Most followers of civic affairs know Bill Eddy as the retired business professor and former school board member who has become a citizen activist, lobbying for better education in the city's dysfunctional schools. But Eddy is also half of the writing duo who has compiled the definitive guide to hiking in Kansas City. So it's only elementary that the best path in town is named after Eddy and his co-author, Richard Ballentine. This 2.5-mile trail, which starts just south of the Swope Park Blue River Golf Course, isn't for the mall-walking set, though. It's a rugged traverse that snakes up steep hillsides and through rock outcroppings and splashes through several streams. But the effort is well worth it. Watch for bluebirds in the grassy meadows, marvel at the limestone bluffs that border the cool ravines, and drink in the deep-forest air that feels a million miles away from the smog-clogged city. Even with his high educational standards, we'd wager Eddy would give this trail an A+.
