This is a gem of a museum. We typically travel through Hayes twice a year and have been wanting to…read morevisit the Sternberg Museum. So, we finally planned our itinerary so we would be in Hays when the museum was open and when we could allow time for a visit. We were not disappointed. The staff at the front desk were amazing, especially the gentleman who I learned later was actually a paleontologist. He was very eager to talk about the museum and what attracted us to it. The main exhibits are on the 2nd level with a large, walk-through diarama on the 3rd floor. The exhibits were great - especially the famous "fish-in-a-fish" fossil. If you have any interest in natural history, you need to visit the Sternberg Museum.

The Sternberg is more than a natural history museum, it's an all immersive experience…read more Its exhibits go into great detail to show what Kansas life was from a few hundred years ago to a few million years ago. Dinosaurs, fossils, fish and wildlife, local settlers and inhabitants. It's all here. One of my favorite exhibits features live reptiles from the local habitat (turtles, lizards, etc...) that are paired up with displays to show how they evolved to their present state. I also like the educational discovery rooms. These rooms are full of toys, books and games. There's even a whale's skull. Do you want to dig for fossils? There's a pit where you and your youngsters can dig until your heart is content. Please watch the museum's website. They post interactive educational activities that are fun for all ages. I visited for a couple of hours. I could have stayed longer. I highly recommend.

Definitely the weirdest and quirkiest place I have been to in all my travels. Certainly very unique…read moreand I was not expecting to see The Main Dude in a state of decomposition in the backyard mausoleum. Yes, the embalmed body of the guy who built the Garden of Eden is on display in a glass-topped coffin. The entire place is bizarre and is built out of concrete. And the construction did not begin till the artist - an eccentric civil war vet with WILD political and religious ideas - was well into his 60s. The guided tour is nice and gives a good history about the place and the artist. Recommend visiting if you are in the Lucas/Wilson area. Weird. Delightfully weird.

The Garden of Eden is the incredible folk-art creation of Civil War veteran S. P. Dinsmoor, who…read morebegan building it in 1907. The property is packed with concrete sculptures depicting biblical stories, politics and Dinsmoor's very unique imagination. Definitely one-of-a-kind! It's interesting, kind of scary and neat all at the same time. He and his wife are actually in the mausoleum on site. You can view him in his coffin - he's a bit worse for ware :) The story/history is fascinating and this is worth a stop.

Besides having a lot of interesting stuff to look at the people that work there are amazing. This…read moreweekend we had our Cub Scout Chuckwagon camp and it rained :( so the boys did not get to go swimming. The museum stayed opened later so the boys could spend time there. The boys had such a great time. Hays is lucky to not only have neat places like this but to have the people that work at them!

I love the Midland Mercantile. I had a coupon from the Midland Railroad hotel. Once I found the…read moreMercantile, I did plenty of shopping. This store has everything! You know the World's largest hand painted Czech egg? The same artist paints goose eggs that are replicas. (I bought one). What a cool store. I can't begin to describe everything inside. So I'll start listing stuff: handbags, hand painted goose eggs, one of a kind baby items, Knick knacks, Kansas travel guide, Kansas tshirts, socks, weird things I don't even know what are, dog toys, sweaters. And the store is knowledgeable of the town and surrounding area. Go check it out if you're in Wilson, KS.

As a self-proclaimed Hippie and a Wanna-Be Child of the 60's...this is heaven! Psychedelics or not,…read morethis is a gooood time! The music, the art, the sun, the grass, the nudity, the liberated peoples!!! Last year (2009) was the celebration for the 40th Anniversary of Woodstock. Oh my word! I shouted along with Country Joe McDonald as he performed "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die," his infamous Woodstock sing-along song. I abandoned my belongings on the grass near the main stage to explore the festival and returned to see my items untouched. I hung out in a tent staring at the rapid-pace fingers of performers from India playing string instruments I don't know the name to. I crawled through several hippie buses and talked to the inhabitants of the buses and the artists that make them pretty. I was given a personal demonstration of a vehicle powered solely by walnut shells. I watched a band play for hours while festival goers volunteered to pedal the stationary bikes that produce the energy for the show. I didn't go anywhere near the vendors since there were so many scattered artists throughout the field. I don't know what else more I can say. I was in heaven!!!

I grew up watching Fort Hays State basketball games at Gross Memorial Coliseum…read more I remember Raymond Lee, Mike Miller, Mark Willey, Dennis Edwards, Steven McKelvey, Alonzo Goldston, Bill Morse and Gary Garner. I also remember celebrating NAIA championships in 1984 and 1985 and then a NCAA Division II championship in 1996. The Coliseum is also home to the women's basketball team, who won an NAIA championship 1991. The volleyball team plays here, too. There's other events, which include high school state basketball and wrestling tournaments, Kansas Special Olympics, graduations and concerts. The University has done a good job over the years investing and upgrading the venue.  It's updated the court, replaced the lower level seating with chair back seats and added a modern scoreboard with a videoboard. Concessions, while not overly abundant, are available and easy to access. Restrooms are also easy to find and kept clean. Parking is available in a lot to the north of the venue. It can back up a bit for a big game, but otherwise it's easy to enter and exit.

In addition to visiting the Grassroots Art Center and the Florence Deeble House today (see my…read morereview for the former), we also had the pleasure of visiting Eric Abraham's gallery/studio. We spoke to Eric for awhile - and not only is he a VERY talented artist (not self-taught), but he's also a very endearing person. Eric makes fantastic ceramic creations and they're all incredibly imaginative.

Pretty little golf club but the restaurant has gone way down in food and service lately. Sitting…read morehere for Sunday brunch with cold food, empty pans, slow service, and the sweet waitress has said "sorry about that" to every issue on a multitude of issues. Not enough help, some staff are clueless. Hoping leadership makes some good changes before the slow demise of a nice place in Hays.

My old stompin grounds!!! Love this gem of a country club, It's in great shape now and usually is…read more Love the par 3's on this course and the layout is an old fashioned short and tree-lined course, which you don't see much of anymore. You must curve the ball both ways if you want to attack the course. There are holes that force you to cut the ball and holes where a draw is much better. Matt in the pro-shop is knowledgeable and knows pretty much every member by name and is a good asset to the country club. 5 stars, always have fun playing golf out here!