Surprising Places to Camp and Explore in Western Kansas
I recently was invited by Kansas Tourism to visit and explore parts of Western Kansas to learn more about all that Kansas has to offer RV travelers, campers, adventurers and road trippers. I have to say, I was quite surprised by the beauty, diversity and how much cool stuff there is to do in Western Kansas. There is a lot of great camping in Western Kansas and so much to do and explore!
Kansas has a reputation for being flat. And it is, in some places. But I was suprised at the geographic diversity of Kansas. Much of Western Kansas was under 300 feet of water at one time and Kansas is an archaeologist’s dream. Millions of fossils have been unearthed there and there are plenty of places you can learn about this history. We’ll share all of that, plus great RV and tent campgrounds and other natural wonders to explore in the area. Let’s start with the best camping spots on Western Kansas.
Camping in Western Kansas
Western Kansas is a vast enviornment with lots to do and see. Kansas does have some special gems that will appeal to campers and RVers. Here are some of the best camping spots on Western Kansas.
Don’t have an RV? You can rent one from local RV owners for you camping adventures.
Historic Lake Scott
One of the most beautiful lakes in Kansas, Historic Lake Scott is also one of the best places for RV and tent camping. The landscape changes from prairie to wooded canyons as you descend into the park. Find 50 hook-up sites with water and electric and 120 primitive campsites, great for tent camping. Canoe and kayak rentals are available on-site (seasonally) and there are plenty of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding.
In addition to all the wonderful outdoor activities, Historic Lake Scott is also home to two historic sites: El Cuartelejo Pueblo and Steele Homestead Museum. The pueblo is the only known Native American pueblo in Kansas. The Steele Homestead showcases what life was like for early white settlers in the region.
Prairie Dog State Park and Campground
If you’ve never seen a prairie dog town, a visit to Prairie Dog State Park in Western Kansas is a must. The park is home to 2500 prairie dogs. Stop and watch them pop in and out of their burrows and listen for their squeaks and they communicate with one another. Look also for the burrowing owl, who take over abandoned dens.
In addition to watching wildlife, there’s plenty of other things to do at Prairie Dog State park, including visiting an old one room schoolhouse and the last adobe house in Kansas built in 1892. The Sebellus reservoir is great for swimming, boating, fishing.
The state park has 77 campsites with electric and water, 10 with full hook ups and more than 100 primitive sites scattered around the park. Cabin rentals are also available.
C2T Ranch and Campground
For a unique stay where you really get to know the locals, check out C2T Ranch. This unique property is hosted on Hip Camp. I had the opportunity to tour the ranch and learn about the ways rancher Chad is restoring the land with regenerative farming practices. You can book a tour and learn about the natural farming techniques that are bringing back the native grasses and nurturing wildlife, while also producing cattle. I highly recommend taking a tour of this property, whether you’re planning to camp or not.
This Western Kansas campground offers both RV and tent sites and even two glamping tents. You can hike and fish and swim or float on the beautiful Saline River under the magestic limestone cliffs. The hosts offer river floats and ranch baskets with homemade goodies. This Hip Camp has been voted best in Kansas and I’d highly recommend it, if you’re in the area.
Webster State Park
Migratory birds, fossils, deer, turkey, quail and more await you at Webster State Park, one of the camping areas in Western Kansas. With 100 primitive campsites and 93 hook-up sites, Webster State Park is a great place for RVers to enjoy lake side activities like fishing, swimming, kayaking, boating, hiking and more. Most sites have firepits and some offer shade coverings.
Cedar Bluff State Park
With it’s proximity to I70, scenic cliffs and so many water activities, Cedar Bluff State Park is one of the more popular state parks in Kansas. But with more than 400 campsites and cabins, and primitive sites, finding a site is not too hard. RV sites are large and the bathrooms are nice and clean. Even the drive in is scenic. Cedar Bluff State Park is a favorite of locals and a great place to camp in you’re traveling through Kansas.
Free Camping in Western Kansas
I was told that 99% of Kansas is private property. With this lack of public land, finding free places to camp isn’t as easy as some other states. However, there is free camping in Western Kansas if you know where to look. Here are a few places to boondock or camp for free in Western Kansas:
Norton Wildlife Area, Norton, KS
Free camping options are few and far between in Kansas, but Norton Wildlife Area is the exception. The Norton Wildlife Area offers camping in six designated areas on state owned land for up to 5 nights. The sites are on the Keith Sebelius Reservoir with access to fishing, boating and hunting. Camping is only allowed in six designated areas, so be sure to pick up a map before you venture out. This is dry camping, so make sure you bring your own power supply and water and pack out all of your trash.
Harvest Hosts
While Harvest Hosts locations are not technically free because you do need to be a member to stay, there are some Harvest Host locations in Kansas. With a Harvest Hosts membership, you can stay at many unique locations like wineries, farms, historic sites, museums and golf courses. You’re usually expected to support the business by making a purchase.
I love to stay at Harvest Hosts when I am traveling. It’s one of the best ways to get connected with locals and learn about the area. In Western Kansas, some of the options for Harvest Hosts are wineries, brew pubs, an antique engine museum, an alpaca farm and private homes (with a Boondockers Welcome membership.) Typically only one night is allowed, so plan accordingly.
Shiloh Winery is a great choice, right off Interstate 70, it’s one of the most popular Harvest Hosts in Kansas. Not a member of Harvest Hosts? Join Here!
St. Francis City Park
The tiny town of St. Francis is a sweet spot to check out in Western Kansas. The small downtown has an art museum, great fried chicken at the gas station and a motorcycle museum.
St. Francis City Park offers free overnight camping for up to three days. Electric hook-up sites are $25. Three days is just enough time to check out town, tour the Arikaree Breaks and get dinner and a shower at the local truckstop.
Exploring Western Kansas
What is there to do and see in Western Kansas? A lot! There are so many unique places to explore. This area of Kansas has one of the most unique topographies with amazing viewpoints and geographic features. Western Kansas is also home to some numerous historic sites, scenic byways and fossils galore.
Land and Sky Scenic Byway
Kansas is home to the only Agricultural themed scenic byway. The Land & Sky Scenic Byway which runs along Route 27 from Sharon Springs to St. Francis is a great drive to explore some of the agriculture and farming that Kansas is famous for. Wheat, corn and of course, sunflowers grow here and the byway is a great place to witness these crops in all the seasons. Arikaree Breaks and the Giant Van Gogh painting (see below) are both sights along the Land and Sky Scenic Byway.
Nicodemus
One of of my favorite stops on my visit to Western Kansas was the historic tiny town of Nicodemus. Nicodemus is a National Historic site and an early settlement of freed slaves from the South. Hundreds of families from the South moved to Nicodemus in the 1870s and 1880s and created a small community.
I loved learning about the history of this small town and the hearty group of settlers, lured to this new landscape by the promise of community, freedom and land. Nicodemus provided a safe place for settlers looking to escape the some of the violence experienced by Black folks in the South during that period. Residents were able to own land and farming was a prosperous occupation.
At its peak, the town boasted several hundred residents, a bank, stores, churches, businesses, newspapers and a school. Today approximately 20 people still live full time in Nicodemus and each year descendants gather for a homecoming celebration to reconnect to the community and its history and culture. Current and former residents take a lot of pride in their tiny town.
Nicodemus is worth a stop on your Kansas roadtrip. Be sure to pick up a walking map to explore the town’s history and many of the buildings that still stand.
Kansas Badlands
Most people are familiar with the badlands of South Dakota, but did you know Kansas has its own badlands? Three diverse areas in Western Kansas welcome RV and other visitors to explore these stunning landscapes where rock erosion has left behind some unique formations.
Castle Rock
Castle Rock in Quinter, KS reminded me a bit of a tiny and less colorful Bryce Canyon. Sandstone structures rise out of the earth hiding millions of fossils underneath. (Note: you’re not allowed to dig for fossils, as Castle Rock is on private land.) Get out and walk around trails and bring your camera along for some great rock shots.
Monument Rocks
Monument Rocks is another sandstone formation, jutting out of a seemingly flat landscape. A big keyhole offers the perfect photo op. This is a great place to explore and walk around. Monument Rocks is on private land and visitors are allowed during daylight hours only. No camping or fossil digging is allowed.
Little Jerusalem State Park
Kansas is proud of its recently acquired state park, Little Jerusalem. This is another great place to view monumental sandstone rock formations and undersea fossils. Two hiking trails allow you to explore the perimeter of the rock formations, but unlike Monument Rocks and Castle Rock, you can’t actually climb around and explore the actual rock formations without a nature guide. Plan ahead and request a guide by calling 620-872-2061.
Little Jerusalem is also home to the largest fields of native Great Plains wild buckwheat. This plant is indigenous to the area and is only found around chalk rock prairie in Western Kansas. Native birds such as the Western Meadowlark (the official bird of Kansas) , Cliff Swallow, Horned Lark, Rock Wren and Lark Sparrow can all be spotted in the buckwheat fields and on the chalk bluff cliffs. Fee is $5 to park at Little Jerusalem State Park and camping is not allowed.
Where can you camp near Little Jerusalem State Park?
Camping is not allowed inside Little Jerusalem State Park, but Historic Lake Scott (see above) is just seven miles away and offers lots of great camping.
Arikaree Breaks
The Arikaree Breaks are a series of deep ravines and gullies that run for about 36 miles in North Western Kansas. The terrain is rough and beautiful. Bring your camera! Several pull-off spots are suitable for a scenic lunch stop. Because the Breaks are on private property, you can’t hike around, but you can drive and stop and enjoy the views from several public roads, most of which are gravel. Be mindful if it’s snowing or raining.
Cool Museums and Roadside Attractions in Western Kansas
A trip through Western Kansas would not be complete without some fun and historical sites. From quirky roadside attractions to world famous history museums, no matter what you’re looking for, Western Kansas has it.
Giant Van Gogh
Kansas is known as the Sunflower State, so it’s fitting that one roadside attraction is a giant replica of “Three Sunflowers in a Vase,” by Vincent Van Gogh. At the intersection of Interstate 70 and Highway 27, this place is worth a stop for a selfie moment.
Fick Fossil & History Museum
One of my favorite spots in Western Kansas was the quirky Fick Fossil & History Museum in Oakley, Kansas. This free museum has a unique combination of fossils, all from within a 40 mile radius of Oakley and original artwork of Vi Fick. Fick was a multi-discipline artist who incorporated fossils into each of her unique pieces of art.
This area of Kansas was once an ocean bed. Millions of fossils can be found here and there are quite a few special ones inside the Fick Museum including a Xiphactinus Audax, a 15-foot long prehistoric fish and the skull of Tylosaurus Proriger, a 30-foot marine reptile.
Also inside the museum is a complete sod house and other historical features including more than 1,000 photographs of life in early Kansas. This museum is not to be missed!
Buffalo Bill Cultural Center
Oakley, Kansas claims to be the birthplace of Buffalo Bill. Stop in the cultural center to learn all about this Western legend and get your photo taken next to the giant 16 foot tall Buffalo Bill bronze statue.
Sternberg Museum
George F. Sternberg was a famous paleontologist in Kansas who discovered troves of fossils dating back 80 million years to when Kansas was an ocean. The Sternberg Museum in Hays, Kansas houses many of those found fossils and tells the story of ancient and modern Kansas. The most famous of those is the “fish within a fish” fossil, which is truly something to behold. A giant Xiphactinus fish swallowed another fish whole moments before it died and the entire carcass of of both are preserved and on display.
But that’s not all that’s on display in this impressive museum. There’s a whole gallery of fossils from the region and you can learn so much about the time when Kansas was under water. There’s a diorama with life size dinosaur models that lets you get a feel of what life must have been like 65 million years ago.
It’s not just extinct animals on exhibit. There’s a display of 20 live rattle snakes, where you can learn about their behavior, venom toxicity and get a safe up-close look at these much feared creatures.
A gallery of rotating artwork of local artists don one gallery wall. There’s several other live animals like colorful frogs, huge tortoises and a friendly chameleon. There’s a whole kid’s section where kids can dig for fossils and explore earth science.
National Weather Service
If you think of Kansas weather, tornados are likely the first thing that comes to mind. “Aunty Em! Aunty Em!” (Wizard of Oz.) A visit to the National Weather Service station is a great way to learn about tornados and how weather is forecast.
Sit down with a meteorologist to gain an understanding of how they predict tornados, learn all about weather balloons and how doppler radar help predict the weather. You can even learn how to be a weather spotter and volunteer in your own community. I was amazed that with all the technology used to predict weather, that the National Weather Services relies so much on volunteers in the community to report on live weather conditions.
Prairie Museum of Art and History
If you’re a museum lover, plan to spend a few hours at the Prairie Museum of Art and History in Colby, Kansas. Inside you’ll find everything from old collections of toys, fine art, local Kansas History and even an outdoor short prairie grass preserve.
I enjoyed walking around inside looking at exhibits of old toys like Barbies, toy cars, a Lionel train and other fun memorabilia.
This museum has a bit of everything: Art and History. You can spend time exploring glass and ceramic pieces, Victorian dolls (a few that were kind of creepy) and vintage furniture. I got lost in the collection of thousands of old buttons, each one a tiny piece of art.
And that’s just the inside. Out behind the museum, you’ll find the largest barn in Kansas. It’s big! It can be rented for weddings and such. Inside you’ll find old farming equipment, artifacts and photos of agricultural history.
In addition to the barn, you can explore a sod house, a one-room school house and the Lone Star Presbyterian Church, built in 1915. And of course, the Western Prairie preserve is habitat for native wildlife.
If you’re looking for a place to spend the night, the Colby RV Park is just around the corner.
Wakeeny, Kansas – Christmas City of the High Plains
If you’re a Christmas fanatic, then a visit to Wakeeny is a must. Since the 1950s, townspeople have put on a dazzling Christmas light display. The best time for Christmas decorations (late November- early January) might not be the best time for RV travel, but there is a little bit of Christmas in Wakeeny every day. Visit the North Pole park where you can learn about the town’s Christmas history and visit the Santa House.
The Wakeeny KOA is a great place for camping in Western Kansas.
Conclusion: Exploring and Camping in Western Kansas
There is so much to do and see in Western Kansas and plenty of places to camp from RV parks to State Parks to Hip Camp and Harvest Host locations. History buffs will love the lore of the West in Kansas and even get a close look at time before humans walked the earth.
The beauty of Kansas surprised me with diverse geographic features and scenic drives. Western Kansas is a perfect place for a road trip or RV camping adventure.
