courtesy KansasTravel.org

A Wonderful Stop for Your Family

on the Kansas Prairie:

The Sternberg Museum of Natural History

Windmills in Kansas

On the vast prairie of western Kansas, a pleasant surprise awaits your family.  In Hays, Kansas, The Sternberg Museum of Natural History provides an unexpectedly entertaining and educational stop.

Hays, Kansas

Courtesy of Midwest Living

The drive along I-70 from Kansas City to Denver takes hours.  It spans over 600 miles/1000 km.  A friend on the social media site beBee recently bemoaned that part of her trip from the east coast to Denver.  Personally, I enjoy the open roads and the subtle pastels of the vast grain fields.  Most people, especially children, do not find it as scenic or entertaining.  Her comments reminded me of the Sternberg Museum of Natural History.

Hays, Kansas lies about half way between Kansas City and Denver.  Many roadside attractions lure travelers through the Great Plains.  See the World’s Largest Prairie Dog.  Or, view 8 states from a tower.  While these and others may be worthwhile stops, The Sternberg Museum of Natural History tops them.

Wooly Mammoth

In pre-historic times, Kansas was at times covered by sea.  In another age, dinosaurs roamed through a tropical environment.  Later came the Ice Age.  Some of North America’s best fossils derive from the Great Plains.  The Sternberg Museum of Natural History houses one of the best collections of fossils any where.

The Sternberg Museum of Natural History

Many permanent and temporary exhibits fill the museum.  Fossils, life-like displays, and video presentations can be explored.  Upon entering the museum, you immediately encounter a full-size replica of a Giant Kansas Pliosaur.  On the third floor, in the dinosaur diorama, a fierce looking T-Rex towers above you.  Pteranodon soar overhead.

The jaws and teeth of the plesiosaur fossil are long and menacing.  The Sternberg Museum boasts a complete fossil of this aquatic hunter.  The “Fish Within a Fish” fossils shows exactly what it says and is one of my favorites.

Fish Within a Fish

If you are in a rush, then you can quickly cover the Sternberg Museum of Natural History in about an hour.  I recommend that you slow down.  Take about 2 – 3 hours to peruse the exhibits.  No one in our family has been enamored by paleontology.  We all enjoyed this museum, though.  The mixture of actual fossils and believable displays bring it to life.

Hays, Kansas rests at the perfect spot for stop when traveling along I-70 in Kansas.  Clean hotels and restaurants make Hayes a great place to rest.  While you are there, take the time to entertain and enrich you and your family.  Stop in the Sternberg Museum of Natural History.  We are glad that we did.  You will be, too.  LINK

T. Rex!