Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Hikers who set foot in Konza Prairie are stepping back into the past: This living ecological time capsule preserves the tallgrass prairie that once covered all of Kansas and stretched to the Rocky Mountains. Sample it on this loop that winds past limestone outcrops of the Flint Hills and abundant wildflowers nourished by the ancient sediment of the Kansas River. You won’t have to imagine the bison, though: A 300-strong herd grazes in the rolling terrain. Spring is the best time to catch grasses at their greenest and prairie wildflowers in bloom, but September brings a life-list surprise: Millions of monarch butterflies stop by to feed on Konza’s lingering milkweed, asters, and goldenrods on their annual migration to Mexico.
Distance 6.2 miles (loop) Trailhead 39.106518, -96.608948 Drive time 0:48 from Topeka Season March to November Contact