In its next phase, the state was crisscrossed first by cattle trails, then by railroads. This brought commerce to Kansas — and outlaws. The names of cattle centers — Abilene, Coffeyville, Dodge City, Wichita — resonate with us, as do the names of men on both sides of the law: Buffalo Bill Cody, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, Doc Holliday, Bat Masterson, plus the doomed George Custer and the Dalton Gang. Then, there was Carrie Nation, the temperance crusader, who broke down saloon doors with her famous axe. You can visit her home in Medicine Lodge.

If you want to study the Wild West, Kansas is a good place to start — not only to pursue an interest in history, but for examples of how old ways live on. Dodge City, still a cattle center, is nicknamed by some the Cowboy Capital of the World (although other towns claim the title, too), and Kansas remains one of the leading producers of beef cattle. Things have changed, too: Some cowboys ride motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) rather than horses. Tourists can ride horses or the motorcycles and ATVs, too, as well as attend planned events like rodeos, pow wows and other festivals that bespeak Kansas. Also, plenty of wide open spaces remain, particularly the sprawling grasslands, for enjoying nature while pursuing a range of activities.

Unfortunately, many people pass through Kansas on their way to somewhere else, just as users of the old cattle trails did in times gone by. The casual observer sees nothing different or exciting about the state because he or she has not looked closer to see its many charms. Spring and fall are the best times of the year for weather.

Enter the Kansas River Gritty Fitty, a 50-mile canoe and kayak race, described as the world’s longest nonstop river race. Or, show your stuff in the multiday, 340-mile Missouri River 340 race.

Jump in the saddle and join a trail ride.

Touch the past by hiking the 23 miles of the Santa Fe Trail that cross the 108,000-acre Cimarron National Grassland at Elkhart. And, take advantage of other options on the Cimarron for biking, bird-watching, camping, fishing and horseback riding, not to mention checking out the areas available for ATVs.

Enter multisport events. They have names that reveal quite a bit: Midwest Mudder Off-Road Triathlon, Midwest Mayhem Triathlon and Midwest Meltdown.

See where 19th century criminals holed up at the Dalton Gang Hideout Museum and Souvenir Shop in Meade. The restored 1887 home, with escape tunnel, belonged to a sister of the Dalton brothers. (Another house on the grounds was built from a Sears, Roebuck mail order kit in 1900.) Or, if yours is an October trip, the real fun is Dalton Defender Days, which includes a reenactment of events that got the gang killed as they tried to rob two banks in their home town, Coffeyville.

See something of Kansas from the sky, in a hot-air balloon.

Build a trip around the Bleeding Kansas/Civil War theme . It would include the Marais des Cygnes Massacre State Historic Site, locale of the bloodiest episode in the fight over slavery; the Mine Creek Battlefield State Historic Site, and Lawrence, the town that was burned by border ruffians.

Look for a Civil War reenactment. Annual events are set at Fort Scott and at the Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm in Olathe. The latter includes stagecoach rides and reenactments centered on political and social issues of the period, such as the 1864 elections, temperance and women’s suffrage.

Attend the annual Inter-Tribal Pow Wow in Topeka or any pow wow that fits your schedule.

Do your bird-watching at Cheyenne Bottoms, considered the largest marsh in the U.S. interior and the most important migration point for shore birds in North America.

Be a pioneer, of a sort, by joining a weekend covered wagon trip in the scenic Kansas Flint Hills. Camp with the wagons and eat chuck wagon meals.

Drop in on one of the state’s festivals devoted to beef, or cowboys, or cow towns, then sit down to a big helping of Kansas steak.

Sample the beer at Gella’s Diner and Liquid Bread Brewing Co. in Hays. Many nights, you can hear live music — jazz, samba, swing or the like — provided by local talent. If the timing is right, attend the Hays Oktoberfest, too.

Schedule some time at Dodge City Days, a 10-day event that celebrates Kansas’ western heritage in a big way, including rodeos, parades, motocross race, chuck wagon breakfast — and a shoot-’em-up High Noon Gunfight at Boot Hill Museum, a reenactment on a grand scale of a Old West shootout.

On select weekends, lend a hand at a working ranch, circa 1880, at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Manhattan. You may wind up helping churn butter, make lye soap, finish a quilt or any number of other tasks that were typical for men and women on a late 19th century ranch.

Attend the International Pancake Race in Liberal (the other half occurs on the same day in Olney, England). Women race against a clock flipping pancakes. Stick around for a pancake feed and various eating and flipping contests.

Find a rodeo on your route. There are quite a few on the annual schedule.

Dine at the 1857 Hays House Restaurant and Tavern in Council Grove, the oldest continuously operating restaurant west of the Mississippi. Council Grove was the last stop on the Santa Fe Trail.

Board the tram for the Maxwell Wildlife Refuge and Buffalo Tour to see the state’s largest buffalo herd, plus elk and scores of bird species.

Pursue milestones in African-American history, post-Civil War. Nicodemus, now a national historic site, is a still-living community founded by former slaves in 1877. And, in Topeka, the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site interprets the landmark court case and tracks the fight for equality to the present day.

Check out Wild West World, a May 2007 addition to the Kansas tourist product. Located in the Wichita area, it is the state’s first major theme park.

Be blown away amidst the 350 mechanical air movers at the Antique Fan Collectors Museum in Andover. Some are even coin operated.

Attend the Spinach Festival in Lenexa if only to see the world’s largest spinach salad tossed with pitchforks in a plastic pool.

Stay at Hedrick Bed and Breakfast in Nickerson, which is notable because it is an exotic animal farm, home to camels, giraffes, kangaroos, ostriches and zebras, among others. All guests get a tour and a chance to pet or even feed some of these animals.

For more information, consult Kansas Travel and Tourism at www.travelks.com

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