z bar/spring hill ranch

Not a lot of flash here, but if you want to view life on the prairies as it was in the 1880s, this is it. Wish the house could be kept up better. We would love to return when they have interpreters (living historians) there.

Part of the Tall Prairie Grassland site. If you've never been in a two-story stone barn, here's your chance. The house has an unusual, multi-level layout and great views. The tour is self-guided but there's a park ranger there to tell you stories, so ask questions! Hearing about the family makes it so much more interesting than reading it.

nice hiking in the Flint Hills. Go on a day when it is not too hot, because there is very little shade. Take plenty of water.The house has been restored and is a historical site. It used to be interesting to visit, but since the National Park service took over, there is a lot you cannot see and the tour guides are pretty snooty for the most part. Go for the hike, not the house tour. Gift shop is overpriced, you can get the same stuff in town for cheaper at Emma Chase. I like to hike to where you can see the buffalo.

Although the house and barn are impressive to look at there is very little to see inside either. The house has only a couple of rooms to look at and once you've seen the inside of one barn you have seen them all. There is a new visitors center under construction and I understand that when it's finished work will begain on the house. Untill then not much to look at.

check out the NPS site for Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. A genuine and rewarding experience. Great for families - ages 6 and up. Good rooms and food in Cottonwood Falls and Council Grove if needed. Don't be surprised by the wind - this is open prairie and beats Chicago!

A great historic site with lots of natural beauty. We used to even do school field trips here when I was a kid, so I have many fond memories....

The 1881 Victorian Ranch House and enormous Limestone barn, set on the natural prairie, offer great opportunity for the camera buff. Come at first light (or dusk) or immediately after a rainfall to catch the play of light defining the face of stone. Shoot the majestic proportions of Ranch and Barn or the more intimate space of a one room school. Try shooting through a window which is itself framed in stone. Give the boundless Kansas skies meeting the prairie your best shot, or go macro with a solitary wildflower really close-up! We have never had to pay a fee just to walk the grounds and nature trails with our cameras.