This
route takes you on a tour of the Missouri Rihneland or
wine-country. If you enjoy wine tasting and aren’t stupid
enough to drive when you’ve had too much too drink, then
this will be one of the top routes in all of Missouri
for you.
The
August A. Busch Memorial Conservation Area can
be found by taking a detour at Rte. D west for about 2
miles. It offers thousands of acres for hiking, picnicking,
hunting and fishing.
If
you take another detour off of Rte. 94 west on Rte. F
for about 5 miles you will see the Daniel Boon House.
Daily tours are offered March-November. The house is
a four story, plantation style house that Daniel Boone
built with the help of his son. It is here where Daniel
Boone retired and lived his last years of life back in
the early 1800s.
The
Katy trail is a biking and hiking trail that covers 200
miles of abandoned railroad paths. From this route you
can access the trails of this route.
Augusta
Missouri is home of many of the area’s best wineries.
For an incredible view of the Missouri River valley and
the area’s farms, visit the Montelle Winery (314-228-4464).
It sits atop a 400 ft bluff that overlooks the river valley
below.
Detour
off of 94 heading south on Rte. 47 for about 4 miles.
There you will find the town of Washington, which sits
next to the Missouri River and offers visitors a number
of restaurants, Bed and Breakfasts and various arts and
craft shops. This town of 11,000 is relatively large
by rural measurements and has a large number of attractive
homes built in a “Missouri-German” style that visitors
love to see. It is also home of the world’s only existing
corn-cob pipe factory that puts out an amazing 7,000 pipes
a day and have been used by famous people such as Mark
Twain and General Douglas MacArthur.
Back
on 94 a couple of miles west of the town of Dutzow look
for a sign leading to the grave and monument of Daniel
Boone. Apparently Daniel Boone was originally buried
here back in 1820 and his body lay next to his wife’s
for 25 years until the State of Kentucky won a fight to
have his body brought back to the state he helped found.
Rumor has it that the state of Missouri actually sent
the bones of a young slave instead.
The
highlight of the trip may be its final stop in Herman.
This town was established by German immigrants who wanted
to preserve their customs and architecture. Today this
hilly little German town is a popular tourist town because
of the many bed and breakfasts, museums, and wineries.
Like any good German town, this place really comes alive
during its many October Fests put together each year.
The town is neatly kept and offers blocks of shops and
restaurants. Go to the Stone Hill Winery (573-486-2129)
if you want a great view overlooking the town. Make sure
you take the tour they offer to see its impressive wine
cellars. The Historic Herman Museum (573-489-5959) will
tell you about the history of the area and its German-Americans
that proudly built this beautiful town.
The
wineries stop at Herman but if you continue on you will
still see some pretty farms, pass through nice small towns
and ride some great twisty stretches of 94 about another
50 miles all the way to capital city of Missouri - Jefferson
City.
Missouri
Division of Tourism (314-751-4133). For a Guide to the
local wineries call 800-392-9463.
