There was a time when I traveled to Kansas annually; I’d rent a car from the Wichita airport, then drive to friends and relatives in Hutchinson and northern Oklahoma; Wichita is so close to the line that it took me less than three hours to reach the farming community of Cherokee, where my father grew up.  But I’ve gone in the opposite direction as well, heading north, throughout the state, where I’ve had the occasion to find some of the best of the hotels Kansas offers its visitors.  Along the way, I’ve stopped off at some of the more intriguing sights available in that state.  Here’s a sampling of one possible trip and the sights you might see along the way:

In Wichita, check out the Wichita Art Museum, the largest art museum in the state.  Through March, you’ll find an photographic exhibit called This is My Land: A Photographic Portrayal of America by James Yarnell.  The photographs document a cross-country tour of the U.S. from the air, from a book first published in 1962.

Travel northwest along the 96 highway to Hutchinson, where you can check out the Underground Salt Museum, opened in just the last few years.  The museum takes you down 650 feet below the Earth’s surface to witness a salt mine and salt deposits millions of years old.  In the winter months, it’s advisable to call ahead and to make reservations.  From Hutchinson, you can head north, rejoining the I-135, headed for Kansas City (if you want to take quite a detour, keeping going north once the I-135 turns into the 81, and take a left at the 24, until the 24 joins the 9.  On Highway 9, continue until you pass Beloit, pass Glen Elder, and you’ll find yourself at Cawker City, and the world’s largest ball of twine!  If twine isn’t the thing you want to see, take a left from the I-135 onto the 70, and head on over to Abilene, where you’ll find the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum.  Continuing along the 70 will take you to Kansas City.  Check out this city’s boutique hotels (in one hotel, you can step outside and smell coffee from a nearby coffee plant!), and also the city’s train station, where you’ll find an excellent steak house.

If you happen to make this journey, definitely watch out the window for camels.  Kansas, in fact, has a small population of camels.  I’m not exactly sure how many, but they are there, grazing the small hillsides somewhere between Abilene and Kansas City!