Is there any exercise more highly recommended than walking? It can be done with a minimum of equipment and expertise, and it has side advantages. We see more on a walk through an area than on a drive or even a bike ride. We can stop and watch as deer feed, enjoy songbirds, or climb to an overlook for the view. It's possible to walk along streams, inside buildings, and around fountains. I have found that walking is excellent exercise and a wonderful way to explore my community.
Three years ago, after 25 years of working, exchanging ideas, and traveling together, my friend and I declared that we would launch into retirement together, even though we live miles apart. We thought of "doing lunch" once a week. Good, but fattening. Shopping in new places? Fun, but expensive. Knitting or quilting together would have been new skill-building activities, but sedentary.
Finally we realized that we both owned the book Hiking Kansas City (Eddy and Ballentine, 5th Edition, 2007), a guide loaded with maps, descriptions, and difficulty levels of area trails. Thus, an idea was born: We would meet at a different walking trail each week to pursue our common priorities of exercising and learning more about our city.
Since then we have walked almost every week, have explored most of the more than 125 trails listed in the book, have located many trails not listed in the book, and have gained two part-time walking buddies. We've found new trails from friends, from trail maps, and online. Johnson County has detailed maps of its trails ready to print at jcprd.com/parks_facilities/trailguide.cfm, and you can find maps for trails in Jackson County at www.jacksongov.org under Recreation/Trails.
The best part is that every walk is a mini-vacation. We are always surprised at how far we walk (according to our handy pedometers) and how much we exert ourselves (according to our perspiration levels.) More amazing is the variety of discoveries we've made.
Hiking/biking, nature, and equestrian trails are rarely visible from the streets and highways. Walks on these trails feel like trips to the country—creeks, landscaped back yards, and woodsy areas and hidden parks right here in our populous metropolis. For instance, a trail along Turkey Creek, from 75th Street and I-35, rambles into the woods, alongside the stream, and on to Merriam Drive, where we can buy a drink and sip it on the way back—six pleasant miles we had never even glimpsed from the freeway. Tomahawk Creek Greenway, I-435 and Mission Road to 143rd and Pflumm, is hidden in a similar fashion. On one walk around Liberty Memorial and into Penn Valley Park, we were able to examine the famous Kansas City Scout statue.
After long walks, of course, my group always wants refreshment. We look for local eating establishments and sometimes find little jewels like Madame Hatter's Tea Room in Bonner Springs, which we found after exploring the northern section of the Gary L. Haller Trail. Incidentally, that trail ends on Nelson Island in the Kansas River.
My walking buddy's cats are named Lewis and Clark, and we explored the very area visited by their namesakes along the Missouri River in Weston Bend State Park. Near the end of the Weston Bluffs Trail is the Avalon Café in downtown Weston—yum. At Sarah's Kitchen in Kearney, Mo., where we stopped on our way back from walking at Watkins Mill State Park, we stuffed ourselves on scrumptious homemade lunches for a pittance.
Sometimes—oh, dear—we find trails that are close to shopping venues. The Harry Wiggins Trolley Track Trail runs from the Country Club Plaza through Brookside and on beyond Waldo, passing the Crestwood shops, World's Window, Dave Smith the Lamp Maker, and many other shopping spots.
In Lone Jack, Mo., is a kitchen boutique called the Cockrell Mercantile Co., five cottages chock full of every gadget, plate, and cookware imaginable. One day we took as many steps in those shops as we did on the nearby James A. Reed Wildlife Area trails.
Then there's the Yellow Barn, beautifully stocked with home and garden goodies, off Ridgeview Road, convenient on our way home from the tall grass and woods of Prairie Center trails, west of Olathe.
There are many more stories to tell. We'd still be lost on unclear trails at Monkey Mountain, near Grain Valley, Mo., if not for my friend's good sense of direction. At Ernie Miller Park, near Olathe, we wandered onto an adjacent trail to the top of a hill with a spectacular view—until a robust man stepped out from a huge, intimidating truck and told us that we had entered a no-trespassing area. Sorry, sir!
Twice, during our indoor winter walks, we've enjoyed Harvester's CANstruction exhibits. And our unforgettable trek to the Konza Prairie in the Flint Hills was well worth the day trip. I could go on, but your stories will be even better.
Here are some tips for successful walking:
- Splurge on excellent walking shoes.
- Use plenty of insect spray.
- Don't be deterred by inclement weather. Layer up or walk inside. Shopping centers like Oak Park Mall, Mall of the Great Plains, and Crown Center are open early for walkers.
- Revisit favorite trails.
- Be consistent. Find a day every week that will work for all, or most.
Happy fitness and discovery!
