Haysville, KS Outdoor Activities

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.

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.

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.

When autumn's crisp breezes carry October into Kansas, Mr. Gourdman's Pumpkin Patch swings open its gates to help families celebrate the season with pumpkin picking, horseback rides, and an assortment of other fall-related activities. Visitors can simply soak in the scenery or take on some of the property's challenges, including a hay maze and an unofficial grass-eating contest against Mr. Gourdman's donkey, Leroy. During breaks, a picnic area lets groups gather around snacks from their own cooler, and an arts-and-crafts stand doles out keepsakes with which to remember the day.

Bermuda grass fairways and bent grass greens form the basis of a challenging layout at Augusta Country Club’s nine-hole golf course, which has blanketed the Kansas countryside since 1922. Every hole features two separate tee boxes, which means golfers can enjoy two distinct experiences of each hole when they play an 18-hole round. The opportunity to play the same holes twice also grants golfers a chance to redeem themselves by avoiding a bunker or water hazard the second time around. A waterway runs horizontally across the fairways on six different holes, forcing golfers to send shots over its glassy surface or tunnel underneath it with a makeshift shovel made from divot tools.