Originally Posted by
staehpj1
My preference is to avoid rail trails and other bike trails in favor of regular roads. I have crossed Kansas a couple times as part of a longer tour and found it a nice place to tour. You can find a place to camp in most small towns, usually in the town park. I recall only one small town park in Kansas (Satanta) where I was not allowed to camp in the town park but asking around got me an invite to camp at a local church. I typically never managed to get actually permission, but usually asked at the general store or minimart, "Do you think anyone will run me off if I pitch a tent for the night in the park". If the town is large enough to have cops, I usually ask them.
The people are usually exceedingly nice in Kansas. The scenery is a bit boring for most of the state, although the Flint Hills were pretty at least in the Spring when I was there.
I live in Kansas and concur with your statement about how nice people are. Most towns here are very accommodating to bikers. Flint Hills area is very pretty. Other places worth riding are in the north-east part of the state around Lawrence or father up near Leavenworth. Also the Gypsum Hills in the south central part of the state looks like a scene from Arizona with red mesa's and plateau's. All these areas are not the stereotypical Kansas scenery and all are very low traffic areas.