For more than 70 years, filmmakers have given us a picture of the Wild West
in parts of Kansas that appeared to be desolate, dry, dusty, and deadly. The
Kansas of today, though, excels in modern camping, marvelous golf courses,
tennis, softball and baseball, and almost every other popular sport, including
superb hunting and top-notch horse and greyhound tracks. Trails played a big
part in the history and settlement of Kansas. The Chisholm Trail, the Oregon
Trail, the Pony Express Route, and the Santa Fe Trail all passed through different
parts of the state, and sections of these trails can still be followed. Along
the way are historic forts, restored cattle towns, and lots of expansive Great
Plains scenery. Of course, there is no shortage of modern roadways within the
state. The great Kansas Turnpike swings southwesterly from the Kansas City
area to Topeka and on down by Wichita on its way to Oklahoma City. Interstate
70 carries visitors almost straight west to Colorado, I-135 and I-35 bisect
the state north-south, and numerous U.S. and state roads form an almost checkerboard
pattern. And then, of course, there's the real Wild West, preserved in the
northwest and southwest corners, where visitors can actually relive the exciting
days of Dodge City, the Cimarron Crossing, Goodland, and dozens of other replicas
and restorations that tell the true history of the Old West.