This Fall: Experience the Fire of Flint Hills Prairie
Clockwise from the top left: Boot Hill, Kaw Nations Memorial, topography near Paxico, Chase Lake Falls, Teter Rock.
Hike Kansas’ lonely hills and be amazed.
The Kansas Flint Hills are a well-kept secret. There are no traffic jams and no tourist season. Yet their stark and remote beauty is unsurpassed.
In addition to their scenic charms, these hills are also one of the largest unspoiled areas of North America. The “flint” in the Flint Hills made them unfriendly to crops. Therefore, they’re prime rangeland for cattle.
These hills were not formed by uplift. Rather, they’re the hardy remains of landscape that has eroded. Flinty, rocky soil stayed in the form of hills, while softer soil washed away.
In addition to the landscape, the Flint Hills are dotted with picturesque courthouses, ghost towns, bison and abandoned one-room schools. You just have to get off the interstate and slow down long enough to see them.
Most people are only familiar with one or two public Flint Hills natural areas. But there are many. We list the some of the most well-known parks here, followed by a lesser-known list for those who prefer the road less traveled (as well as some waypoints to explore).
Mt. Mitchell Heritage Prairie
Mt. Mitchell is the epitome of stark Flint Hills beauty. About 170 acres of tallgrass prairie rise 250 feet above the Kansas River and lowland plains, giving a glimpse of what the prairie used to be.
Konza Prairie Biological Station
The 7,700-acre Konza Prairie Biological Station demonstrates what the Flint Hills and Kansas prairie looked like 250 years ago. The preserve is vast, rolling, rocky and awesome.
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve
This national park holds some of the last undisturbed native tallgrass prairie. Its 11,000 acres include 40 miles of trails. Epic rolling hills appear to recede into eternity.