By Heidi Glaus
St. Charles, Mo (KSDK) -- The Katy Trail starts near St. Charles and runs almost to Kansas City.
Viewer Rick Frank Jones wanted to know what the Katy in Katy Trail stands for, so Heidi Glaus hit the trail to find out in this week's Hey Heidi! segment.
It stretches 240 miles and winds through some of the most beautiful places in Missouri.
"I think we went 10 or 15 miles one time and then realized, oh gosh, we have to turn around and come back. We didn't make that mistake again," laughs Bev Budde.
Of course, it's a path you take at your own pace, and although more than 400,000 people pedal...
"I got engaged on the Katy Trail," says one walker.
Or plan their future along it, not everyone knows what the Katy in Katy Trail stands for.
"I should. Kansas something?" asks Kelly Helmick.
"Who is Katy anyway?" asks Lynne Wuelling.
It isn't a person, but rather an old railroad corridor.
"A long time ago, in the late 1800's used to be the MKT or the Missouri Kansas Texas rail line," explains Dawn Fredrickson with Missouri State Parks.
"Missouri Kansas Texas rail line is a mouthful so people started to abbreviate it and called it the MKT then they started dropping off the M and calling it Katy," Fredrickson goes on to say.
Call it what you will, it's a place people have come to love for several reasons.
"That it's flat," jokes Helmick.
"It's got something for everybody, railroad enthusiasts who want to track the old MKT railroad, people who just want to get out and get some physical activity outside, people who want to experience nature," Fredrickson adds.
And that makes it one of the state's most precious treasures.
If you have a question for Hey Heidi question for Heidi Glaus, email her at hglaus@ksdk.com.
KSDK