Andover, KS Outdoor Activities

The animal-loving owners of Tanganyika Wildlife Park know that in order to save endangered animals, humans must feel a strong connection to them. It is the park’s mission to foster this connection by putting visitors in close contact with its rare animals. Visitors can gaze at cheetahs and red pandas and feed reticulated giraffes and African spur-thighed tortoises, which are best known for their role in slow-motion Westerns. The park also safeguards endangered animals from extinction by breeding species such as clouded leopards and amur leopards.

Though they've only been a member the American Association since 2008, the Wichita Wingnuts have been one of the most consistent programs in the league. Following some fine-tuning after their first season, the team has posted a winning record every year since 2009, reaching the playoffs three times in five campaigns. The Wingnuts play their home games at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium, which hosted the National Baseball Congress World Series in 1935 and is still going on due to an umpire's filibuster.

Vibrant hardwoods envelop the lush fairways of Fox Ridge Golf Club's nine-hole course as they stretch across 3,174 yards of scenic, secluded terrain. The horticultural haven encircles a central stream, which comes into play on four holes and houses a sophisticated underwater civilization that uses golf balls as currency. Rounds end in dramatic fashion at the ninth hole—a 498-yard par 5 that doglegs slightly left and contains the widest segment of the intervening river, forcing spiky-shoed adventurers to make cerebral course-management decisions. Head golf pro Mike Riffel guides greenhorns on their path to green jackets with a variety of golf lessons. The Club keeps tour-level hunger at bay with Fox Ridge Restaurant, which serves an eclectic menu including steaks, burgers, pastas, sandwiches, and salads that can be made to order and foraged entirely from recovered divots.

At Wichita Ice Center, ice skaters glide and pirouette on Olympic- and NHL-size rinks during classes, league sessions, and open-skating hours. Several full-length viewing windows span the length of each rink, enabling parents and loyal fans to peer in on class sessions without having vision blurred by clouds of foggy breath. The ice center’s instructors teach adults as well as children 2.5 years and older. Their curriculum follows a structure promoted by the United States Figure Skating Association and—like lessons on how to be a polar bear—includes equal parts of on-ice and classroom instruction.