These surrounding photos were taken across random parts of Kansas. There are a handful of larger lakes in the state, but for the most part you’ll come across smaller ones like on the left. The photo was taken in the summer so I’m not sure why the trees were dead. The one on the right is very much alive and the colorful bark got my attention. Central and eastern Kansas is very flat, I took the two photos below because I think they both represent what most of the country looks like. The lower left photo was taken near a hill that is big by Kansas standards.
Halfway between Topeka and Wichita you’ll find the Tallgrass Prairie nature reserve. The reserve has over 10,000 acres of land with most of it looking like in the upper left photo. This place was created in order to reintroduce American bison into the area and protect some of the scarcely remaining tallgrass prairie in the continent. It’s a good place to view wildlife such as the turkey vulture above. While I was hiking on the trail I came across a small but beautiful black snake covered in bright yellow dots. He disappeared into the grass before I could catch or photograph him. I was disappointed I missed him and didn’t come across any other snakes while in the tallgrass prairie.
The tallgrass prairie is famous for it’s rich dark soil which is excellent for farming. In the 1930s prairies in America and Canada were over farmed and crops weren’t rotating leading to what is now known as the dustbowl. Most of the soil which is normally held in place by grass was picked up by the windows and scattered as far east as Washington DC. These were known as “black blizzards” and created severe hardships for people living in the prairies Above is a photo of some of the soil exposed. Within the reserve here you will even find a few trees. I never understood why trees didn’t take over prairies. Wildlife and small brush fires are largely what prevent forests from growing here.
The tallgrass prairie isn’t limited to just just nature. Above are two historic buildings that were once used a hundred years ago by settlers and farmers living on the land. The two photos below were also close to the forested area and had some strange plants I hadn’t seen before.
Well I never thought dragonflies would eat something as big as a grasshopper, but unless someone can correct me that seems to be exactly what is going on in the upper left photo. I saw these two guys bouncing around the grass and thought it was two bugs mating. Dragonflies normally eat small bugs like gnats and mosquitos but I guess anything is on the table. It was around here that I came across the wild bison side and entered the real protected area of the tallgrass prairie. I suspect the short trail I had done earlier was fenced off to keep bison away from the historic buildings.
I hiked long enough to where I didn’t expect to find any bison. Another man I met on the trail told me he had seen 16 bison about 20 minutes away. When I got to the area he described I only saw cows. I wasn’t sure if he had mistaken them for bison or the ones he had spotted had just moved on. I kept hiking until I got to a group of bison that were sleeping. I let myself be known by making a lot of noise and cautiously approached them. I didn’t to get too close as you can tell by my distance in the photos. I doubt bison frequently attack people here, but I still have more places to travel to and getting killed by wild bison in Kansas isn’t the end I want.
