We spent two weeks at the Sundermeier RV Park in October, and it was a beautiful time to be in Missouri. With fall in the air, the days were warm and the nights were cool. The park itself was near the Missouri River, with the Katy Trail separating the two. If you’ve been following us, then you know any park close to a biking trail is perfect in our book! Full disclosure, though. This park was also located in an airport flight path, near a major highway, and near train tracks. However, the paved site and proximity to St. Louis, on the biking trail, and also within walking distance to the historical part of St. Charles, made the rest tolerable.

St. Charles is known as the location of the first Missouri State Capitol. The town has kept its historic charm, with businesses using and refurbishing existing structures to create a quaint downtown area. And while we didn’t partake in any of the wonderful smelling restaurants along Main Street, we did hit up Grandma’s Cookies a couple of times! We highly recommend them!

St. Charles is also known as the location where Lewis and Clark began and ended their expedition west! Located in Frontier Park along the Missouri River, the Lewis & Clark Boat House and Museum is full of exhibits allowing you to follow along on their journey of discovery.

As I mentioned before, we were also along the Katy Trail. During our stay there, we enjoyed several rides along the eastern part of the trail. This is a relatively flat gravel trail, so road bikes are not recommended. It was peaceful and enjoyable riding past farms and small towns along the trail.

We began one of our rides near the riverfront town of Washington, Missouri. After a morning of riding, we went into the town for lunch at Sugarfire Smoke House. I’m not sure if it was that we were starving from our ride, but the food was delicious. We were happy to see they had outdoor seating, so we could safely eat our lunch. The fun thing about venturing into small towns is that you never know what you’ll find. We found the Corn Cob Pipe Museum located in the Missouri Meerschaum Company! While it was small, it was definitely unique.

We also took the opportunity and beautiful weather to ride the Riverfront Trail into St. Louis. We’d explored by truck when we first arrived, but loved the opportunity to ride our bikes through the city as well.

As you can see, we definitely enjoyed our time in St. Charles, Missouri. While we weren’t able to partake in any of the festivals they have at Frontier Park through the summer and fall because we were limiting exposure due to COVID, we were still able to mask up and walk around the town when it wasn’t crowded. We would definitely recommend a you plan a trip to St. Charles, Missouri.

Jennifer Skinnell is the author of the Hope Springs Romance Series available on Amazon. Click here for all the details.