There’s plenty of caves in Kansas to explore (several hundred, in fact), so when you’re out on a trail, sometimes you find something awesome along the way. This specific trail in Ellsworth County leads to an important piece of Kansas history — this extraordinary cave! Come take a look and check out some Kansas history at the same time:
If you can’t tell by the sign, we’re headed out to Faris Caves on the Smoky Hill River trail in Ellsworth. Let’s get hiking!
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
In the 1880s, a man namaed Charles Griffee carved 3 caves out of the sandstone here to use as shelter, rather than digging a dugout.
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
Today, there are carvings of all sorts on the rock face. Names, initials, and this little animal in the middle here.
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
Each cave is about 12x12x10 feet. The coolness of the caves means they’d be a good option in Kansas’ hot summers. Later, early settlers of the Faris family purchased the land and built a house close to the caves, using them as a spring house and later a schoolhouse for a short time.
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
The entire area around the caves was inhabited by Native Americans before these settlers, so some of the carvings left behind might have been theirs. Well, before modern people started carving anything and everything here, that is.
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
All in all, it’s a magical place, and a pleasant surprise for any traveling the Smoky Hill River trail. Would you hike this trail?
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
Here’s a little video of what the area looks like, by Road Trippin’ on YouTube.
Steven Rodriquez/Flickr
In addition to this cave-themed piece of Kansas history, check out this other trail with a cave too!
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