by jumping from rock to rock   and made our way back to the car.

The delightful hiking trip ended with a YUM in Greenwood, Missouri at the Country Antique Mall and Tea Room.   (Hint: It’s a popular lunch spot. You may want to call ahead for reservations.)

 

Parkville Landing Trails and Parkville Coffee Shop

My walking group, the Roaming Readers, has hiked the English Landing Park in Parkville several times (see post,) but now a new section of feet-friendly crushed rock trail west of the English Landing parking area is open. The new area forms a loop around a field and along the Missouri River.    At a boat dock there, firemen and policemen practice water rescue maneuvers. Some were suiting up when we walked by. Great people!  (You can see the back of the rescue boat after they launched it in the river picture above.) Park College is visible in the distance from parts of the wide-open trail near the parking lot.

The west trail connects with the trail through English Landing Park. A well-used and beautiful park and trail.  We sat for a short time on one of the park benches and watched a barge being filled with river sand.  

Then it was time for brunch or lunch in Parkville, only a couple of blocks from the park. The Parkville Coffeehouse, featuring fresh roasted coffee, showed a welcoming front window, and we were glad we stopped in. The Quiche (I rate it a yum) tasted incredibly good after the walk. We chose iced tea rather than coffee since the day was warm. The café has good tea, too. In fact, everything on the menu looked delicious. President Obama visited the Parkville Coffeehouse when he visited Parkville on his way to the airport. He may have tasted their coffee!

Shawnee Mission Park and Jerry’s Bait Shop

The Shawnee Mission Park Trails circle the park and also connect with the Gary Haller Trail in the Mill Creek Streamway on the west side of the park.   Hiking within the park on a recent overcast day gave us plenty of miles and an abundance of beautiful scenery to admire.  The asphalt trails delight our feet and joints, and there is a wildlife/horse trail for those intrepid enough to douse themselves with insect repellent and hike through the woods. (We like to do that in the early spring or late fall.) Shawnee Mission is as great for walkers as it is for picnickers, fishermen, and water sportsters.

After this invigorating walk, we drove to Old Leawood where we found Jerry’s Bait Shop, a bar and grill with a great, award-winning pizza.  We almost passed this little gem by, because we took the name literally, until we peeked inside and saw the bar and outside, the courtyard eating area. Good clues.   We got there early, before the crowd came in and we were joined by lots of discerning folks for a yummy pizza lunch. There are also a number of other good-sounding items on the menu.  Fun place.

When I got home, I noticed how much my kitties were missing me on a cool day in September.  Not. When they are cold, they like to curl up together in an armchair, sleep, and pay no attention to their humans.

Kill Creek Streamway Trail and De Soto, Kansas

  Kill Creek Streamway Trail can be reached by exiting Kansas 10 onto Lexington (the sign says De Soto exit,) going south a short distance to 95th Street, then driving east to a parking area. From there one can walk south or north. We walked south first, along the creek on a shady asphalt trail  until we reached a circular turnaround.    Then we walked north, past the parking area and under the highway to where the trail becomes a sidewalk in a housing development. It made for a nice walk, easy on the feet and with enough shade to make it comfortable on a hot August day.

Another one of those pretty Johnson County trail bridges, this time over Kill Creek

We could have walked into the town of De Soto by taking a branch off the trail, but we chose to walk back to our car (a two-hour hike total) and drive into town.

The two businesses we visited in De Soto are hidden treasures and spectacular finds. Mercato Italian Antiques & Artifacts knocked our socks off with its impressive array of  imported antiques and pottery.      Mary Lies, the owner, designed her own tableware collections based on Italian patterns and has them made in Italy for her shop. (Sneaky me–maybe my kids will see this and purchase pieces of the tableware for me for birthday, Christmas, Mother’s Day…Gesso or Compagna, please.)

Our last stop was across the street from Mercato at Wanda’s Roadside Café, a quaint country kind of place with a full lunch crowd. I can understand why it is so popular.  Two of us shared the vegetarian omelet served with crispy hash browns, plenty of food and the best omelet I can imagine, but we each ordered our own piece of Wanda’s homemade pie. We liked it so much that we split the pie, too, buttermilk pie and peach pie with ice-cream–sooooo fulllll, but so happy. Yummy.

Happy Trails!