East Independence Outdoor Activities

Powell Gardens is Kansas City's botanical garden, just east of KC on Hwy 50. With two cafes, a chapel, the nation's largest edible landscape + acres and acres of gorgeous gardens, it's an outing the entire family will enjoy.

On their family-focused farm, Shuck’s Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch owners Kevin and Angie Scharig usually leave the corn mazes to the experts. Come early September, the Scharigs feature a variety of autumnal family activities, from zipline and barrel-train rides to steer roping and pumpkin picking.

The certified trainers and divers at Big Joe Scuba wade students through all watery courses, from beginner to PADI-certified instructor. They accomplish this through classroom instruction and dips into their heated pool, where students become accustomed to breathing and maneuvering underwater. After they advance to open-water courses, the classroom extends to Beaver Lake, Arkansas, for diving practice in natural surroundings. A full-service dive center, Big Joe Scuba also rents and sells a complete line of gear and organizes diving jaunts to exotic locales such as Cozumel, Mexico.

The ice in Kansas City Ice Center's newly renovated rink accumulates blade scratches from skaters of all stripes, including hockey players and two of the most revered figure-skating clubs in the U.S. Throughout the year, the facility acts as a practice arena for those clubs as well as a classroom for nonprofessional skaters. Both children and adults master techniques during Learn to Skate programs, and aspiring slap shooters strengthen their grasp on competitive fundamentals during Learn To Play Hockey programs. In addition to lessons, the center also hosts special events, such as birthday parties and on-ice reenactments of The Great Banana Peel Spill of 1908.

Wild Rose Equine Center hosts horseback-riding lessons and trail rides on the bucolic expanse upon which it resides. Riders of all skill levels can learn from the expert staff during regular lessons. These sessions are tailored to each student’s goals, whether they would like to compete in shows or take a horse to the prom.

Reef KC’s certified and highly trained staff guides aspiring scuba divers with classes designed by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors. PADI Master Scuba Diver trainer Braden Beller, PADI Dive Master James Lowery, and PADI IDC staff instructors Steve Volkmer and Joshua Williamson help students perfect amphibian impersonations with a variety of courses. The courses accommodate divers of all skill levels, beginning with Discover Scuba classes, which introduce swimmers to underwater breathing during local pool dives. In addition, Reef KC students can work toward open-water certification so they can effortlessly shower for hours, retrieve all the coins from the bottom of every fountain, and defuse nuclear bombs perched perilously above an abyssal alien city.