ex-coloradan
New member
Here is a picture of Castle Rock, not too far away from Monument Rocks is it TripLeader?
Monument Rocks National Natural Landmark
- Thread starter TripLeader
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Here is a picture of Castle Rock, not too far away from Monument Rocks is it TripLeader?
TripLeader
Explorer
There's a little...
Wakeeny, KS has a KOA campground. It's about 90 minutes away. Oakley, KS has another commercial campground that is about an hour away.
Cedar Bluff State Park would probably be the best and closest actual camping experience. I camped there last summer and it's a nice place for Western Kansas, but it's about two hours away. However, as my friend Ex-Coloradan has pointed out, Castle Rock is close by, and is in between Cedar Bluff and Castle Rock. Here's a screen shot of Google Maps to kind of show it the area. This is not necessarily the route I would take.
I don't know why it shows up so small, but A is Cedar Bluff, B is Castle Rock, and C is Monument Rocks. (You're looking at Western Kansas, with the Nebraska and Colorado borders shown.)
Edit: Another option is Scott State Park. Its about an hour away and has camping.
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This is from a visit we made a couple of years ago to Castle Rock. One of these days I'll try to add some of my Castle Rock photos.
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TripLeader
Explorer
Castle Rock
Here's some of my Castle Rock Photos from a February 2012 trip with Ex-Coloradan.
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Here's Castle Rock itself. It used to be about twice as tall, but about 10 years or so ago, the tallest spire on it collapsed.
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I never saw it before the collapse, but I thought the small "badlands" area behind it was more impressive.
Here's some of my Castle Rock Photos from a February 2012 trip with Ex-Coloradan.
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Here's Castle Rock itself. It used to be about twice as tall, but about 10 years or so ago, the tallest spire on it collapsed.
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I never saw it before the collapse, but I thought the small "badlands" area behind it was more impressive.
TripLeader
Explorer
It was cold that day, but we couldn't help but explore.
TripLeader
Explorer
We spent a couple hours out there. The sky cleared up somewhat from being completely overcast. Only one other person showed up, but left after about 30 minutes.
TripLeader
Explorer
If you find yourself in the area, I recommend it.
roverrocks
Expedition Leader
Really nice winter pictures TripLeader. Looks so much like parts of Utah. Like the one with the soapweed (Yucca) pods. I gotta get there.
TripLeader
Explorer
Thanks. Its a pretty great spot, but there's just not much else around it. Not to trash on Kansas too much, but I wish there was more public lands around. It's ranked 49th of all states in percentage of public lands.
http://www.summitpost.org/public-and-private-land-percentages-by-us-states/186111
TripLeader
Explorer
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve
Well, since I've diverted to a Kansas theme, I thought I might was well add Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve to the thread. It's about 90 miles NE of Wichita.
http://www.nps.gov/tapr
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I went there with a friend in June 2009. I think it's a good idea to preserve the prairie. For those that might not be aware, Kansas used to be covered in six foot tall grasses, without trees. Today, the preserve is basically pasture land with a two-track running through it. It also has some of the components of an old ranch still on the property. I think as time passes, the preserve will transform back to way it was 200 years ago.
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Hiking in Kansas is somewhat limited, so we took the opportunity to hike the preserve.
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Well, since I've diverted to a Kansas theme, I thought I might was well add Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve to the thread. It's about 90 miles NE of Wichita.
http://www.nps.gov/tapr
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I went there with a friend in June 2009. I think it's a good idea to preserve the prairie. For those that might not be aware, Kansas used to be covered in six foot tall grasses, without trees. Today, the preserve is basically pasture land with a two-track running through it. It also has some of the components of an old ranch still on the property. I think as time passes, the preserve will transform back to way it was 200 years ago.
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Hiking in Kansas is somewhat limited, so we took the opportunity to hike the preserve.
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TripLeader
Explorer
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TripLeader
Explorer
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A Western Meadowlark, the state bird of Kansas.
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The Preserve had two buses to drive those who did not wish to walk. It ran a route to the highest point in the park. (There was not that much elevation difference, as you might imagine).
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This was on display, of how the ranch used to look.
roverrocks
Expedition Leader
Your pictured bird is actually a male Dicksissel but they do look a bit like meadowlarks. Very nice picture of it though. Love Meadowlarks which are the state bird of my native Nebraska too.
TripLeader
Explorer
I am definitely not an ornothologist. Thank you.
alexadam1212
New member
wow~its amazing!thks for sharing!
TripLeader
Explorer
Perry Lake Trail
In November 2011, three friends and I decided to hike Perry Lake Trail in NE Kansas. It's a 29 mile loop trail that is on one of the small "peninsulas" that stick out into Perry Lake. More details can be found at http://www.perrylaketrail.net/default.asp.
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Two of us cached water a few days ahead of time. We would be able to get water from the lake, but if you don't know Perry Lake, the water is polluted from boat engines, beer cans, and trash. We were not going to even attempt to filter it.
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We were dropped off at the Slough Creek Trailhead. The plan was to make it a 3 day, 2 night backpack.
In November 2011, three friends and I decided to hike Perry Lake Trail in NE Kansas. It's a 29 mile loop trail that is on one of the small "peninsulas" that stick out into Perry Lake. More details can be found at http://www.perrylaketrail.net/default.asp.
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Two of us cached water a few days ahead of time. We would be able to get water from the lake, but if you don't know Perry Lake, the water is polluted from boat engines, beer cans, and trash. We were not going to even attempt to filter it.
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We were dropped off at the Slough Creek Trailhead. The plan was to make it a 3 day, 2 night backpack.