Kansas Travel Itinerary #5

ITINERARY #5

From Oklahoma - Two Days



DAY ONE

ELK FALLS, population 99

A – 9:30 a.m. Elk Falls Pottery, 1954 U.S. 160, 620.329,4425, elkfallspottery.com

       Also, 1893 iron truss bridge, 4th and Montgomery. 

  • Elk Falls Pottery: Steve and Jane Fry converted an old barn into their pottery studio and retail space. Watch Steve demonstrate how to operate his 19th-century treadle wheel.  Ask about a tour of their 1930s rock garden.
  • Elk Falls Iron Truss Bridge: This 1893 bridge, now open only to pedestrians, is on the National Register of Historic Places. The 130x16-foot bridge offers a great view of the falls below. 

D – 11 a.m. 


BEAUMONT, unincorporated

A – 11:45 p.m. Lunch. Beaumont Hotel Cafe, 11651 SE Main, Beaumont. Outside interpretive signage, 1885 Frisco wooden water tower.

  • Beaumont Hotel Cafe: Formal dining room or 1950s-style diner. Choices range from ribeye, prime rib, burgers, asandwiches, salads. The hotel opened in 1879 as a stagecoach way station and hotel for cattlemen and railroaders. In 1953 a native grass airstrip was created to accommoate cattle barons flying in to check their herds.
  • 1885 Wooden Water Tower: On the National Register of Historic Places, this is the last remainin Frisco wooden water tower of its kind in the U.S. It proided water for steam locomotives and for the cattle stockyards.
  • Multiple plaques are placed outside to tell the story of this historic town.


D – 1:30 p.m.  Go through El Dorado, then turnpike, then Cassoday exit for Flint Hills Scenic Byway.


MATFIELD GREEN, poplation 46

A – 2:45 p.m.  The Bank, 102 N. Reed, 620.753.3451, matfieldgreen.org/thebank/

  • The Bank: It’s a small town but there is big-time art talent here and the variety can be viewed here inside this former bank. Art for sale. 

D – 3:30 p.m. 

A – 3:45 p.m. Pioneer Bluffs, 695 K-177, Matfield Green, 620.753.3484, pioneerbluffs.org. Historic Flint Hills ranch homestead with outbuildings that can accommodate groups for a talk.  

  • Pioneer Bluffs: This Flint Hills Ranch homestead by Charles Rogler in 1859 has an 1872 barn, a 1916 granary, the 1915 main barn, the windmill and a garden. The 1908 Rogler family home is also available for tour. Director Lynn Smith would be glad to plan a program or tour for your larger group.

D – 5:15 p.m.


COTTONWOOD FALLS, population 858

A – 5:30 p.m.   Stroll around downtown, includes historic 1873 Chase County Courthouse.

       6 p.m. Keller Feed and Wine, 317 Broadway, Cottonwood Falls, 620.273.5016, facebook.com/kellerfeedandwine/.

  • Chase County Courthouse: Built in 1873, this Second Empire style design is the oldest courthouse still operating west of the Mississippi River.
  • Keller Feed and Wine: An eclectic diner, located downtown in the shadow of the Chase County Courthouse, that specializes in both Southern Italian cuisine as well as soul  food and southern favorites. Not a big place.  Talk to owner Bryan Williams about this possibility.  

       7:30 p.m. FRIDAY NIGHT ONLY  Emma Chase Friday Night Music (8 Wonders of Kansas Customs), 220½ Broadway or outside on the street. facebook.com/EmmaChaseMusic/.

  • Emma Chase Jam Session: Every Friday night at 7:30 p.m. local musicians come together to jam and share Information about the land and culture of Chase County and the Flint Hills. Any of your group is welcome to join in the fun. All skill levels are accommodated.  

D – 9 p.m.


EMPORIA, population 24,799
 A – Lodging. visitemporia.com/stay/


DAY TWO

EMPORIA
 Breakfast at motel.

D – 8:30 a.m. Step-on guide to see the many veterans’ memorials around the city.  Contact visitemporia.com. Step off at All Veterans Memorial (allveteransday.org )and Soden’s Grove Bridge, 933 S. Commercial.

  • All Veterans Memorial: Emporia is the Founding City of Veterans Day. The All Veterans Memorial was the first in the nation to honor all veterans from the Civil War through the Gulf War. A Vietnam War-era Huey helicpoter and a WWII Sherman army tank accompany the memorial, as does the Purple Heart Memorial.
  • Soden’s Grove Bridge: The 1923 Marsh rainbow single-arch bridge (pedestrian traffic only) is a great vantage point to view the waterfall of the old milldam. The 1860 Soden’s Mill was destroyed by fire in 1944.

D- 10 a.m.


CHASE COUNTY

A – 10:30 a.m. Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve (8 Wonders of Kansas), 2480B K-177, Chase County, 620.273.8494, nps.gov/tapr/, bathrooms. Excellent exhibits in visitor center. Bus tour of ranch and into prairie/buffalo herd (11 a.m.)

  • This National Park Service preserve protects and interprets the nationallyh significant—and vanishing—tallgrass prairie ecosystem. The visitor center offers excellent exhibits. Check the bus schedule tour through the prairie and to see buffalo herd.

D – 12:30 p.m.


STRONG CITY, population 489
A - 12:40 p.m. Ad Astra Food and Drink, Strong City, 318 Cottonwood, 620.273.8440, adastrafoodanddrink.com. 

  • Ad Astra: Not a big place, but big on flavor, they offer everything from meat-and-potato meals to vegan and gluten-free. Full bar and craft beers on tap. They partner with local and regional companies to provide fresh products. Bringing a larger group?  Call ahead for lunchtime accomodations.

D – 2:15 p.m. 


OPTION #1 - LINDSBORG, population 3,801

Contact Holly for meal and activities arrangements. 888.227.2227, visitlindsborg.com

A – 3:15 p.m. McPherson County Old Mill Museum, 120 E, Mill St., 785-227-3595

  • explore the 1898 Roller Mill and stroll the grounds of Heritage Square, an historic prairie village setting.  Heritage Square is also the home of the 1904 Swedish Pavilion.  The pavilion was designed by Ferdinand Boberg, one of Sweden’s premier architects at the turn of the century.  The Swedish Pavilion is the only one of Boberg’s international exposition buildings in existence today and is the only example of his design work in the United States.

D – 4:00 p.m.


A – 4:15 p.m. Hemslöjd (8 Wonders of Kansas Commerce),, 201 N. Main St., 785-227-2053

  • Visit with the woodworkers, painters and glass etchers as you tour Lindsborg’s Dala Horse factory. 

D – 5:00 p.m.


A – 5:15 p.m. Dinner at Coronado Heights (8 Wonders of Kansas Geography),, Coronado Avenue (Highway 4) 3 miles north of Lindsborg to Coronado Heights Road (unpaved). Go 1 mile west, just past Smoky Hill Cemetery and turn right at the stone gate, Open 8 AM to 11 PM

  • Coronado Heights: southern-most bluff in a series of seven, known as the Smoky Hills. The hill is located northwest of Lindsborg. It is believed that Francisco Vasquez de Coronado and his men viewed the prairie from this lookout point 300 feet above the valley floor. Chain mail from Spanish armor was found in the area by Bethany college professor J.A. Udden in 1915. Others have found Spanish coins, a bridle, and lead bars in the valley.  Sandstone Castle on the property was built as a 1936 WPA project, still providing the best vantage point of the Smoky Valley.
  • Pack a picnic dinner or call ahead to White's Foodliner to have a Swedish buffet delivered to the castle for your large group.



OPTION #2 EL DORADO, population 12,935

A – 3:15 p.m. Coutt’s Museum of Art, 110 N. Main, 316.321.1212, couttsmuseum.org.

       Or Butler County Historical Museum/Kansas Oil Museum, 383 E. Central, 316.321.9333, kansasoilmuseum.org.

  • Coutt’s Museum of Art: Classic columns and handmade doors from Mexico provide a grand entrance to the pleasant surroundings for the works of Renoir, Thomas Hart Benton, and Frederic Remington, plus the largest Makk collection in the U.S. plus a sizable Prairie Printmakers collection. The museum was named in memory of art collector and local attorney Warren Hall Coutts Jr.
  • Butler County Historical Museum and Kansas Oil Museum: The story of oil is important in this area. Not only is the geology and boomtown story told inside, plus a Hall of Fame of oil giants, but the grounds offer replica stores of a 1920s oil town, a “shotgun” house, and oil-field equipment.  The local story is also well displayed to tell about the farming and ranching history.

D – 4:45 p.m.


WINFIELD, population 12,057

A – 5:45 p.m. Shin Digs Bar and Grill, 500 Main, 620.221.4782, shindigsbarandgrill.com.

  • Shin Digs Bar and Grill: The atmosphere is informal, classic, industrial-rustic with many unusual doo dads. Not your ordinary menu with fresh quality ingredients. Exceptional starters and distinctive cocktails.

D – 7:30 p.m. Head home.



*All stops have been vetted by the Kansas Sampler Foundation. For more in-depth information about each stop, or stops in between, consult the Kansas Guidebook 2 for Explorers. Purchase the book at kansassampler.org.  The Kansas Sampler Foundation duo of Marci Penner and WenDee Rowe hit the road for parts of four years to look in every town, city, and in hundreds of other dots on the map and countryside to assemble this 480 page book that features all 105 counties, 515 cities, 4,500 attractions, 843 eateries and 1,600 color photos. Use the detailed directions, descriptions, and websites to help you choose and arrive at your destination!