Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve

[Scotts8826]

Here’s a ride most of you have probably never taken.

I was looking for a day trip out of Kansas City and looked at scenic drives in Kansas. Yes, there are scenic drives in Kansas. I rode out to Council Grove where the Flint Hills Scenic Byway started. By the time I arrived with a riding buddy of mine, it was lunch time. I have taken up the mantra that I try to never eat at national restaurant chains when given another opportunity. Once again, a gem of a place was discovered. It was the Trail Days Café and Museum. We were the only ones there and the owner/cook/server met us, told us the history of the building and allowed us to look around the building while he cooked us lunch. The museum was more of a collection of pieces from the time period and transitions of the building, from home to gas station to restaurant.
189191

[Scotts8826]

189192189193

[Scotts8826]

Heading out of Council Grove on Kansas 177 which begins the Flint Hills Scenic Byway, I did a double take. I turned around to look at this small park that had a tree stump under a canopy. Turns out General Custer was here!
189194
189195

[Scotts8826]

The stop we made on the drive is the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. Notice it is not a park or monument but a preserve. There is no fee to enter but cars cannot drive into the preserve. There is a 80 head herd of Bison that roam the preserve. I was not up for the walk but there are walking trails through the preserve. The trail that went around the Bison area was about a three mile hike out and back or a 5 mile loop for a broader look at the prairie. Trees and water provide awesome scenery but the rolling green hills of the Flint Hills is a wondrous sight if you've never seen it.
189196
189197

[Scotts8826]

The best time to drive the Flint hills is in the late summer or early fall when the grasses are mature but the springtime holds its own due to the range fires. I was shocked when I first moved out here in 1975 to find out that ranchers purposefully set fire to their land. Springtime is the time to do it so it burns any woody plants trying to grow. There was blackened land and smoke everywhere. The land turns a beautiful green within a couple weeks.
189201
189202

[Scotts8826]

The drive itself is about 48 miles with Council Grove at the northern end and Cassoday at the southern end. Outside Cassoday is a terminal for the Kansas Turnpike (I-35). We jumped on the Turnpike to head back to Kansas City. You will see great views of the Flint Hills from the Turnpike between Cassoday and Emporia. Lots of cattle had been returned to their pasture. A service center a few miles north of Cassoday is Matfield Green. Trivia here, Knute Rockne died not too far from here in a plane crash.

I was thinking at the time that SL only wanted portrait pictures but I was wrong. SL wants landscape so this is the only picture of the monument I have.
189203

[Scotts8826]

So, I can't say that you should plan a thousand mile trip out to Kansas just to see the Flint Hills but I would highly recommend it if you are "passing through". Don't believe all the "Fly over country" comments you here about the Great Plains States. Here is one more photo of a burning field that includes a smoke haze.

189205

[ARtraveler]

These are exactly the kinds of things that we relish seeing. Most of the time, off the beaten path and far from the national fast food chains. We have run into many, many good places this way.

[milryder]

Great info for those looking for a trip. I live south of KC and have visited this area several times, and the restaurant!