42
Discover parts of the state that roads don’t reveal on Kansas’ three navigable rivers
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Two neighboring wildlife areas in central Kansas offer some of the nation’s best viewing for migratory birds
Spring is here, and so is our annual Tulip Time celebration held at beautiful parks throughout the city. Events include the Tulip Festival at the Lake and Tulips at Twilight at Ward-Meade Botanical Garden.
10 Cuisine Fine Food and Good Eats 12 Culture Arts and Experiences
14 Kansas Made Original Creations from Home 16 Heartland People and Places that Define Us
18 Kansas Air The Freshness of Outdoor Life
20 Behind the Lens A Conversation with KANSAS! Photographers 22 Kansas Captured Authentic Life in the Sunflower State 24 Reasons We Love Kansas Celebrating Unique Attractions
26 A Reimagined Roast
Straight from the Ranch Eck Agriculture continues generations of farming and ranching with direct-to-customer sales and an array of original recipes
30 High Plains Under the Sea
An ancient sea and the life that thrived in it shaped the contour of the land we know
34 Native Grasses in Kansas Save money and the planet with these backyard grasses
38 Where Every Drop Counts
Just beyond the Ogallala Aquifer and on the dry plains, Hays has learned how to value, conserve, and rethink its use of water
EVERY
7 It’s All in the Extra Details 8 A Hello from Our Publisher 58 KANSAS! Gallery 64 From the Poet Laureate
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Beccy Tanner’s story in the wide-open spaces section explores ways Kansans can become more ecologically friendly using native grasses. In a sit-down chat with Brad Guhr, education/ prairie restoration and concert series coordinator for Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesston, Tanner discusses available options for gardeners looking to diversify their gardens. One option Guhr recommends is to substitute Kentucky bluegrass—a coolseason grass that requires frequent waterings—for buffalo grass, which requires less water. As some areas of Kansas experience water shortages, conserving water will benefit the whole state.
While not every native grass is right for each region, Dyck Arboretum hosts Flora Kansas Native Plant Days each spring to help gardeners determine which plants and grasses are best for their region and yard types. This year’s event is April 26–29.
Tanner doesn’t just explore grasses, but plants, too. Guhr recommends pollinator plants such as butterfly milkweed—a drought-resistant plant that attracts bees and monarch butterflies.
Interested in more events that could help get you in the gardening spirit? Don’t miss this year’s Extension Master Gardener Public Garden Tour in Johnson County on May 17 and 18. Early-bird tickets go on sale April 1 and start at $25. For more information visit johnson.k-state.edu and explore the lawn and garden section. Check online to see if there are other public garden tours near you.
Kansas Tourism will be joining the Kansas Sampler Foundation for the group’s annual Big Kansas Road Trip. The 2024 journey runs May 3–5 and features the community of Lucas, along with Ellsworth and Lincoln counties.
Attractions include the Garden of Eden, Mushroom Rock State Park, Crispin Drug Store and more. For full details go online at bigkansasroadtrip.com.
Patricia Ackerman’s story about the Crossroads Marathon in Salina mentions the race’s high percentage of runners who qualify for the prestigious Boston Marathon. Other Kansas marathons also provide runners a road to Boston, according to the database at findmymarathon.com. Here is a breakdown of the 2023 USA Track & Field–certified Kansas marathons and the percentage of runners who qualified for the 2024 Boston Marathon in April.
For centuries, water has played a pivotal role in Kansas’ story. It’s vital to our future as well.
When trekking through the western High Plains, in areas like Castle Rock and Little Jerusalem Badlands State Park, it’s hard to imagine you’re walking on an ancient sea floor. However, if you look around you will notice the signs: fossilized bits of sea life scattered in the ground below you and Niobrara Chalk formations (70–100 feet tall and created by calcium from the breakdown of shells) looming over you.
Water is a lifeline that runs through many facets of Kansas living. It’s not only important to our state’s agriculture, but also to the economy and to the quality of life Kansans and travelers experience through recreational opportunities. Water enriches our lives in countless ways, from allowing us to kayak our national waterways (the Kansas and Arkansas rivers), to providing opportunities for birding and wildlife-watching at Kansas’ premier wetlands.
As the topic of water conservation grows in importance, individuals and communities across the state explore ways to change the trajectory. In Haines Eason’s story, “Where Every Drop Counts” (Page 38), the city of Hays shares how it is rethinking water usage and getting some help from local students. For those interested in conserving water use at home, I recommend Beccy Tanner’s story on native grasses and their use as residential landscaping (Page 34). Reflecting on the intricate connection between water and the Kansas way of life, it becomes clear that this precious resource is indeed a cornerstone of our present and future. Whether it’s sustaining our agricultural heritage, fueling recreational adventures, or fostering innovative conservation efforts, water is undeniably intertwined with every aspect of Kansas living.
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From fine arts to fine fare, evenings out to sporting spectacles, however you partake, you’ll feel Wichita’s energy at every turn. Because we’re a little bit fancy, a little bit funky and a whole lot of friendly. Come see the place we love. We have a feeling you’ll love it too.
These three Kansas restaurants combine great dishes with magnificent waterfront views
STORY BY Cecilia Harris PHOTOGRAPHY BY Haines Eason
Chart your course by boat or by car to waterfront restaurants such as The Cove, which provides the tranquility of Milford Lake as a backdrop.
Located 10 miles north of Junction City, The Cove features banks of windows and a large patio all facing west for spectacular views of the water at sunset or any time of day.
Highlights of the menu include the brisket and pork, both smoked in-house, beef country fried steak and several choices of tacos, including sweet potato for vegetarians, according to Ray Rhodes, the restaurant’s general manager.
And then there is the elk, which comes fresh and is raised by a sister company just 30 miles away.
“You can come in any day of the week and you can order an elk burger or an elk country fried steak,” Rhodes says. “The country fried steak is fresh, never frozen; it’s massive, and it’s easily one of our most popular entrees. We have a good following for the elk.”
Elk fillets, elk KC strips and elk rib eyes are specials on the weekends, along with snow crab and boiled shrimp. Seafood lovers appreciate the fish basket and fish tacos on the daily menu.
The Cove also offers a signature appetizer.
“The one that identifies with us most would be our Campfire Fries; that’s something that was created here in this restaurant,” Rhodes says. “We make it in-house; it’s covered with queso, cheddar cheese, sour cream, jalapeños, green onions and bacon, and you can add smoked meats to it as well.”
As part of Acorns Resort, The Cove is within walking distance of RV campsites and cabins for rent, and boaters may use the adjacent public dock to tie off their vessels before following the sidewalk to the overlook where they walk right onto the patio of the restaurant.
“We are a one-stop operation. You can come and get a cabin at the resort, play on the lake by day, and if you don’t feel like cooking at night, you can come to our restaurant and eat and enjoy some live music,” Rhodes says. “We do live music here at the restaurant every other weekend starting Memorial Day weekend.”
Open year-round, the restaurant operates daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day; it is closed on Monday and Tuesday in the offseason, when hours of operation also change.
acornsresortkansas.com/bar-and-grill.html
785.463.4000 Ext. 3
Lake Crawford, Farlington
Try the omelets for breakfast and return to sample favorite comfort foods such as the hot roast beef sandwich and the homemade pie for lunch or dinner at the Lake View Café. With scenic views of Lake Crawford, the café serves signature beef nachos on Friday evenings when live music is performed outdoors on the lakeside patio. In addition to menu items, a daily special such as meatloaf or pot roast with potatoes and carrots is offered every day but Saturday. The café typically opens in late March or early April, offers extended hours from May through September, and closes around the first of October, so be sure to check the Facebook page for days and hours of current operation. Facebook.com/LakeViewCafe | 620.362.4131
Lake Perry
High Tide 21 on Lake Perry is known for its queso burger, a grilled beef patty on a brioche bun with a side of crispy seasoned fries, all smothered in queso and bacon crumbles. The restaurant also offers daily specials and a large selection of beers, cocktails and frozen drinks. For the best views of the lake, take a seat on the outdoor patio, where you can also hear live music on weekends. Or, if you are 21 or over, bring your suit and step into the large pool with a view and a swim-up bar. DJs provide music poolside primarily on weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day. There’s also a splash pad for kids with parental supervision. High Tide is open mid-March through October, with special late-night pool parties requiring tickets in the summer and an annual Halloween costume party in October. A lower deck is available for private parties year-round, and the entire building may be rented for special occasions from November through February. facebook.com/HIGHTIDE21 | 785.783.5509
A trio of Kansas museums combine works of art with historical perspective, both modern and ancient
The Fick Fossil and History Museum combines geological history and art in amazing ways.
Several of the museum’s exhibits are artworks created by hundreds of tinted fossilized shark teeth and fish shells, some measuring only a half-inch in length. Some of these form images of landscapes, trees, and flowers. One work of uses more than 2,000 shark teeth to form a picture of, what else, a shark.
These one-of-a-kind creations by Vi Fick fill the walls of this Oakley museum. A self-taught artist, Fick combined fossils she found with oil and acrylic paint, papiermâché, beeswax, crayon wax and dental wax to create her scenes and mosaics.
“I explain to visitors what they are made of, and people are just amazed when they go and look up close and see that these really are shells and other fossils,” says Jodee Reed, the museum’s director. “They are very unique and original; they are all beautiful in their own way.”
Reed believes Fick and her husband, Ernest, began gathering fossils sometime in the 1950s.
“They lived about 15 miles south and east of the Monument Rock area, and that’s where they found the majority of their collection,” she says. “They started collecting fossils seriously in 1964, and their searches encompassed about a 40-mile radius, so they were in Scott, Gove, Lane and Logan counties.”
Logan County
The Keystone Gallery is a combination art gallery, museum and gift shop inside a former church located on US Highway 83, just south of Little Jerusalem Badlands State Park and Monument Rocks National Landmark. The gallery features paintings and other art by Chuck Bonner and scenic photography by Barbara Shelton, the co-owners. Bonner also painted a 24x6-foot mural of prehistoric life in the ancient Niobrara seaway to enhance the display of local fossils, including a 20-foot mosasaur, a 14-foot-long Xiphactinus, and those of fish, turtles and birds. Minerals, fossils and souvenirs of Monument Rocks are available in the gift shop. keystonegallery.com |
Many of the fossils they discovered in this area were left by the creatures that inhabited the prehistoric inland sea once covering western Kansas.
By 1971, the Ficks had picked up more than 11,000 shark teeth and thousands of other marine fossils that had become the inspiration for Vi’s art. About that time, the couple founded the museum to showcase both the self-taught artist’s creations and their fossil collection.
Reed says that the museum holds more than 100 of Fick’s creations, with a small portion on permanent display and many more rotated every six to eight months.
“There are a lot of unique pieces of art you would never see anywhere else,” Reed says.
The museum also holds other geological treasures, including a mosasaurus skull over a million years old, one of the oldest Tylosaurus prorigers marine reptiles ever found, according to Reed. Other local fossils on display include a 15-foot-long Xiphactinus audux fish, a rare front paddle of a long-necked plesiosaur (a Mesozoic marine reptile), and various parts of mammoths and mastodons.
In addition, the museum showcases a collection of rocks and minerals found mostly by the Ficks and exhibits pertaining to the history of the area.
facebook.com/fickfossilmuseum
Realistic depictions of the wildlife, landscapes, history and figures of the American West have garnered national acclaim for Kansas native Jerry Thomas. His colorful paintings hanging in the Jerry Thomas Gallery and Collection also serve as a backdrop for his world-class collection of Western heritage, Native American, and US Cavalry artifacts, including items belonging to members of Custer’s 7th US Cavalry Regiment. There are also artifacts from the Battle of Punished Woman’s Fork, the last conflict between the US military and Native Americans in Kansas; the battleground is now a National Historic Site located north of Scott City.
jerrythomasartgallery.com 785.410.6667 or 620.872.5912
Quilt guilds across the state prepare for shows, classes, and new collaborations
STORY BY Melinda Briscoe
WPHOTOGRAPHY BY Aaron Patton
hen the subject of quilting comes up, Judy Wohlford thinks about her colleagues in the Prairie Quilt Guild. “We have some seriously talented members,” she says. “What people can do with a needle, thread, and little pieces of material is amazing.”
The Wichita-based guild has been around since 1982. Every even-numbered year, the group’s 300 members host the Common Threads Quilt Show where at least 100 quilts enter competition and several hundred go up for display. There are youth quilts, mini quilts, quilted handbags and clothing, and the Opportunity Quilt, which is created by several guild members as a showcase quilt that can be won through a raffle.
“The Opportunity Quilt is something we take pride in. This whole show is something we’re proud of,” Wohlford says, “Some of the contributions I see just make me go ‘Wow!’”
The Common Threads Quilting Show will also feature the work of some member-artists, such as Kurt Sackschewsky, who will have six to ten pieces in the show. Sackschewsky started the craft in 2007. “I was kind of late to game,” he recalls. “But I had a great teacher. My wife is a very talented quilter, and she is the one who encouraged me to try it out.” He notes that male quilters are still an exception, but encourages other men to get involved, “Definitely. There are no gender borders anymore. I say go for it.”
This statewide group gathers twice a year at different locations. Its next meeting is June 7–8 in Manhattan. ksquilter.org
Each March, including 2025, Yoder hosts the Parade of Quilts, a showcase of handcrafted quilts, many influenced by the heritage and culture of the region’s Amish and Mennonite communities. yoderkansas.com
Based in Merriam, this guild is devoted to supporting and encouraging artists exploring and creating modern quilts. The guild’s monthly meetings are open to visitors and new members. kcmqg.com
This year’s Common Threads Quilt Show is June 21 and 22 at Wichita’s Century II Exhibition Hall. For more information, go online at commonthreadsquiltshow.com.
The guild gathers throughout the year for enjoyment, recreation, and fellowship. The members also believe in community outreach, making quilts for charities and for people affected by disasters such as fires, floods, and tornadoes. Each year the guild puts on a day camp for 8–18-year-olds so they can learn this form of textile art. Member Lynda Miller explains, “We as members have learned so much from each other, and we want to pay that forward to the youth.” The guild is also involved in a nationwide initiative called Quilts of Valor, making quilted blankets and pillowcases for active and retired military personnel.
Gear up for Manhattan’s fall float adventure
STORY BY Debbie Leckron Miller
With a full moon lighting the way, a fun-loving fleet paddles onto Tuttle Creek State Park’s River Pond for a fall float adventure. A Manhattan tradition every October since 2015, the nighttime Little Apple Glow Paddle circles the placid pond in a followthe-leader fashion and winds up ashore with a campfire and s’mores.
“As the sun sets, it’s so peaceful on the water,” says Marcia Rozell, director of Visit Manhattan and a co-founder of the Glow Paddle. “People love coming to the event with their friends and making new friends, plus they feel safe kayaking with a group at night, which they probably wouldn’t do otherwise.”
On this evening especially, there’s safety in numbers. The fleet follows behind a lead boat, piloted by Tuttle Creek State Park manager Levi Gantenbein. As an extra precaution, motorized Corps of Engineers and Manhattan Fire Department boats follow along “to make sure nobody tips over or gets left in the dark,” Gantenbein says. Occasionally, there is a harmless spill. “But everybody has fun, even the guy who tipped out of his kayak last year!” he says.
Seasoned paddlers and first-timers—from families with children to senior citizens—gather below the Tuttle Creek reservoir dam at the River Pond boat ramp. “You don’t need to have kayaking experience,”
PHOTOGRAPHY BY
Gantenbein adds. “This is the best place to learn to kayak that I know of.”
They launch around 6:30 p.m. and paddle for an hour or more before heading back to the ramp. The Glow drew 62 adventurers last year.
“It was beautiful, warm and no wind. You couldn’t ask for better fall paddling weather,” Gantenbein recalls.
Participants must wear life jackets and have lights on their boats, and many wear headlamps, too, which Gantenbein recommends. Some trim their vessels with strings of lights and glow sticks, and Halloween-themed décor adds to the festive fun—everything from a skeleton at the helm and spider-webbed hulls, to superhero and Renaissance costumes.
Scheduled on a full-moon night around Halloween, the Glow is run by staff at Tuttle Creek State Park, with help from Friends of Tuttle Creek State Park and Visit Manhattan. The event is free to attend, but a state park vehicle permit is required ($5 for a day pass). Kayaks are available to rent at River Pond, or you can bring your own.
A regular participant, Rozell points out why River Pond (locally known as Tuttle Puddle) works so well: “You don’t need a shuttle to pick you up at the end of your trip. Just park in the big lot by the boat ramp, and get on and off on your own. Also, people can stay on the water as long as they want— from 20 minutes to two hours. That’s the beauty of the pond.”
Natural beauty is a big draw, too. “The number of birds you see and hear is amazing,” Rozell says. Sightings often include turkey vultures, great blue herons, crows and eagle nests. “The turkey vultures kick up a storm when we paddle by, and as the evening light fades, fish splash and leap through the air for flies.” Last year, a beaver swam between boats, flapping its tail.
The evening wraps up with a cozy campfire and s’mores at the shelter house. “It’s the simple pleasures like hanging around a campfire and bonding with people or just sitting in your kayak to look at the stars,” Rozell says. “It unites a community of paddlers with a great environment and a great event. It’s just fun!”
Another Manhattan-based adventure, the Little Apple Paddle, guides kayakers on a 10-mile trip down the Kansas River every July. Started as a way to celebrate the river’s designation as a National Water Trail, the event draws as many as 200 participants who navigate from Manhattan to St. George.
After a safety talk at the Linear Park launch point, the colorful flotilla pushes off at 9 a.m. and reaches St. George around 1 p.m. Strung out behind the lead boat, the group stops at a sandbar half way to stretch their legs, get hydrated and hear a talk about the 173-mile water trail.
Marcia Rozell, director of Visit Manhattan, helped found the event in 2015 to introduce others to paddling and the Kansas River. “It gets a new group of people onto the river to experience it and to realize they can navigate it on their own,” she says.
But she points out that the excursion requires paddling and stamina. “It’s called a paddle, not a float trip! People don’t realize that 10 miles is a long ways, which is why we stop to rest at the sandbar,” she says. Friends of the Kaw River Guides accompany the boats to add support and to even tow anyone who’s struggling.
“There’s plenty of support on the river to keep everyone safe,” Rozell says, adding that children should be seven or older to participate.
Hot dogs grilled by Friends of Tuttle Creek State Park wait at trail’s end. “Everyone is so tired and hungry. Those are the best-smelling hot dogs ever as you come downriver into St. George!” laughs Rozell, who hasn’t missed a Little Apple Paddle.
The registration fee includes a T-shirt and shuttle service. Kayaks are available to rent, or you can bring your own. Pack plenty of snacks, water and sunscreen, and wear old shoes for when you walk your kayak across a shallow stretch, Rozell advises.
For more information, head to visitmanhattanks.org
A new but highly successful marathon plans for an even bigger third year
STORY BY Patricia E. Ackerman
WPHOTOGRAPHY BY
Tanner Colvin
hat do the Boston Marathon and Salina have in common? The Salina Crossroads Marathon—the state’s leading qualifying event for the Boston Marathon.
The marathon began as a conversation between two Salina runners, Daniel Craig and Chris Laheka, who set out to host a USA Track and Field–certified race that would meet requirements as a Boston Marathon qualifying event. They wanted family-friendly activities that would make the Salina Crossroads Marathon stand out from the other 300+ marathons held across the United States. And they pledged to donate 100% of race entry fees to local youth sports. Inspired by their commitment, local banker Andrew Manley joined the team to manage finances.
In November 2022, 817 runners registered for the first Salina Crossroads Marathon, which raised $23,000 for four youth sports organizations in Salina. The rest of the community benefited as well—the Salina Chamber of Commerce reported a $446,000 boost to the local economy.
On November 4, 2023, 3,400 runners participated in Crossroads Marathon events, which brought $35,000 in donations to five youth sports organizations in Salina. The economic impact grew as well, with the Salina Chamber of Commerce calculating a $1 million impact on the local economy. Of the runners who participated in the full marathon this year, 11% qualified for the prestigious Boston Marathon.
Craig attributes much of the marathon’s initial two years of success to planning. “A race experience starts long before
the race with having great pre-race communication,” he says. To reinforce the race’s reputation, the Salina Crossroads Marathon team guarantees a 100% paved course, allows runners the option to change their race distance at any time, defers entries to the following year, among other benefits to participants.
The race experience continues even after the 6-hour race window closes. In 2023, organizers stayed alongside a first-time marathon runner from southwest Kansas to cheer her across the finish line long after the deadline. Tina Green-Martinez’s post of appreciation on Facebook received over 30,000 likes.
The Salina Crossroads Marathon receives broad-based community support from donors, grants, and sponsorships to fund the $98,000 in expenses to host this annual event. Support from the City of Salina and more than 240 community volunteers provide valuable in-kind resources.
The 2024 Salina Crossroads Marathon is scheduled for Saturday, November 2. In early February more than 2,000 runners from 45 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom were already preregistered. Organizers hope to register 4,000 runners for the 2024 lineup of seven different events, from the marathon to a half-mile kids’ run.
Originally from Abilene, Dave Mayes appreciates the small-town way of life he experienced growing up.
It wasn’t until attending Kansas State University, that Mayes became a professional photographer.
“I was mentored by many talented and supportive photographers who are still my friends today,” he says.
“People often think photography is about taking a picture, but actually it is about letting a situation unfold and telling its story.”
For the next 15 years, Mayes found himself engulfed in the newspaper industry before returning to K-State to be one of their primary photographers before he would inevitably take his photography business full time. When he’s not behind the camera, Mayes can be found enjoying yoga, cycling or doing anything outdoors. Most importantly, Mayes notes that he’s a husband and dad, making him the luckiest guy around.
What is your favorite Kansas landmark to photograph?
I don’t have a specific landmark. In fact, I sort of shy away from things that have been photographed over and over by others. If you find a bunch of people pointing a camera at something, I’ll usually be the guy off by himself looking in the other direction. It’s not really a landmark, but I would say rural Kansas is my favorite place. Western Kansas has always fascinated me.
What have you learned from being a photographer that you wouldn’t have learned otherwise in? To be patient. To be honest, it’s like a path with no end. Rushing a picture or shooting it at the wrong time of day, year, etc., is the difference between good and great oftentimes.
What is the hardest thing to photograph badly? To photograph well? Badly: autumn. Well: people.
What are some objects you like to photograph that are not common in other works? I have a fascination with two things: airborne objects that aren’t airborne under their own power. For example, leaves being blown by the wind or wheat chaff being kicked out of the back of a combine etc. The other is a juxtaposition of manmade things and natural things. Nature doesn’t make straight lines, and it’s always fascinated me to see how the lines of big urban buildings cut into natural surroundings.
—DAVE MAYES
Three things I’ll never tire of photographing are farms, food and Kansas landscapes.
The motto of a good Kansas photographer should always be Ad Astra Per ... patience. People often think photography is about taking a picture, but actually it is about letting a situation unfold and telling its story.
“I photographed this image last October at Shawnee Mission Lake. It was one of those perfect fall nights—the air was still, the sky a radiant blue. I remember being really amazed at the kayakers as they raced in toward the beach. They would cheer each other on and then go back and race inward again. It was really exciting to watch, and I realized the upper body strength it must take to shred through the water at that speed. I was really impressed and knew I needed to grab my camera.”
—KALLI JO WINTERS, PHOTOGRAPHER
Location: Johnson County Social Media: @photosbykallijo
Winters has spent the past five years as a wedding photographer. She specializes in film and digital photography and finds joy documenting genuine human connection. This image was photographed using a Canon R6 camera body and 50mm rf/1.2 lens.
BY Cecilia Harris
The annual Fall River Rendezvous at Fall River State Park honors and recreates trapper and hunter gatherings on the American frontier in the 1800s.
This year’s event on September 28 will mark 22 years of the festival. Park manager Kimberly Jones says the first event was organized to commemorate the bicentennial of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, which enticed adventurers to explore west of the Mississippi River.
“That was the biggest national public property purchase that we’ve ever made as a country,” Jones says. “We wanted to bring attention to the Louisiana Purchase because, of course, the whole state of Kansas was encompassed in that.”
Since that time, the event has continued to honor the heritage of those who lived in the wilderness and made a living from hunting and trapping.
“Historically we don’t know for sure if anybody would have physically used the Fall River as a rendezvous location, but there were rendezvous in Kansas.”
The 2024 Fall River Rendezvous includes fur trader encampments and demonstrations of black powder shooting, tomahawk throwing, archery, blacksmithing, Dutch-oven cooking, and weaving. Traders and artisans also offer traditional goods and crafts for sale.
“We plan the event to be on National Public Lands Day, which is always the last Saturday in September, so there is free admission because of that,” Jones says, adding that food concessions are available. ksoutdoors.com | 620.637.2213
“We wanted to bring attention to the Louisiana Purchase because, of course, the whole state of Kansas was encompassed in that.”
—KIMBERLY JONES
The Missouri River has long been known as the “Big Muddy,” so it seems fitting a one-day music event on its banks in Atchison be called the Muddy River Festival. Multiple stages are set up along the riverfront for six hours of continuous music. National and regional bands play country, rock and blues. Specialty food trucks and local vendors provide food and drinks. Tickets are required for the September 21 event. facebook.com/muddyrivermusicfestival Visitatchison.com | 913.367.2427
Ghosts and goblins will roam the grounds of Meade State Park at the annual Halloween in the Park. Campers parked in three adjoining campgrounds can decorate their areas for a chance to win prizes and can offer candy to costumed trick-or-treaters, who also may collect sweets from trunk-or-treat participants set up inside one of the loops. The roads are closed for a safe experience in a controlled environment. Visitors are asked bring at least one nonperishable food item in lieu of the normal entry fee; the food will be given to the Meade County Food Bank. ksoutdoors.com/State-Parks/Locations/Meade/Meade-Calendar/Halloween-in-the-Park Facebook: Halloween in the Park | 620.873.2572
A 30-minute fireworks display will begin at dusk on September 1 at Lovewell State Park. The pyrotechnics are presented from the Cedar Point Boat Ramp area, just west of the beach at Lovewell Reservoir. A state park vehicle permit is required, and visitors are encouraged to spend the day at the lake fishing, wildlife watching, picnicking, camping or taking advantage of the seven-station, 14-target archery range. ksoutdoors.com | 785.753.4971
Blues music is an annual highlight of the Spirit of Kansas Blues Festival on July 4 at Lake Shawnee in Topeka. The event is a collaborative effort between the Topeka Blues Society and Shawnee County Parks and Recreation. The event has been renamed the Spirit of Suki Blues Festival this year to honor the late Suki Blakely, the event’s founder. Individuals and groups will perform blues music continuously throughout the day near Reynolds Lodge. Food and craft vendors will be located nearby. Other activities include a car show, golf tournaments, and a fireworks display. parks.snco.us | 785.251.6812
WHERE IN KANSAS?
A sanctioned barbecue competition, auto show, live music, food trucks, and a corn hole tournament are all planned for Big Blue River Days on May 31 and June 1 in downtown Marysville, located along the Big Blue River. Marysvillecms.com | 785.562.3101
Eck Agriculture continues generations of farming and ranching with direct-to-customer sales and an array of original recipes
Often up before sunrise, Darrin Eck and Beth Covington continue their working days past the normal working hours. For them, farming and ranching on their land in Kingman is a way of life. Their three children, ranging in age from 10 to 18, are also involved in the process. Last summer when rye seed was scarce, 10-year-old Sophia checked the rye’s germination rate, making sure it was field ready.
The family operations, Eck Agriculture, includes 700 head of cattle, a fertilizer and chemical business, a custom cotton-stripping business, and thousands of acres of farmland in Kingman, Barber and Harper counties. Crops include cotton, milo, rye, alfalfa, wheat and soybeans.
“I began following my dad around the farm almost as soon as I could walk,” Darrin, a fourth-generation farmer, says of his introduction to farming. He joined his father, Clint, in business following his high school graduation, and the two of them worked together for a little over a decade until Clint died in 2014.
Darrin credits the success of his and his dad’s expanded operation, at least in part, to being open to new ideas. “I am curious and open to doing things differently. I don’t like to be locked into one thing. My dad might have raised his eyebrows at times, but he, too, was open to new things and was as curious as I am.”
A combination of novel approaches and the pressures of an epidemic caused Darrin and Beth to rethink their cattle operation as the Covid-19 pandemic unfolded. Up to that point, most of their cattle went to local sale barns, but at the beginning of the pandemic while loading cattle to sell, they decided to hold back a portion for direct-to-customer sales.
They’re committed to humane treatment for their livestock and prioritize the well being of the cattle. “Our cattle work hard for us and we try to take the best possible care of them,” Darrin explains.
Covington, a small-animal veterinarian at Skaer Veterinary Clinic, brings professional expertise and concern for animal treatment to her work on the ranch.
Eck and Covington provide their cattle with portable shade structures and use low-stress handling principles. After studying books by Temple Grandin, noted animal behaviorist, Eck used Grandin’s designs to create his own modified processing facility. Based on the natural behavior of cattle, the curved design allows cattle to move easily and calmly. It also means that Eck and Covington can efficiently run a load of cattle through the chutes for vaccination or loading without having to rely on others for assistance.
Certified Red Angus cattle and purebred Akaushi, a type of red Japanese cattle (Wagu), make up their herd. A crossbreeding program using Akaushi bulls yields what Covington points out as “beef that has a high degree of marbling [that’s also] a source of mono-unsaturated fat, a healthier type of fat.”
With the post-pandemic changes, Eck Agriculture’s directto-customer sales now make up about 10% of its total beef sales. They challenge people to track and taste the difference between their beef and other meat that might be misleadingly listed as American-grown. “A label may say that the meat was packaged in the US,” Covington says, “but that doesn’t mean that it was not imported.”
Eck beef is traceable, Eck explains. “If you buy directly from us, you have the option of picking your animal.” Calves can even be selected and tagged if the customer prefers certain genetics. Eck records are available that also allow the customer to see an animal’s date of birth, weight at various stages of life, complete vaccine history, and a list of pastures where the animal has grazed until finishing. To further support their transparency, before a steer is slaughtered and processed, it is assigned the name of a country western singer, and the packaged meat carries that name. Krehbiels Specialty Meats in McPherson, Chieftain Brand Meats in Kiowa and Attica Locker in Attica are the Kansas companies that process some of Eck’s beef.
Ribeye steaks are Eck Agriculture’s best seller. “We can’t keep them on hand,” Covington says. Roasts are another matter. Customers purchasing sides of beef often have the roast processed into ground beef. Speculating that people may no longer know how or are choosing not to cook less-tender cuts of meat such as roasts, Covington has created instructional posts on Eck Agriculture’s website. The website also includes a lesson on beef anatomy that points out the various cuts from each section, along with cooking guidelines. Covington creates “Mouthwatering Monday” posts on Facebook each week to share recipes that the Eck family is eating.
Their brand features a large “E,” but if you look closely, you will notice a backwards C forming the top and the bottom lines of the E. This “C” pays tribute to Darrin’s father, Clint, and his grandfather, Calvin. Both men were instrumental in building and shaping Eck Agriculture into the operation you see today.
Yield: Bone-in beef pot roasts yield approximately 2 to 2½ three-ounce servings of cooked, trimmed beef per pound
This assemble-and-forget recipe, an Eck family favorite, goes in the slow cooker early in the morning and is ready in the evening. Instead of serving pot roast the traditional way with potatoes and carrots, the Ecks use it for roast beef sandwiches, burritos, quesadillas, shepherd’s pie and beef and noodles.
In addition to creating flavor-packed morsels of beef, many of the recipe’s ingredients help tenderize the roast. Low and slow cooking also helps tenderize of this less-tender cut of beef.
• 3 to 3½ pounds Eck beef roast (Pike’s Peak or heel of the round, chuck, arm, rump, etc.)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt (approx.), as needed to liberally rub roast
• 1 teaspoon (approx.) black pepper, as needed to liberally rub roast
• 2 tablespoons (approx.) seasoning of choice, as needed to liberally rub roast (Traeger’s Beef Rub, Kinder’s Steak Blend, or Daddy Hinkle’s)
• 2–3 tablespoons olive oil, or enough to coat the bottom of pan
• 1 medium sweet onion, sliced into wedges
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1½ cups boiling water
• 1 tablespoon Better Than Bouillon’s Roasted Beef Bouillon
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
• ¼ cup hoisin sauce
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon cold water
1. Liberally cover both sides of roast with salt, pepper, and your favorite seasonings.
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat. Add roast and sear until browned on all sides, approximately 2–3 minutes per side. This adds a nice bark to your roast and imparts a rich flavor into the meat.
3. Place roast in slow cooker. Add sweet onion and minced garlic.
4. Mix boiling water, beef base, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and hoisin sauce. Pour over the roast.
5. Cook on low 6–8 hours.
6. Remove meat from crockpot, trim fat, and shred. Reserve cooking liquid.
7. Make thickening sauce. Mix cornstarch
An ancient sea and the life that thrived in it shaped the contour of the land we know
Kansas is known for a few things—wheat, beef, sunflowers, sports—not so much water, though, and certainly not the sea. That hasn’t always been the case. Kansas has been covered by seas several times, during the Pennsylvanian and Permian periods 320 to 245 million years ago, and most recently, the Cretaceous Period.
Paleontologist and former University of Kansas Natural History Museum director Leonard “Kris” Krishtalka explains that this sea, the Western Interior Sea, covered much of Kansas about 100 million to 80 million years ago, and that it receded and returned several times, draining for the last time with the geologic lifting of the Rocky Mountains. But the evidence the seas left behind is rock solid.
“What the seaway accomplished was depositing layers and layers and layers of limestone and chalk, made up of the compressed shells of trillions and trillions of singlecelled organisms called foraminifera,” he says. “When they died, they sank to the bottom of the seaway, and their shells, made of calcium, were compacted. In parts of Western Kansas, the chalk rises as high as 500 feet.”
The Western Interior Sea, covered much of Kansas about 100 million to 80 million years ago, and that it receded and returned several times, draining for the last time with the geologic lifting of the Rocky Mountains.
In the 1800s, scientists would learn the limestone held even more secrets left by the ancient sea because the chalk and limestone preserved the skeletons of the animals that lived there.
“The seaway was teeming with invertebrates such as starfish, squids, crinoids—relatives of squid and octopi— but also it was populated by fish and reptiles that would make you not want to go swimming in that sea,” he says. “We’re talking about 35 to 40-foot mosasaurs, crocodile-like swimming reptiles with huge jaws.”
A 45-foot mosasaur skeleton hangs in the entryway of the KU Natural History Museum, home to several impressive Kansas chalk bed fossils, including a plesiosaur (think Loch Ness Monster with deadly sharp teeth) and a giant fish called Xiphactinus.
STORY BY Amber Fraley
Krishtalka adds that pterosaurs, giant flying reptiles, would soar over the Kansas sea and feed exclusively on the marine life. Several pterosaur fossils also ended up preserved in the Kansas chalk.
Fossils from Kansas chalk are so pristine, they have been collected in all the major world museums, from the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. to the British Museum in London.
“Many of those specimens were collected by Charles Sternberg and his three sons,” Krishtalka says.
Sternberg’s fossils and legacy live on at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History in Hays, where several exhibits inform visitors about Kansas’ ancient seas.
“We have a cool exhibit that shows the types of rocks left in Kansas while there was a seaway, which includes sandstone, mudstone—or shale—and limestone,” says museum director Dr. Reese Barrick. “Each of these types of rocks represent how deep the water was.”
Barrick explains sandstone is formed in shallow water from ancient beaches, mudstone (shale) a bit deeper, and limestone in the deepest water, which, in Kansas, was generally a few hundred feet at most. The fossils found in the different types of rocks indicate the depth at which those animals lived.
“The fossils that we have range from invertebrates like plants, to giant clams called inoceramids,” Reese says. “The clam fossils are found in limestone and thus lived in the deeper water, as did ammonites, big, coiled animals that look like the modern nautilus. We also have vertebrates, including all sizes of fish, from very small to incredibly large, and sharks that ate clams and fish, and other large vertebrates, including plesiosaurs.
“The craziest thing you see in the Cretaceous that you wouldn’t expect are birds,” Reese adds, explaining that, at one time, the feathered dinosaur Hesperornis sat on the surface of the Kansas sea and dived under the water to feed. Their
habits, in fact, were much like modern loons, but they were far larger and had other key differences. “They evolved from birds that were flying, they adapted to the oceans, and they had teeth.”
The Sternberg is also home to one of the most famous fossils in the world.
“The fish within a fish—or the Gillicus within a Xiphactinus,” Reese notes. The fossil is unusual, Reese explains, because the 14-foot Xiphactinus would’ve had to have eaten the Gillicus and died soon after, as the Gillicus skeleton is complete and undigested.
But it wasn’t just rocks and fossils the ancient seas left behind in Kansas. Aaron Strain, underground manager at the Strataca salt mine in Hutchinson, explains the seas that rose and fell over Kansas also deposited a whole lot of salt.
“About 275 million years ago, the climate warmed dramatically, and the salty seas began to dry up as a result,” Strain says. “As the climate continued to warm, the water began to evaporate, depositing gypsum, salt, and other evaporites.”
Strain explains that 80 feet of water is needed to form one foot of salt, meaning the cycle of deposition and evaporation could have continued for thousands or millions of years to form the Hutchinson Salt Member, which is 400 feet thick in some areas.
“What we know for sure is the Hutchinson salt underlies most of south-central Kansas, about 200 miles north-south and 150 miles east-west. Some estimates say there are 30,000 billion tons of salt in the deposit. Due to the inclusion of other minerals, some of the salt can be a red, orange, or pinkish color, as opposed to the transparent white associated with halite,” he says.
The mine in Hutchinson is one of three Kansas salt mines and has been operational for over 100 years. “The salt that comes out is about 95% pure sodium chloride, and is mainly used to deice roads, but also for industry and agriculture uses,” Strain says.
Visitors to Strataca can take the long ride down the elevator shaft into the cool mine, the walls of which sparkle with the ancient sea salt.
Krishtalka notes the evidence of Kansas’ ancient seas is not only in the museums and mines but almost everywhere, as sea fossils are easy to find and pick up off the ground or in roadcuts.
Though the Western Interior Sea has not been with us for millions of years, its legacy surrounds us.
Save money and the planet with these backyard grasses
The subtle beauty of dusk is one of the best times to appreciate the sights and sounds of the Kansas prairie. The landscapes, native grasses and plants that stretch before us nurture our souls and provide a moment of pause in the chaos of life.
Sure, you can take a drive out along the backroads any time you want, to gaze at the prairie. But why not nurture a bit of prairie in your own yard?
From buffalo grass to blue grama and switchgrass, it all depends on what your goals are and how much annual rainfall your region of Kansas can expect, says Brad Guhr, education/prairie restoration and concert series coordinator for Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesston.
One option is to substitute Kentucky bluegrass—a cool-season grass that requires frequent waterings—for buffalo grass, which requires less water. As some areas of Kansas experience water shortages, doing our part to conserve benefits not just ourselves and our neighbors but the whole state.
By using native plants and grasses, Guhr says we could be more ecologically friendly and have great, colorful yards and gardens.
“Given our climate, the sunlight, average temperatures and rainfall, we best support warm-season grasses,” he says.
Historically, Kansas has “short grasses in western Kansas, mixed-type grasses in central Kansas and tall grasses in the east,” Guhr says.
The pioneers often described the lushness of the prairie. Hattie Gibbons wrote a description of what the prairie looked like in 1876 when she and her husband, William, first homesteaded in the Ninnescah valley, east of Pratt: “The prairie was covered with a green carpet of grass, and here and there in the low places the flowers bloomed all summer long … I lived in a vast garden and in between the beds were long avenues of (green) stretching away to the horizon … I felt relaxed and had a sense of freedom.”
You, too, can create your own swatch of prairie, Guhr says. It just depends on what your goals are. Native plants and grasses provide great habitats for wildlife—birds and bees, and other critters, seek out berries, seeds, nuts and nectar.
The native plants and grasses “are all dominated by warmseason grasses because of our temperatures and sunlight— that’s what has evolved on the plains for the last 10,000 years.
“When you live in the rain shadow of the Rockies, you didn’t have much shade in Kansas,” Guhr says. “But when you get into situations of shade, it’s harder to grow warm-season grasses because then you get microclimates where coolseason grasses and sedges might do better. It’s not an easy answer to what seems like a simple question.”
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Tanner
Some towns in Kansas recommend strategies that save on their city’s water use. In cities such as Hays, residents are encouraged to grow warm-season grasses such as buffalo grass and Bermuda whenever possible. Newly seeded lawn permits in Hays are free for those type of grasses, but they cost $100 if cool-season grasses such as tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass are seeded during the water-restricted months of June and July, according to the website, haysusa.com.
Buffalo grass requires less mowing, watering and fertilizing, but it is not perfect for every region of Kansas, Guhr notes.
“We are trained aesthetically to have this English landscaping mindset,” he says. “Buffalo grass is adapted to grow in areas that get five to 10 inches of rainfall, such as in western Kansas. So, what’s going to happen when you try to grow buffalo grass in central Kansas, where you can receive 25 to 30 inches of rainfall? Those other plants and weeds that like those higher rainfall conditions are going to continually invade your turf because buffalo grass doesn’t like that much water.” Those invasive plants and weeds? Think ragweed, foxtail and crabgrass.
To help Kansans determine what plants and grasses might be best for their region and yards, the Dyck Arboretum hosts Flora Kansas Native Plant Days each spring. This year’s dates are April 26–29.
Native plants and grasses, Guhr says, are often the most ecologically friendly choice for many reasons such as erosion control, water saving and even labor.
“Not only are you saving water, but you are also talking about attracting biodiversity,” Guhr says. “It’s the insects, the critters who eat the insects—that’s why your goals matter a lot. Do you want the most biodiversity possible—which would mean you plant as many different species of plants as possible to get towards a prairie? Do you want a diverse prairie, or do you want to temper your goals on biodiversity to please homeowners associations and neighbors who aren’t used to wild-looking landscapes? So, instead of choosing 50 species of native plants and grasses, let’s choose five to 10 and plant them in aesthetically pleasing ways like in clumps of threes, fives and sevens—like the landscape architects will talk about.”
In the future, Kansans might expect to see more prairie plots.
One program, sponsored by the Kansas Native Plant Society, has the “Plant a Prairie Program.” It encourages schools and public gardens to grow their own plot of prairie. Each garden receives about 10 to 12 packets along with sowing instructions. The application process begins in the spring; the gardens start in the fall when native plants are delivered to the schools.
For splashes of color in garden areas, Guhr says, try butterfly milkweed, a splashy, bright orange plant that dots the Flint Hills and is drought resistant. It attracts bees, and monarch butterflies lay their eggs on it, Guhr says.
Milkweed varieties in other regions of Kansas, such as those found further west are yellow and deep brick red near the Nebraska/Kansas border. Echinacea, also know as the purple coneflower and Black Sampson, is a wonderful flower. And penstemon is another. Think of your garden and yard as Mother Nature’s palette filled with colors where sunflowers, goldenrods and gayfeathers burst forth, turning your piece of the prairie into a quilt of yellows, golds and purples.
And with a little planning, asters could join them in the fall.
Late summer is the season of everlasting, a white flowering plant that American Indians traditionally gathered and used to treat colds and coughs. It smells like vanilla and maple syrup. Late summer is also the time for Jerusalem artichokes, a plant that blooms like the sunflower and has edible tubers.
You could also consider grasses such as little bluestem, big bluestem, switchgrass, Indiangrass and purpletop. It’s not unusual to see splashes of orange, red, purple, blue, white and yellow as Kansas wildflowers take bloom from early summer through fall.
Some plants springing up in the wild may not have flowers
but are delicious to eat. Lambs quarters, a dusty green plant with goose-foot-shaped leaves, is nutritious and can be eaten like spinach or kale—mixed in salads, sauteed with other vegetables or used in soups.
Early settlers looked for lambs quarters because it is one of the first plants to sprout in the spring and early summer. Daisy fleabane is almost everywhere, including ditches and pastures. Early pioneers collected the flowers to rid homes and campsites of fleas and other unwanted pests.
Tall flowering plants like the flannel mullein plant with its yellow showy flowers can grow to more than seven feet tall. Short ones such as the catclaw sensitive briar grow close to the ground, as does the purple poppy mallow, sometimes known as winecups.
Some plants are at their best in the early morning and close their petals as the day wears on, such as the common spiderwort. That’s the beauty of the Kansas prairie.
“It is a relevant consideration, the more diversity you get,” Guhr says, the more you can expect to see.
Brad Guhr,
restoration/concert series coordinator at Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesston at
or brad.guhr@hesston.edu or go to www.dyckarboretum.org.
Just beyond the Ogallala Aquifer and on the dry plains, Hays has learned how to value, conserve, and rethink its use of water
The Ogallala aquifer—one of the world’s largest at nearly 175,000 square miles—sits under nearly a third of Kansas and under portions of eight High Plains states. But as far as the city of Hays is concerned, the aquifer may as well be in California.
“We are too far, depending on which direction you go north, south or east, to be part of the Ogallala aquifer,” says Hays city manager Toby Dougherty. “The aquifer kind of wraps around us. We are far enough west that we have sporadic rainfall, seasonal droughts are a regular occurrence, and we don’t have reliable perennial stream flow either in creeks or rivers.”
Hays receives only about 23.5 inches of rain per year, according to data from Kansas State University, and the city has had to rely on wells historically, some usable for only a few hours a day. That means that the city has to monitor its water use closely, for residents, for Fort Hays State University, and for food growers and other businesses, which require good water in abundance. Hays has had to be strategic and deliberate in its approach to water because its margin of error is nil.
“Hays uses a little over 2,000 acre feet, but we have almost 4,000 acre feet of water rights,” Dougherty notes. But Dougherty says Hays can’t obtain enough water to meet the city’s full rights, and the city sometimes has trouble producing the 2,000 it requires.
Guidance from the desert Dougherty saw the writing on the wall in 2010 at a conference in Las Vegas.
“I remember going out there being very proud of what we had done as a city to conserve water. But keep in mind, this is 2010. We’d been going at it since the ’90s. After being out there for a couple of days, I realized we were way behind the curve.”
The Southern Nevada Water Authority, supplier to the Las Vegas metro area, was the conference organizer, and they
STORY BY Haines Eason
brought together water conservation leaders from across the country. Dougherty and his team have attended every year since to find guidance for their present and future challenges.
“We have had to look to the desert southwest through California and Nevada and Arizona and New Mexico and Colorado and Utah, and figure out how their communities are handling water shortages,” Dougherty explains.
Generations of conservation
“Water’s always been an issue here in Hays,” says Holly Dickman, water conservation specialist with the City of Hays. “I remember hearing about it as a kid in high school, and I talk to others in the community that grew up in this area and continue to live in this area. They will say the same things. They remember all those things.”
Dickman is a familiar face to many Hays residents. She and others from the Hays Water Department use TV, radio, social media, city websites—just about every channel they can—to ensure city residents are aware of the need to conserve water. She also pays regular visits to schools and holds public events, including the city’s annual World Water Day Fun Fest, a celebration of water that features activities, demonstrations, exhibits and more.
It can be challenging to assess the cultural impact of these efforts. However, the data shows that the city as a whole is making progress.
According to Dougherty, Hays consumed 3,600 acre feet of water in 1983. In 2023, that number was down to about 2,000. However astonishing this reduction in use is, the true magnitude of the city’s efforts can only be seen when one notes that the city’s population has grown by 35% in the same period.
Future trends depend on the next generation, so city authorities work intensely with youth through programs such as the annual water poster contest, which marks its 10th anniversary in 2024.
“We’ve tried to build that up over the years, and last year we had over 600 posters,” Dickman says of the program that includes students from kindergarten to twelfth grade. “That was almost double what we had the year before. We were just blown away.”
Even with Dickman and her department working tirelessly to educate youth; advocate for responsible use; retrofit sinks, showers, toilets and more, there’s only so much water use reduction that can happen, especially as populations continue to grow.
That’s where a few thousand acres down by the Arkansas River enter into the equation. In 1995, Hays purchased some 6,700 acres of irrigated cropland in Edwards County in a bid to secure the water rights that come with it. Neighboring town Russell also bought in. The tract has since been dubbed the R9 Ranch.
“Since the purchase, we have been converting that farm ground back to native grass,” says John Braun, R9 project manager for the City of Hays. “We’ve been taking the irrigation out of service, we’ve seeded it in native grass, then taken the [irrigation] pivots out.”
Braun says the last of the nearly 40 pivots were removed between 2017 and 2018.
“This is an area on the Arkansas River that is sand dunes. It’s really not sustainable agricultural land without irrigation because of the sand and the desert nature of it. So, irrigating there is the only way that it can grow crops,” he notes.
Working with the state and other parties, Braun and the City of Hays determined that they should draw 4,800 acre feet of water from the area, even with the water rights associated with the land being 7,647 acre feet.
“We voluntarily reduced that to 4,800 acre feet because that’s a sustainable rate that we can take water without impairing the aquifer and impacting people around us.”
Braun notes that Hays can’t draw water from the R9 Ranch until all administrative hurdles are cleared. That includes some legal aspects, as well as the design and construction of some 67 miles of water piping from the ranch to the city.
“We’re looking at the end of 2027 at the best case before we’d be ready to pump any water,” Braun says.
It is a wait, but so far Hays has shown it has the will to hold on.
Discover parts of the state that roads don’t reveal on Kansas’ three navigable rivers
Paddlers can soak up boundless beauty on float trips along Kansas’ two National Water Trails, the Kansas and the Arkansas rivers, and the broad Missouri.
Flanked by Flint Hills prairie, shady woodlands, herons, eagles and welcoming communities, kayakers and canoeists discover secluded parts of the state that roads don’t reveal.
“You feel like you’re in one of the last wild places in Kansas,” says Libby Albers, director of Kansas Alliance for Wetlands and Streams, about her paddling adventures on the Arkansas River.
The Kansas River, one of the world’s longest prairie rivers, was the second in the nation to be designated a National Water Trail in 2012 by the secretary of the interior. The Arkansas River followed in 2016. The two, along with a borderline stretch of the Missouri River, are Kansas’ only three navigable rivers open to public use.
The Kansas River Trail begins at the confluence of the Smoky Hill and Republican rivers at Junction City and flows 173 miles east to its mouth in Kansas City, Kansas, where it joins the Missouri River. Known locally as the Kaw, the waterway gets its nickname from the people of the Kaw Nation who lived here.
Streams and rivers in the state are privately owned, but the National Water Trail designation gives the public access to boat ramps, sandbars and islands along the Kansas and Arkansas. “Earning that designation has been incredibly valuable for river recreation,” explains Dawn Buehler, director of Friends of the Kaw. “People who like to fish, kayak and camp have the recreational space to do it.”
“Even when you’re floating through the communities you see peeks of city life, but that disappears quickly and you soon feel like you’re slipping back out into the wilderness.”
–LIBBY ALBERS
for river hazards and portages. At Topeka, kayakers can paddle around a dam, a low railroad bridge and power plant using recommended passages. But dams at Lawrence and Kansas City require boaters to take their crafts out of the river and re-enter downstream.
“It’s important that novices go on a section that doesn’t have hazards,” Buehler recommends. “A nice day trip is the five miles from DeSoto to Cedar Creek. It’s a great section to take kids and should only take about two hours.”
The best paddling season runs late May through October, “when the flows are more stable,” she says. And chances are, you’ll discover wildlife along the route. “I’m rarely on the river without seeing beavers, turtles, kingfishers, ducks and bald eagles or deer running on the sandbars,” she adds.
“It’s a very diverse river,” Buehler says. “The scenery is so pretty through the Flint Hills. Then in the urban areas of Topeka and Kansas City, the cool features are the charming old bridges and the architecture and history along the river. It’s so neat to see features you usually see on land from the river. The beauty of it all is astounding.”
Farther south and west, the Arkansas River snakes its way across Kansas plains and metros on its 1,469-mile journey from Colorado to Arkansas. For paddlers in Kansas, the 192-mile segment designated as a prestigious National Water Trail is a favorite destination, floating boaters from Great Bend to the Oklahoma border.
“It’s like instantly stepping away from modern society,” says Albers about the leisurely, often remote river she loves to paddle. Locally it’s simply called “the Ark,” but Albers laughs about the common
mispronunciation: “We always can tell if someone isn’t a native Kansan when they call it the Arkansas (like the state) River, instead of the Ar-Kansas.”
Starting at Great Bend, the trail flows southeast through the communities of Hutchinson, Wichita, Derby, Oxford and Arkansas City before crossing the state line. “You float mostly through prairies with riparian woods. But then you can float right through a city, and it doesn’t feel like a city at all,” Albers says.
Twenty-two access points get kayakers on the river, and public sandbars make good spots for breaks and camping. Although less-developed than the Kansas River Trail, some of the Ark sites have parking, lighting, ramps and informational kiosks. And, at communities built around the river, such as Hutchinson, Wichita and Great Bend, paddlers can pull off and walk a short way to downtown for supplies.
The variable water flow along the trail provides different paddling experiences. “Down south of Wichita, the river is wide and slow and shallower,” Albers explains. “But farther west, it’s narrower and faster, like a prairie stream.”
In that western prairie stretch, she recommends a favorite Alden to Hutchinson trip. The 30 miles, bordered by woodlands, offer a more rustic float. “You’re nestled down in the river and feel very much like you’re away from civilization,” Albers says. She suggests more experienced kayakers paddle this lengthy Alden route because of its remoteness.
In Hutchinson, boaters float right by Carey Park and its nearby amenities. And next up, Wichita and Derby have a range of riverside access points, resources, rentals and parks, including the pretty Warren Riverview Park in Derby.
Only two dams, both in Wichita, require kayakers to pull out their boats and portage around the dams. To avoid those, Wichita boaters can launch at Lincoln Street beyond the hazards and pull out at Derby for a day outing. Or, for some sight-seeing in the city, Albers suggests starting at Old Cowtown Museum, floating past the Keeper of the Plains sculpture and the heart of Wichita and continuing16 miles on to Derby. (One portage required at the Lincoln Street dam.)
“Even when you’re floating through the communities you see peeks of city life, but that disappears quickly and you soon feel like you’re slipping back out into the wilderness,” Albers says. The great blue herons, egrets, owls and other wildlife along the river add to the peaceful isolation.
The bungee cords that stretch across the deck, typically located on either side of the kayak, are for additional gear storage.
The opening in the deck where you sit in the kayak. Keep in mind each opening varies in size.
Molded into the deck, foot wells allow the kayaker to brace their feet. Adjustability varies by kayak.
Placed at the bow and stern of a kayak, these handles are essential for carrying the kayak to the launch point.
The rear end of the kayak. Pointed end varies by kayak.
All kayaks come with a seat, however, comfort varies by kayak. Be sure to keep this in mind if you’re traveling long distances.
This portion of the kayak covers your legs and gear. A good place to carry an extra paddle in case of emergency.
Typically located at the bow and stern of the kayak, hatches allow kayakers access to their gear. They must be watertight to protect gear.
Front end of the kayak. Typically pointed but can vary for sit-on-top kayaks.
Before launching a trip, follow these tips from river experts Albers, Buehler and Bass as you plan:
• Check their organizations’ websites for valuable information, including water levels, location of access points, float distances, hazards, safety guidelines and area boat rentals (Friends of the Kaw: kansasriver.org; Kansas Alliance for Wetlands and Streams: kaws.org; and Missouri River Water Trail: missouririverwatertrail.org).
• Plan about one hour to paddle three miles: so, for a 10-mile stretch, allow 3+ hours. Novices shouldn’t attempt to paddle more than 10 miles in one day.
• It’s recommended to not take children under the age of five on trips.
• Remember to be eco-friendly and carry out all trash.
• No special permit is required to kayak or canoe. Anglers do need a Kansas fishing license.
• Always wear life jackets on the river. Other supplies: water, food, cell phone in a waterproof bag, extra paddle, first-aid kit and sunscreen.
• For practice, join Friends of the Kaw’s Beginner Wednesday educational trips that pair novices with experienced volunteers on the Kansas River (most Wednesdays, May–August). Or, book guided float trips for all levels with the Arkansas River Coalition, or with boat rental companies located in towns along the three rivers.
A very different river, the wide Missouri skirts the northeast corner of the state, flowing along the KansasMissouri border 133 miles from White Cloud south to Kansas City. “It’s like a big, open-water highway,” describes Neil Bass, a Fort Leavenworth Natural Resources specialist who has paddled from South Dakota to St. Louis on North America’s longest river. After entering Kansas near White Cloud, the waterway passes by Atchison and Leavenworth before joining the Kansas River at Kaw Point Park in Kansas City, Kansas, and swinging eastward through Missouri. In Kansas, four established sites along the border access the river, starting with the farthest north in White Cloud. Downstream, Riverfront Park is located conveniently in downtown Atchison, close to amenities and the park’s river overlook, the Lewis & Clark Pavilion, hiking path and boat ramp. Continuing south, Leavenworth’s own Riverfront Park accommodates paddlers with a campground, picnic shelter and ramp. Finally, Kansas City’s 10-acre Kaw Point Park marks the Missouri and Kansas rivers confluence with a boat ramp, pavilion, amphitheater and hiking trails.
Day trips give a sweeping overview of Kansas’ segment of the 2,300-mile river. One of veteran paddler Bass’s favorites: a 26-mile float from Atchison to Leavenworth. “You have two nice ramp sites and access to both cities, and really pretty scenery,” Bass says. “And when you round the bend at Leavenworth, you see historic Fort Leavenworth that’s surrounded on three sides by the river. You also pass by the fort’s impressive 2,500 acres of riparian forest, the largest remaining on the Missouri River, some which are old-growth forest dating back to the time of Lewis and Clark.”
After Leavenworth, it’s another 30-mile paddle to Kaw Point Park, he adds.
Like the Kaw and Ark rivers, land along the river is privately owned, and the public is allowed on sand bars and designated access points. But, kayakers don’t need to worry about hazards or portages on the Missouri. “Passage is unobstructed. You can see for miles downriver and nothing sneaks up on you,” Bass says.
Occasionally sand or grain barges share the river, but birds and wildlife always do. “I’ve never been on the river when I haven’t seen bald eagles in the big cottonwood trees,” he says. “It’s also a major route for migrating species, and you’ll see tons of warblers in the spring, along with Canada geese and great blue herons. The birding can be amazing.”
Story and photography by
MICHAEL PEARCE
Two neighboring wildlife areas in central Kansas offer some of the nation’s best viewing for migratory birds
Timothy Barksdale has seen most of the best wildlife viewing locations in the world.
He’s worked in more than 20 nations and nearly every state and province in North America. His cinematography work from such places has led to major wildlife projects for the Discovery Channel, National Geographic and PBS.
Still, Barksdale rates a special area in central Kansas as good as any other he’s experienced. The sprawling wetland, Barksdale says, draws him back as surely as it does the millions of birds that stop there during migrations.
He calls Kansas’ Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, “the Serengeti of the Sky,” meaning it ranks with the experience of watching millions of African animals migrate across the legendary savanna—it’s one of the best displays of avian migration in the world.
“You can be standing there, and there are 10,000 sandhill cranes flying and several hundred thousand white-fronted and other kinds of geese, and they’re all calling loudly. Then you may have 60,000 ducks hanging around. There will probably be bald eagles and, if you’re lucky, whooping cranes,” says Barksdale, who also mentioned mile-long, twisting and diving clouds of black birds that can number into the millions per flock.
As much Barksdale appreciates Quivira, he’s also always ready to sing similar praises about the nearby Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area.
“Here you have these two, truly world-class marshes maybe 30 miles apart,” he notes. “They complement each other because they’re so similar, yet in some ways totally different. That’s a special part of the world.”
World-renowned, two times over Kansas was originally home to over 800,000 acres of natural wetlands. Spanish explorers mentioned these vast stretches of wetlands. Later, ducks and geese from these waters were shipped to eastern markets by the wagon load.
Many have been drained. Many remain. Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira are our best, and two of the best in the world.
Cheyenne Bottoms is America’s largest inland wetland complex. Its 41,000 acres are largely split between the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks and the Nature Conservancy.
Quivira sprawls over 22,000 acres. Like Cheyenne Bottoms, Quivira has repeatedly been ranked as one of the top-ten wetlands in the world in
terms of importance to wildlife by the international science community. The two great marshlands differ in terms of the wildlife they attract and the viewing they offer to the public.
Cheyenne Bottoms is managed largely for waterfowl hunting. User fees paid by hunters have long been the main funding source for the wildlife area and the habitat it provides. A large marsh in the middle of the area ensures there are places where waterfowl and dozens of other species of wildlife can rest and be easily spotted.
Quivira is a broad system of wetlands that range from fractions of acres to the legendary Big Salt Marsh, which covers several square miles. The soil’s and water’s high salinity benefits a variety of plants and can attract different wildlife in comparison to the wildlife attracted by the lower salinity of Cheyenne Bottoms.
The state’s portion of the wetlands complex basically sits like a large lake, with dikes dividing it into assorted pools, with a graveled road circling through the middle of the area.
Often, staff set these management pools at different depths depending on how they might be encouraging native plant growth, removing invasive plants and repairing water control structures.
The wetlands are scattered over several miles, with some large chunks of dry sandhills and prairie grasses between them. Cruising the sand roads that connect those wetlands can give good looks at a variety of prairie wildlife, including some grassland birds hard to find in other places. Quivira is one of America’s top areas for photographing whitetail deer during their November mating season.
Both Quivira and Cheyenne Bottoms are open to the public from roughly a half-hour before sunrise until dark.
Admission is free. Both have public viewing towers, but the best up-close viewing and photography usually happen from inside a vehicle.
Quivira has a visitors’ center that is open during normal business hours. The Kansas Wetlands Education Center, at Cheyenne Bottoms, has more liberal hours and offers educational displays and programs.
There is no bad time of year to take a slow tour of Cheyenne Bottoms or Quivira. Both are home to nesting birds ranging from fist-sized sparrows and shorebirds to bald eagles. There’s no doubt, though, the best time to visit is during periods of major migrations.
South America or Antarctica. In late September, white pelicans gather at both marshes. It’s not uncommon for each of the wetlands to have more than 1,000 of the giant white birds paddling along, scooping up fish in their giant bills.
Late October into mid-December, weather permitting, is prime time for the huge flocks of geese, sandhill cranes and ducks that congregate
“It’s just amazing. If there was someplace this special near either coast, it would be bumper to bumper.
–TIMOTHY BARKSDALE
Fall migrations are like a homecoming as dozens of bird species gather to rest and add calories from both marsh-grown natural foods and agricultural crops. If the weather is fair, and food available, many will linger several weeks before heading south. Many stay all winter.
Fall migrations begin late-summer, with some shorebirds that nested in the Arctic passing through on their way to southern part of
at both wetlands. Bald eagles, which rely heavily on waterfowl for food, will usually be at their highest numbers when waterfowl concentrations are best.
Spring, or northward migration, starts with the first warm days of late winter, as birds begin to move to northern breeding grounds to begin the process of producing new generations. Many travel as mating pairs, and the males will be at the peak of their brilliant mating plumage. Some of the shorebird displays are amazing and easily viewed from a few yards off the edge of roads.
The first and last hours of daylight generally provide the most wildlife activity. Nature controls the show. Drought years mean fewer migrating waterfowl and shorebirds may stop in Kansas. Some days and years are simply better than others.
One constant, however, is that even when the wetlands are at their best, there is always room for quality viewing. Barksdale has spent some of his best fall days at Quivira, seeing no more than a handful of cars, even though he was an hour from two major interstate highways.
On one November afternoon on Quivira’s legendary Wildlife Drive, Barksdale stood below squadrons of trilling sandhill cranes as huge blackbird flocks played crack the whip across a
brilliant orange sunset. The combined honking of hundreds of thousands of geese sounded as loud as the nearby interstate.
Barksdale had seen just two vehicles in several hours’ time at one of the premier wildlife viewing locations on the planet. One visitor was a woman born, raised and living within 20 miles of the marsh, making her first trip to Quivira. The other was a Kansas wildlife watcher/photographer as drawn to the Wildlife Drive as Barksdale.
“It’s just amazing,” Barksdale says of such privacy. “If there was someplace this special near either coast, it would be bumper to bumper.”
Then again, he quickly adds, such solitude helps to make the “the Serengeti of the Sky,” special.
Seeing a whooping crane may be one of the most memorable sightings in American wildlife watching. Our tallest bird, adult “whoopers” stand nearly five feet tall and can look many people in the eye. The plumage of adult whoopers is a brilliant, neon-like white. Few species have come as close to extinction.
An early November event in central Kansas is helping people see the legendary birds in person. The annual Celebration of Cranes is held on and around the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge by Audubon of Kansas. Some of the best birders in Kansas guide groups. If migrations are on time, the odds of seeing whooping cranes are good.
“I’ve been here three years, and all three years all of our tours have seen whooping cranes,” says Jackie Augustine, Audubon of Kansas executive director. “They’re an amazing bird. After coming so close to extinction, now their numbers are increasing exponentially. They’re quite the conservation success story.
In 1941, the North American population of whooping cranes was estimated at 22, which included just 16 birds in the main western migrational flock that has migrated through Kansas for centuries. Now, there are a total of around 800 whooping cranes, including some in captivity. The western flock is around 500 birds. Protection from poaching, habitat
development and public education each contributed to the population recovery.
Those topics, and others, will be shared at this year’s Celebration of Cranes. The event includes a lunch, the educational programs and guided tours.
The event is designed to allow more of the public to see sandhill cranes, which should be in the area by the tens of thousands at that time of year. Generally, if there are whooping cranes in the area, all the tours get a look from a safe distance.
“The expert guides take the groups to the best spots, and the best time of day. We also have volunteers checking multiple locations,” Augustine says. Part of the education is teaching people how to view the cranes, and other wildlife, without disturbing the birds.
Augustine says registration is required for the two-day event, usually held the first Friday and Saturday of November. She urged people to check audubonofkansas.org, beginning in September.
Those who can’t make the Celebration of Cranes should be able to find where to see whooping cranes, mid-October through midNovember, by checking the website for Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, or following any of several Kansas’ social media birding pages.
Lori Brack lives in Lucas, two blocks from S.P. Dinsmoor’s Garden of Eden, and 14 miles south of the geodetic center of North America. She is the author of three books of poems: A Case for the Dead Letter Detective (Kelsay, 2021), Museum Made of Breath (Spartan, 2018), and A Fine Place to See the Sky (Field School, 2010). The latter is a script for a work of performance art by Ernesto Pujol and a collaboration with her grandfather’s 1907–1918 Barton County, Kansas, farming journals. Brack’s work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and Best Small Fictions. She has published essays, poems, and short fiction since 2002 in journals and anthologies including North American Review, Mid-American Review, Another Chicago Magazine, Rogue Agent, Atlas and Alice, South Dakota Review, Cutleaf, and Rooted: The Best New Arboreal Nonfiction (Outpost19, 2017).
In dry places, a certain talent flows where there should be rain or rivers. It holds the willow fork between thunder and ruin,
her dead father’s skill to divine up dew. When they called him witch it never stung till now. They expect her to smell a little of toads and minnows, shiny magic gurgling dark. She dowses the velvet topsoil’s black potential and senses veins
where they say an ocean whispers its million-gallon voice spilling a story about this walking ritual, her old shoes,
the grain they want and sand farmers purchased cheap. She won’t sell when they ask her to preach in tongues the wand
taught, its wet whipcrack lightning, the way it spurts from her grip, surges to angle the water gift.
Moon tides well up between gravel and chaff, and passing through her palms the waters pulse.
