A Little More Prairie Lovin: A Day @ Tallgrass National Prairie Preserve

Hey there friends! Ok so I know that my last post was about a prairie place...but I've been in the area and I've been trying to hit the best places so I'm going to post a second prairie adventure in a row.

If you've ever done much travelling through Kansas, you'll know that there aren't any major national parks. But there are a few National Park Service-owned properties, and Tallgrass National Prairie Preserve is one of those places. The preserve is near Strong City, Kansas, in a relatively quiet part of the state. I took a trip over for the day - I visited once before, but I was fairly young - and even though I had all day, I didn't get to do everything I wanted to do. Tallgrass has something for just about anyone. In recent years, they have gotten a brand new visitor center, complete with some displays about the history and geography of the prairie and a video about the history of the park. The original house, schoolhouse, and barn still stand on the property and available to tour. Then, for anyone not wanting to go on a long hike, there are three short trails around the front part of the property. Farther out, though, are the longer trails. These trails are somewhere between 3 and 13 miles each, depending on which trail you choose. To view a trail map, click here. Trails range in surface from gravel to grass to dirt. The preserve also has a herd of bison, and if you chose the Sceni
c Overlook Trail, you walk right through the bison pasture. Of course, you have to stay away from the bison, but it was amazing to get to walk past a herd of bison and watch them interact with each other and their environment - and even me, as they looked up to watch the foreigner in their world. I connected a few trails to
gether to get about 8 miles of hiking in while I was there.

Although I occasionally passed other visitors, it was nice to get away and enjoy the solitude of the open prairie. The park features one particularly touching quote, written in the 1880s by a Kansas newspaper editor, D.W. Wilder:

"Whenever you stop on the prairie to lunch or camp, and gaze around, there is a picture such as a poet or painter never succeeded in transferring to book or canvas...[We] ought to have saved a...Park in Kansas, ten thousand acres broad - the prairie as it came from the hand of God, not a foot or an inch desecrated by 'improvements' and 'cultivation'. It is only a memory now."

In a way, the National Park Service has accomplished Wilder's dream through Tallgrass. I mean, sure, there are old stone fences running across the pastures, and the old house still stands, and the land has been fundamentally changed by humans over the past 150 years, but at least now a piece still stands, preserved for future generations. A reminder of what things used to be like, a remnant of our heritage. And isn't that what public lands and the National Park Service are all about? Saving a piece of what we value for the future?

I think that is a beautiful thought. And I think D.W. Wilder would be proud of that, too.

I'll leave you with that for today. For more information on the park, click here. I sincerely you get a chance to check out the prairie and all ts beautiful solitude.

Happy wanderings! - GG

Little Adventure on the Prairie:Trail Run @ Konza Prairie Biological Station

View of the Konza Prairie 

So for today's post, I'm going to move down from the mountains and talk about another region that I have always found to be stunning: the Flint Hills. Specifically, I want to talk about a recent weekend trip I took to Konza Prairie Biological Station, which is a beautiful prairie preserved owned by Kansas State University and located outside of Manhattan, KS. A few friends had recommended the trails at Konza, so I decided to head out there recently to take a look...and I'm so glad that I did. It turned into a beautiful afternoon in the Flint Hills, and I actually wished that I had allotted more time to explore the area before having to head back. This is a local hotspot, but because it isn't really marked from the roadway, most people never hear about it. 

I was hoping to run the trails at Konza on my visit.  There was one main trail at the park, but from that trail were a variety of length options. The main Nature Trail was a 2.5 mile loop, with additional mileage coming from the Kings Creek Loop (which made for a total of 4.4 miles) or the longest Godwin Hill Loop (which would make your total distance 6.0 miles). The trails were clearly marked by signage and a wide, dirt-and-gravel walkway. There were also restroom facilities near the trail head for public use. 

Even though Konza is a prairie trail system, the path definitely was not flat. The trail began with a series of steep limestone steps, and there were rolling hills throughout the trail. But the hills were worth the climb; the view from the top of the Radio Tower hill was stunning. You could see miles of wide-open prairie and the rolling flint hills, plus there were views of the town of Manhattan a few miles away. Although Kansas gets a lot of crap for being "flat and boring", there is incredible beauty in the flint hills at Konza, especially as the sun began to set and the grasses were flaming with bright color. 

I really enjoyed using these trails for trail running, but they could also be used as a hiking trail. No bikes were allowed on the trails, and dogs were also prohibited. There were quite a few families with young children using the trails - especially the shorter Nature Trail. I plan to go back to Konza soon to run the trails again, and I would strongly recommend this to anyone in the area, either permanently or just passing through. The park was free to visitors, although a $2 trail maintenance donation was suggested. The park is open from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset. More information on Konza can be found here at their website. 

It's easy to see the mountains or the oceans as beautiful elements of nature, but I think that we often forget to notice the beauty in other places, like the prairies. There is something raw and majestic about the wide open grasslands of the Midwest, and there are so many opportunities to adventure and explore the great outdoors on the Great Plains - or anywhere! You just have to look around for pieces of hidden beauty around you. 

Been to Konza or know of any other amazing prairie hiking trails? Please comment! 

Happy wanderings! - GG

Places to HIKE: Death Canyon @ Grand Teton National Park, WY

In terms of popular Grand Teton National Park hiking, Death Canyon isn't probably the most well-known. But it is a beautiful hike into some amazing country, and a good, moderate hike to start with, especially if it's your first day in the park.

Overlooking Phelps Lake from the trail

Accessing the trail is a bit of a pain. You have to take the Moose-Wilson Road (which can be quite bumpy) to the cutoff for the trailhead, which is clearly marked but another short drive. GTNP does a great job of marking roads and trails, so if this is your first visit to the park, you'll be able to figure out where you need to go.

Once you hit the trail, it's pretty easy going for a while. You travel through some heavily-forested areas with only mild incline. For the first 1.5 miles, there aren't really any great overlooks, but it's a peaceful bit of trail. It's a great warm-up. 

View up the peaks as you climb the Canyon

Then, you reach a beautiful clearing where you can look out over the marvelous Phelps Lake. It's really stunning, especially after being in the trees for a while. Then, you start to hike downhill through a series of switchbacks. There is quite a bit of elevation loss here, but don't worry; you're still on the right trail. Once you're nearly down to lake-level, there's a cutoff to the lake itself. We decided to skip the walk around the lake in favor of the Death Canyon trail. 

From this point, it's about two miles to your destination. Because we were on the trail in early June, we still encountered some snow fields. If you don't feel comfortable on this snow, don't proceed! If you can pass the snow (or just don't encounter any), the rest of the trail is really beautiful. You'll have to do some elevation gaining through some switchbacks, but the views at the end are always worth it! From the end of the Canyon, you have a great view back down the valley and over Phelps Lake. 

A few things to remember:

Looking back down the valley

• This is bear country! Once you get to the Tetons, you will be bombarded with signs reminding you of the bear threat. But I still feel obligated to put that on this post. We didn't encounter any bears, but this isn't the most traversed trail, so be on the lookout. Be smart; bring your bear spray. 
• You will have some uphill trail on the way back to the trailhead as you climb out of the lake valley. Just keep that in mind as you hike. 
• For more info on the trail, take a look at the NPS map of the area. 

We really loved the Death Canyon Hike at Grand Teton National Park. Overall, it's only about an 6-mile hike, but it's a solid day hike. Plus, there are lots of opportunities to add more miles through trails branching off of the main trail. 

FYI - I'll be posting more about GTNP and the Jackson Hole area in the weeks to come. So be on the lookout for more hikes, bike rides, and general travel tips for this region!

AND - if you've done this hike (or something similar) please comment! It'll help build our community of Wanderers.

Happy wanderings! - GG

The Tetons and Phelps Lake from the trail

Welcome to the Wanderer's Trailhead blog!

I believe in the Great Outdoors.

That's the most important thing about this blog. Our natural resources and ability to adventure in the wilderness are some off our greatest untapped sources of life. They refresh the body, mind, and soul. They connect us to our roots, offer refuge from the stress of modern life, and put life back into perspective. Whether you love the mountains, the desserts, the beaches, or the alpine tundra - or all of those, for that matter! - this blog will have something for you. It will cover hiking and biking tips, stories of the power of nature, and lifestyle posts.

I want to be clear though: I'm not going to try to tell you how to live your life. That's up to you. Feel free to take bits and pieces of this blog and incorporate them into your own life. I don't believe that there is one "right" lifestyle; there are many ways to be healthy, strong, and happy. Some of my closest friends don't enjoy workouts and hard hikes, but they are some of the happiest, most content people I know. So read these posts, take what you can, and enjoy the beauty of life.

Welcome to the Wanderer's Trailhead blog. Every grand adventure begins at a trailhead, and I sincerely hope that, for many of you, this blog can be your starting place. Read, repost, comment - but mostly, just enjoy the content.

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Happy wanderings! - GG