Blue River Parkway (a Jackson County, Missouri park)
is located along the Blue River in south Kansas City. Although the
vast majority of park land (and trails) are located in the county park, the city of Kansas
City has a small park (Minor Park) located along the Blue River at Red Bridge Road. Thus,
this park and trails are sometimes referred to as "Minor Park (trails)".
This parkway is a beautiful get-away, quietly nestled in southern Kansas City, Missouri. Within
this parkway, there are several multi-purpose trails that wind along both sides of the Blue
River. These trails are open for hiking, mountain biking, and (in some locations) horse riding.
Please respect these trails by not riding them when they are wet/muddy (if you are leaving marks
in any more than an occasional puddle, it is too wet/muddy to ride so please come back
another time). Due to their weight, horses
can severely damage the trails if they ride when the ground is soft. Likewise, mountain bikes
can cause erosion problems on muddy trails. When the trails are damaged, it falls to the
volunteer trail maintainers to make repairs. We appreciate your help in preserving the trails.
Tips about drying times for the trails:
The most accurate guide is whether you're leaving marks or not. However, here are a few rules
of thumb to consider before even heading out to the trails:
If it is raining (more than a light sprinkle) or has done so in the past 2-3 days, the trails are probably too muddy.
If the temperatures have dipped below freezing in the past 3-4 days, the trails are
probably too muddy if it is above 23 degrees (F) and sunny or 28 degrees (F) and cloudy (or early morning).
If there is solid snow cover on the entire trail and it isn't
melting, the trails are probably not muddy (I'd recommend lowering your tire pressure a bit if cycling and
please be extremely careful).
It will probably take 4-6 days after the snow melts for the trails to dry out (assuming it stays above
freezing the entire time).
Sun, wind, heat, and low humidity will help dry the trails faster. Conversely, the lack of any of these will
make them dry more slowly.
The trails may also dry a bit faster in the spring when all the plants are thirsty.
News:
June 26, 2009: On an extremely hot, muggy day, several dozen volunteers
who were in town for the SkillsUSA2009 National Leadership and Skills Conference, came down to Blue River
Parkway and participated in the inaugural work day for the "Blue River to Swope Park"
trail. We still have work to do before the first segment of this trail is ready to open, but we got a lot done with all the great help we had!
January 31, 2009: During one of this year's major workdays, 15 volunteers helped
address several erosion issues on the "Wagon Trail" with a re-route of a section,
the re-opening of "Mr. Jingle's Jangle" and deberming a section of trail. While the
trails aren't dry enough to ride at the moment, once they dry out (or freeze solid) be sure to
check it out! Special thanks go to Phil Scherer for the great breakfast burritos and to Starbucks® for providing some coffee to wash them down.
September 7, 2008: A new sign board has been erected, thanks to Phillip Scherer, Matt
Hendricks, and Matt's dad, who designed, built, and paid for the sign board. The sign board is located
at the southern intersection of the Basement and Bo Ho Ca trails.
The trails in Blue River Parkway are largely maintained by volunteer "Trail
Watchers". The "Trail Watchers" are
maintaining this site for your enjoyment.
