The Bluffs at Gardners Grove

One of my favorite parts of road-tripping across Kansas was watching the scenery around me. Yes, of course, Kansas can be boring. But just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, you’ll come across something surprising. For me, that something was Gardners Grove.

This little gem was in the middle of a pasture, and we had to drive a Jeep through a few wheat fields to get there. Apparently this little grove of cottonwood trees and the bluffs that tower over them were sacred for the Native Americans in the area. They’d run the bison right off the edge of the bluffs in order to kill them for their meat and fur, and to this day you can still find bison skulls there. There are also the elusive shark teeth, which we searched for, but never found. We did come home with a few fossils and some awesome rocks and crystals. The kids had so much fun, we decided to go back with Trent when he got into town. He and Lucy spent ages scouring the bluffs for fossils and other treasures. Next time I’ll bring my big camera, but this time around, I managed to get a few shots with the iPhone, which was much easier to carry on the big hike.