The “Little Apple” of Manhattan, Kansas and the Konza Prairie

Last summer, my younger son and I took a(n almost) cross-country trip from New York and Washington, DC to Kansas.

While staying in Topeka, one of the spots we visited was the not-the-city-that-never-sleeps version of Manhattan: the one in Kansas. Otherwise known as “The Little Apple”. We got a kick out of this moniker.

It was quiet when we were there because the local university, Kansas State University, was not in session, but we had a nice walk-around in the sleepy town and on its pretty land-grant campus.

Another plus of this visit was visiting the university’s research lands – the Konza Prairie.

Konza Prairie Biological Station encompasses a 3,487 hectare native tallgrass prairie preserve. It is is located in the Flint Hills of northeastern Kansas. You can see my earlier post about a visit to another prairire reserve farther south in the Flint Hills region – Tallgrass Prairies.

The field research station is operated by Kansas State University’s  Biology department and serves as an outdoor laboratory focused on ecological research, education, and prairie conservation. Open since 1971, this prairie research center welcomes students and researchers from around the world.

This was an interesting stop-off on our visit to eastern Kansas. It’s definitely worth a stop-off to the cute college town, to explore The “Little Apple”, a walk around the campus and the chance to admire the picturesque prairies.

Go Jayhawks!